Frederick Elementary School (FES) has a long history of educating young children in West Baltimore. In 2016, as part of Baltimore City Public Schools 21st Century School Building plan, the school board of commissioners decided to merge Frederick Elementary School and Samuel F.B Morse Elementary School.
That same year, FES became a neighborhood conversion public charter school with the Baltimore Curriculum Project. In fall 2017, FES moved into its newly renovated 21st-century school building and state-of-the-art learning facility.
In just a few years, we’ve transformed as a learning community by:
- Increasing student achievement—we are the highest-performing public school among our cohort with similar demographics
- Maintaining strong community culture—we celebrate and care for the surrounding neighborhoods
- Developing leaders at every level—we do this through the FES Way and our Habits of Mind.
School Leadership
Tetra Jackson
Principal
tetra.jackson@wearefrederick.org
FES is a special place. It is a place where parents are valued and included in the community, students feel safe to take risks and learn from mistakes, and staff members are empowered to grow personally and professionally. We are all teachers and learners. We are FREDERICK, where education is liberation!
Read more about Ms. Jackson’s recent appointment as FES Principal. She was Assistant Principal at FES prior to July 1, 2023, when her tenure as Principal began. FES’s former Principal, Harold Henry, Jr., is BCP’s new Chief of Schools.
Frederick Elementary School Distinctions
350 students, PreK through 5th grade with ESOL for all grades- Elementary-only focus and expertise in how younger learners learn best
- Vibrant, diverse community serving the neighborhood
- Four full-time instructional coaches for teacher and classroom support
- Free afterschool and summer programs for K-5 with instruction is 100% aligned with classroom instruction
- Variety of student clubs for fun and exploration: Chess, Bucket Drumming, Dance, Culinary Arts, National Girls Who Code program, Photography, Arts & Crafts
- Weekly foreign language, physical education, fine arts, and dance classes for every child
- Comprehensive community support including a food pantry that provides food to the general community every week and the Fresh Fruits & Vegetables Program which provides food bi-weekly
- High-quality professional development for teachers and staff
21st Century School Building
The new construction of an addition and the renovation of the original 1983 Frederick Elementary School on the corner of Millington and Frederick Avenue in southwest Baltimore, completed in 2017, gives FES students, educators, staff, and families an state-of-the-art school building. Facilities include:
- Separate, flexible, collaborative learning areas to promote social interaction
- New spaces for Physical Education, Music, Science Lab, Art, Media and Computer Lab
- Two outside recreation areas (playgrounds)
- Student-created teaching garden
- Family Resource Suite, Out of School Time Support (afterschool and summer programs), and Community Services Suite with a pantry
- Staff Wellness Suite for self-care activities
As one of six BCP schools in Baltimore City, FES students receive:
- Customized learning for each student through BCP’s research-based, individualized Direct Instruction program
- Restorative Practices for cultivating a positive community, relationship-building and problem-solving skills
- High quality instruction from well trained and supported teachers
The FES Way
The culture and focus on community are distinctive and special at FES. Called “The FES Way,” the school’s core values permeate every aspect of the curriculum, program, and expectations for how each FES community member, child and adult, treats one another.
In Principal Jackson’s words, the FES way is “the way of integrity, kindness, grit, passion, support, ambition, leadership, self-reflection, and more.” Read more about the FES Way.
Central to the FES Way and highly visible in the FES building are the Adinkra symbols of Ghana. Originally created by the Akan people of Ghana, these timeless symbols represent concepts or original thoughts that were viewed as essential aspects of life and the surrounding environment.
The Wisdom Knot symbolizes the foundation for FES, while additional Adinkra symbols represent school structures and programs.
Nyansapo (Wisdom): an especially revered symbol of the Akan, this symbol conveys the idea that “a wise person has the capacity to choose the best means to attain a goal.
Adinkrahene (Leadership): this symbol is said to have played an inspiring role in the designing of other symbols. It signifies the importance of playing a leadership role.
Mpatapo (Community): Represents the bond or knot that binds parties in a dispute to a peaceful, harmonious reconciliation. It is a symbol of peacemaking after strife.
Focus on STEM and Environmental Education
FES has participated in STEM Achievement in Baltimore Elementary Schools (SABES) since 2019. The in-school SABES curriculum, developed in partnership with Baltimore City Public Schools and Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering, includes 24 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) units (8 per grade level) in 
grades 1 through 5. These are aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards and the Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for English Language Arts and Mathematics.
In addition to this STEM focus, FES recently completed a teaching garden through the leadership of its student-led Green Team and in partnership with Bon Secours Urban Farm.
Robust Enrichment and Afterschool and Summer Programs
FES prides itself in offering students a variety of enriching and exciting afterschool and summer programs through its community partner
Clubs include
- Green Team
- Chess Team with The Boardroom Chess
- National Girls Who Code
- Bucket Drumming
- Dance
- Culinary Arts with So What Else
- Photography
- Arts & Crafts
FES’s Community Partner
Bon Secours Community Works is FES’s lead community partner, working collaboratively to provide FES families with the following resources:
- Family planning and support
- Counseling
- Job Training & Placement
- Computer Training
- Youth Employment
- Parenting Classes
- Early Head Start for Children up to 3 years old
- Eviction Prevention
- Health Insurance & Benefits
- Money Management
- Women’s Resource Drop In Center
- GED Training
Contact Justin Brown, Community School Coordinator, justin.brown@wearefrederick.org.
Frederick Elementary School
2501 Frederick Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21223
410-396-0830
Email: info@wearefrederick.org
