Policy Change

In our policy work, Elev8 Baltimore’s bottom line is student success: When students are healthier, and involved in high-quality afterschool and summer programs, they do better in school and in life. That benefits the students, their families and the community.

Policy & Engagement

At Elev8 Baltimore, we work in partnership with communities to change the policies and practices of schools, government agencies, community organizations and others to strengthen their focus on student success and neighborhood transformation. We also support efforts to have students and families  be  strong advocates for themselves and their communities.

Our priorities in the areas of advocacy and change are:

School-based Health

Chronic health problems contribute to chronic absenteeism. And chronic absenteeism leads to poor educational outcomes. But we know that adolescents with access to school-based health services, especially minority youth, show greater health knowledge and take significantly greater advantage of mental health and physical health services. That means they stay healthier, and come to school more often.

Community Schools and Out of School Time:

At Elev8 Baltimore, we believe that all schools should be community schools and have high quality partnerships that support students, parents, teachers and communities.

Studies have shown that locating out-of-school time programs, including afterschool, extended-day and summer learning programs on the school site promotes participation in these activities. And young people who participate in high-quality afterschool and summer programs improve attendance, gain confidence and try harder to learn.

Our partners in this effort include grass-roots community organizations, students and community leaders. Elev8 Baltimore is a member of the Maryland Coalition for Community Schools.

Supporting City Schools

We partner with other organizations to fight for full funding for City Schools to make sure Baltimore’s young people have the support and resources they need to succeed in and out of the classroom. We strongly supported passage of the Kirwan Commission’s recommendations to strengthen state education policy and increase funding for schools. We will continue to work with our partners to ensure the Kirwan recommendations are implemented effectively and equitably.

Elev8 Baltimore has developed a strong partnership with the Maryland Out of School Time Network (MOST), and provided support to MOST’s efforts in Annapolis to increase state funding for out of school time activities and anti-obesity efforts.

In our policy work, Elev8 Baltimore’s bottom line is student success: When students are healthier, and involved in high-quality afterschool and summer programs, they do better in school and in life. That benefits the students, their families and the community.