The People's Platform - Ashley Esposito for Baltimore City Board of Education 2026

Baltimore City Board of Education - 2026 Election

The People's
Platform

A comprehensive plan for Baltimore's 76,000 students - grounded in community voice, research-backed governance, and the belief that our city has what it takes.

Ashley "Ash" Esposito Policy Committee Chair First Elected Mom SW Baltimore ashleyesposito.com

Setting the Stage

The Moment We Are In

Baltimore City Public Schools is at a generational crossroads. A new CEO arrives July 1, 2026. Federal funding is under attack. And 76,000 young people are counting on the adults in the room to lead with courage, community, and clarity.

76K

Students in City Schools across 151 schools

$1.9B

Annual district budget - 13th highest per pupil nationally

600+

Hours of board service by Ash in year one alone

2022

Two elected commissioners joined the board for the first time

This platform was built from what Baltimore families, students, educators, and community members actually said they need. It names opportunities honestly, proposes concrete actions, and holds everyone - including Ash - to a real accountability standard.

Every challenge named in this platform is also an opportunity. Baltimore has extraordinary assets: a deep tradition of organizing, powerful community institutions, an incredible corps of educators, and a student population full of brilliance and resilience. The question is whether we build governance structures worthy of them.

The Community Engagement Report produced through the Alma Advisory Group CEO search process - representing months of listening to students, families, staff, elected officials, and community members across every neighborhood - is the compass for this platform. It shaped the CEO search. It shapes this platform. It will shape Ash's second term.

Part One

The Record - What Ash Has Built

Before asking for your vote for a second term, here is an honest accounting of what the first term accomplished - and what it proved is possible.

Historic Firsts

Historic First

First Ever Elected Commissioners

Two commissioners, including Commissioner Esposito, are the first ever elected members of the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. That is a historic milestone that belongs to every Baltimore voter, and a reflection of the community's desire for greater voice in how their schools are governed.

First in History

Elected Mom

The first parent elected at-large to the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. Her lived experience as a mom - watching her child grow up in a City Schools neighborhood, navigating the same schools and systems as every other Baltimore family - has been in the room at every vote. When policies land, she knows where they land.

Leadership Role

Policy Committee Chair

As Chair of the Policy Committee, every major policy change to City Schools - curriculum, discipline, attendance, equity, staffing - passes through Ash's committee. She has directed that agenda toward community-centered outcomes and equity frameworks.

Governance Commitment

600+ Hours, Year One

"I am only guaranteed 48 months. So I am going ham for 48 months." Nearly 600 hours of board service in the first year alone. Professional development in other districts. Learning what excellent governance looks like - and bringing it home.

Student Voice

Testified for Student Voting Rights

Before even taking her seat, Ash testified in the Maryland General Assembly for HB433 - to give the student commissioner a full voting seat on the board. A voice without a vote is optional. That fight continues.

Community Advocacy

Moratorium on School Closures

At the Baltimore Collegiate vote in January 2026, Ash publicly called for a moratorium and deeper community impact study before permanently closing schools that serve Black boys and act as neighborhood anchors. She was in the dissenting minority - and she named it clearly.

CEO Search

Transparent, Community-Driven Search

Pushed consistently for the transparent, community-rooted CEO search that launched in 2025. The six community forums, the Alma Advisory Group engagement process, and the Community Engagement Report reflect what happens when elected commissioners demand accountability from the start.

Access and Inclusion

Disability Justice on the Board

The first commissioner to bring neurodivergent lived experience to the board - navigating her own learning journey and now raising a neurodivergent child. Has consistently pushed for universal screening, IEP compliance, and neurodivergent inclusion as structural commitments.

Part Two

What Good Governance Actually Looks Like

Research is clear: the quality of a school board's governance is directly linked to student outcomes. This is not about meetings and motions. It is about who the board is accountable to, how it makes decisions, and whether it does the hard work of continuous improvement.

The board of education is not a supervisory body that sits above the CEO and second-guesses every decision. It is a governance body that sets ends - what outcomes we expect for students - and holds the CEO accountable for achieving them within guardrails the community has set. This distinction changes everything.

School Boards Set Goals and Monitor Them

Research consistently links school board behavior to student outcomes. A study by the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB Lighthouse Study, Delagardelle, 2008) found that board members in improving districts routinely referred to student data to guide decisions and received information on a regular basis from superintendents, curriculum directors, and community sources. Waters and Marzano (2006), in a meta-analysis of 27 studies, found clear links between the priorities of school board and district leaders and student achievement - districts with higher outcomes showed alignment of board, district, and school efforts around non-negotiable goals. The NSBA's Key Work of School Boards framework (Gemberling, 2000; updated 2015) identifies vision, accountability, policy, community leadership, and board-superintendent relationships as the five pillars of effective governance. A study of 10 school boards in British Columbia (LaRocque and Coleman, 1993) found that boards in higher-performing districts had a clearer sense of goals, shared firm beliefs about students, and deliberately articulated those values with their communities.

What the Board Does

Sets vision and measurable goals for student outcomes
Adopts guardrails that protect community values
Hires, evaluates, and supports the CEO
Adopts the budget aligned with the strategic plan
Establishes and reviews policy annually
Engages community and communicates results
Hires and evaluates the Board's Executive Officer
Does its own professional development
Monitors progress - not manages operations

What the CEO Does

Leads day-to-day operations of the district
Implements the board's strategic plan
Hires, develops, and manages staff
Prepares and monitors the budget
Communicates proactively with the board
Brings recommendations - with data and options
Builds the accountability system for all staff
Is the first learner, teacher, advocate, and collaborator
Runs the system - within the guardrails the board sets

The Board-CEO Partnership is Interdependent

The Broad Academy's "Superintendent/Board Relations" framework (Old Mission Leadership Partners, 2011) identifies five hallmarks of peak-performing governance teams: united in service to children with no other agendas; board and CEO in an interdependent relationship where everyone understands their distinct roles; shared indicators of success for the district; relationships built on trust, loyalty, and respect; and strong, durable community linkages. The CRSS Reform Governance Model identifies five main areas of governance-management conflict that boards must navigate: board meetings structure, constituent service, management oversight, policy development, and theory of action.

Research on superintendent tenure and board stability is also instructive. Togneri and Anderson (2003) found that board members and superintendents in high-achieving districts "set their courses and stayed with them for years - continuity allowed superintendents and boards to grow together." Snipes, Doolittle, and Herlihy (2002) found that in large urban districts that raised achievement while reducing gaps, stability of board membership and low superintendent turnover "were necessary prerequisites for meaningful change." (Sources: "Best Practices for School Boards," Waters and Marzano, 2006; Togneri and Anderson, 2003; Snipes et al., 2002.)

This is not a principal-subordinate relationship. It is a partnership. The board holds the CEO accountable through the annual evaluation - the primary tool of governance accountability, used rigorously every year, not saved for contract renewal. Per John Carver's Policy Governance model, the board evaluates system performance and "pins it" on the superintendent - but only on criteria the board has clearly stated in advance, not on personal irrelevancies. (John Carver, "Remaking Governance," American School Board Journal, March 2000.)

A new CEO considering Baltimore is evaluating the board just as much as the board is evaluating candidates. A board known for micromanagement, adversarial behavior, or not doing its own work signals to any strong candidate that they are set up to fail before they begin. Ash knows this firsthand as an executive director herself: no organization succeeds unless everyone rolls up their sleeves.

The Six Standards of Effective Board Governance

Drawn from the Board Effectiveness Diagnostic (BED) developed by Education Board Partners based on their Standards for Effective Charter School Board Governance - the framework Ash uses to hold herself accountable as a commissioner. (Education Board Partners, "Board Effectiveness Diagnostic," edboards.org.)

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Student Achievement First

Know how outcomes are defined and measured
Review data by subgroup quarterly
Track gaps and hold CEO accountable in evaluation
Benchmark against high-performing schools

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Exceptional Leadership

Annual comprehensive CEO evaluation
Monitor CEO goal progress quarterly
Support CEO professional development
Succession planning for both emergency and planned transitions

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Exemplary Governance

Diverse board in race, gender, skills, perspective
Clear role expectations for every member
Strategic, well-run meetings
Annual board self-assessment

🎯

Strategic Action

Annual board goals driving all work
Multi-year strategic plan approved by board
Governance and oversight - not management
Community engaged in major decisions

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Resources Used Wisely

Quarterly financial dashboard review
Full financial policies and procedures
Annual audit reviewed by all members
Board giving policy - all members contribute

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Legal and Regulatory

Compliance data reviewed routinely
All school policies reviewed annually
Bylaws reviewed every three years
Equity review of policies that may disadvantage students

Sources for governance framework: Iowa Association of School Boards Lighthouse Study (Delagardelle, 2008); Waters and Marzano, "School Leadership That Works" (2006); NSBA Key Work of School Boards (Gemberling, 2000); LaRocque and Coleman (1993); Togneri and Anderson (2003); Snipes, Doolittle, and Herlihy (2002); Alsbury (2008); Bartusek (2000); John Carver, "Remaking Governance," American School Board Journal (March 2000); Broad Academy/Old Mission Leadership Partners, "Superintendent/Board Relations" (2011); Clayton County Public Schools Board of Education Retreat materials, Jasmine Bowles (October 2019); Education Board Partners, Board Effectiveness Diagnostic (edboards.org).

The Board Office: Governance Infrastructure

The Board Office is the full-time professional staff that makes governance possible. Unlike the rest of the district, the Board Office answers to the board - not the CEO. The board hires the Board's Executive Officer directly, evaluates their performance, and is responsible for ensuring this office is adequately staffed and resourced.

An under-resourced Board Office means commissioners are navigating a billion-dollar institution without infrastructure. It means the board risks unconsciously deferring to district administration simply because the administration has more capacity. The board's independence from the CEO requires a Board Office strong enough to support it - and Ash's commitment is to treat this as the essential governance infrastructure it is.

How We Read the Data

Challenges Are Opportunities

Every gap in outcomes is a place where investment, policy, and community power can make a difference. This platform frames every challenge as an opportunity to do something - not as a reason to assign blame.

Baltimore City Public Schools has real, documented challenges. This platform does not minimize them. But naming a problem as a failure leads to scapegoating. Naming it as an opportunity leads to action. The following data points represent the largest areas where strategic investment and equitable policy can produce generational change.

54%

Students chronically absent - an opportunity to address transportation, safety, and belonging

10%

Math proficiency - an opportunity for targeted investment in early numeracy and permanent tutoring

71%

Graduation rate - an opportunity to build pathways that match every student's strengths

$48M

Federal funds clawed back - an opportunity to build Baltimore's own funding resilience

The district has real strengths to build on: ELA proficiency up 8.8 percentage points since 2022 - the second-largest reading gains among large urban districts nationally. Nearly doubled fine arts teachers. Thirty new school buildings constructed. A community engagement process for the CEO search that set a national standard. These are real wins. A second term builds from them.

Part Three

The Ten Pillars

Concrete commitments, concrete actions, and concrete accountability. No vague aspirations. Each pillar names the opportunity, names what Ash will do about it, and names how you will know if it is happening.

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Pillar 1 of 10

New CEO - A Partnership Built to Last

The most consequential governance decision of 2026 is not just who is hired - it is how the board and the new CEO build a working relationship strong enough to deliver for 76,000 students through federal hostility, budget pressure, and community rebuilding.

1

Community Engagement Report as the Governing Compass

The report from the Alma Advisory Group process is not a historical document. It is the foundation for the new CEO's year-one priorities and the basis for board goals. Every platform commitment flows from what Baltimore's community said it needed.

How this happensThe board embeds specific, measurable year-one CEO goals drawn directly from the Community Engagement Report into the CEO contract. Those goals form the primary basis for the first annual evaluation.
2

A First Year Built on Trust, Not Pressure

Research from the Broad Academy and urban district studies consistently shows that the CEO's first year should begin with relationship-building, community listening, and plan development - not immediate deliverables against metrics set before they arrived. The board's job in year one is to be a genuine sounding board, not a pressure campaign.

How this happensThe board establishes quarterly formative check-ins in year one - three formative, one summative. The first-year evaluation is "soft," focused on transition indicators and relationship-building, with harder accountability measures beginning in year two.
3

The Board Does Its Own Work

According to John Carver's Policy Governance model and the CRSS reform governance framework, the board's failure mode is getting stuck managing operations rather than governing outcomes. Board meetings should be the board's meetings - not the staff's meetings for the board. Fifty percent of board time should be spent monitoring progress toward student outcome goals.

How this happensAsh commits to pushing for an annual board calendar that dedicates at least 50% of agenda time to monitoring goal progress. Board meetings leave operations to the CEO and focus on ends, equity data, and community voice.
4

Annual Evaluation as the Real Accountability Tool

The annual evaluation is where governance accountability lives. It should not be a sporadic event or a contract renewal negotiation. It should be a year-long process - formative quarterly assessments building to a summative annual review - grounded in clear, pre-agreed goals, not the preferences of the most vocal trustee.

How this happensThe board adopts a formal evaluation process before the new CEO arrives. Criteria are public, agreed upon in advance, and directly tied to community-identified goals. Results are reported in summary form to the community each year.

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Pillar 2 of 10

Every Child in Every Seat - Attendance as Opportunity

More than half of City Schools students missed more than 18 days of school last year. This is the clearest signal of systemic barriers - transportation, safety, mental health, housing instability - that, when addressed, unlock everything else on this platform.

1

MTA-City Schools Service-Level Partnership

Baltimore is the only school district in Maryland where public transit is the primary mode of transportation for students. Nearly 29,000 students - the equivalent of almost three-quarters of the middle and high school student population - rely on MTA buses daily to get to and from school. (Fund for Educational Excellence, "Not In Service: Why Public Transit Must Aim to Serve Students," 2021.) Yet MTA routes were designed primarily to move adult workers downtown, not to connect the neighborhoods where students live to the schools they attend. The 2015-2018 MTA origin-destination study that informed route development did not even include surveys of riders under 18 - omitting a group that makes up an estimated 18% of annual MTA ridership. Students face unreliable buses, safety threats at stops, commutes of 45 minutes or more, and crowded conditions that contribute directly to chronic absenteeism and lost learning time. The FFEE study found that 73% of student households in the sample reported having no car - making reliable public transit not a convenience but a civil right. This is a systems problem with a systems solution.

How this happensAsh will advocate for a binding service-level agreement between City Schools and MTA guaranteeing minimum route frequency on all school routes, real-time notifications, and a joint rapid-response protocol. The FFEE study recommends that the MTA, City Schools, the City of Baltimore, and the State of Maryland work together toward a fully funded, safer, and more equitable transit system that explicitly accounts for student riders - including when developing regular (not just supplemental) bus routes. This requires state legislative advocacy and it will be a priority in Annapolis.
2

Free Transit Passes for All City Schools Students Grades 6-12

Cities that have implemented universal student transit passes have seen measurable attendance improvements. The cost is substantially less than the cost of continued chronic absence - in lost academic outcomes, lost career pathways, and lost civic participation. The Fund for Educational Excellence explicitly recommends that City Schools and the City of Baltimore share the cost of providing every City Schools high school student with year-round, unlimited access to MTA - citing Washington D.C.'s Kids Ride Free program as a model. The FFEE report notes that without restrictions on when students could ride, they could access extracurricular activities, internships, and employment - all of which are shown to improve school engagement and outcomes. The OneCard program in its current form is distance-limited, time-restricted, and leaves thousands of students without reliable access. (Fund for Educational Excellence, "Not In Service," 2021.)

How this happensThe board advocates to the city and state for universal free MTA CharmCard passes for all City Schools students in grades 6-12, with no time-of-day restriction. Ash will build coalition with City Council and the Mayor's office to make this a budget priority, using the FFEE framework as the policy foundation.
3

Attendance Navigators in Every High School

Woodbridge Elementary School reduced chronic absenteeism by 18.7 percentage points through proactive outreach, data tracking, and real connection with families. The model works. It requires dedicated staff who reach out within 48 hours of a pattern absence - not administrators, but trained community connectors.

How this happensFund dedicated attendance navigator positions at every City Schools high school through the Blueprint for Maryland's Future funding framework. Require outreach within 48 hours of a pattern absence and document the barrier identified so the board can see systemwide patterns.
4

Immigrant Family Safety Policy

Under current federal policy, immigrant families are keeping children home out of fear that schools are surveillance environments. This is a policy problem. The board has the authority to make clear that City Schools facilities are safe spaces - and to communicate that clearly in Spanish, Amharic, and other languages spoken by City Schools families.

How this happensBoard adopts a formal written ICE non-cooperation policy with a clear communication plan. District communications are translated into all primary household languages. No district employee cooperates with immigration enforcement except under court order.
5

Public Chronic Absenteeism Dashboard

You cannot address what you cannot see. A school-by-school, publicly accessible chronic absenteeism dashboard updated monthly during the school year creates accountability for every principal, every parent, and the board itself.

How this happensRequire district to publish and maintain a public absenteeism dashboard disaggregated by school, race, grade level, and IEP status. Ash's Policy Committee will establish this as a policy requirement in year one.

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Pillar 3 of 10

Reading, Math, and Real Learning - Academic Recovery as Investment

Only 10% of City Schools students test proficient in math. But ELA proficiency has grown 8.8 points since 2022 - among the largest gains of any large urban district nationally. The opportunity is to accelerate what is working, fund what has been cut, and build permanent systems rather than crisis responses.

1

Permanent High-Dosage Tutoring - Not a COVID Response

The Trump administration's 2025 clawback of $48 million ended tutoring for 1,100 City Schools students and after-school programs for 3,000 more. These programs were working. They should be permanent infrastructure - not federal-funding-dependent programs that disappear at 5 p.m. on a Friday.

How this happensThe board advocates for city and state funding to replace and permanently sustain high-dosage tutoring and after-school programs. This is a budget priority argument made to the city council and the Maryland legislature - not a federal grant application.
2

Mandatory Universal Dyslexia Screening

Ash did not receive the supports she needed as a student - a gap that cost her options and nearly cost her a diploma. As a neurodivergent person from a neurodivergent family, she knows firsthand how early identification and the right accommodations can completely change a child's trajectory. Thousands of City Schools students are in the same position right now. Universal screening in grades K-2 is a research-backed intervention with clear evidence of long-term academic benefit.

How this happensPolicy Committee adopts universal dyslexia screening requirement for grades K-2. Mandatory parent notification. Mandatory accommodation plans. IEP compliance monitoring dashboard with public reporting. Ash will champion this through her Policy Chair role in year one.
3

Universal Pre-K Advocacy

The return on early childhood investment is higher than any other educational investment. Baltimore City does not provide universal pre-K. The Blueprint for Maryland's Future creates a framework to advocate for accelerated funding. The board cannot build this alone - but it can be the loudest and most consistent advocate for it at the state level.

How this happensBoard formally adopts universal pre-K as a legislative advocacy priority. Ash coordinates with city council members, Mayor's office, and state delegation to push for accelerated Blueprint implementation of early childhood funding timelines.
4

Protect and Expand Arts Education

One of the genuine accomplishments of the Santelises era: fine arts teachers nearly doubled from 174 to 328 since 2017-18. Arts education improves attendance, academic outcomes, and student belonging. It must be protected from budget cuts and expanded to every school.

How this happensAsh will advocate as a guardrail that the superintendent will not reduce fine arts staffing as a budget-balancing measure without board review. Fine arts is named as a non-negotiable in the strategic plan.
5

Community Schools in Every High-Need School

Wolfe Street Academy rose from 77th to 2nd among Baltimore City elementary schools through the community school model - co-locating health, social services, and family supports inside the building. This is not a miracle. It is the result of sustained, funded investment in a proven model.

How this happensExpand community school coordinator funding to every Title I school, using Blueprint per-pupil supplemental funding. Establish direct lines between community school coordinators and city health, housing, and social service agencies - not informal relationships that can evaporate with staff turnover.
6

Trades and Career Pathways as a First Choice, Not a Fallback

A four-year college degree is one path. It is not the only path and it is not automatically the best path for every student. Baltimore needs electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians, construction managers, welders, and health care workers as much as it needs college graduates - and those careers pay family-sustaining wages from day one. CTE and trades programs should be presented to students with the same pride, the same resources, and the same counselor attention as AP courses. A student who chooses a trade is not settling. They are building a career that builds this city. The trades-to-college pipeline also runs both directions - many skilled trades workers pursue further education later, on their terms, from a position of financial stability.

How this happensCTE programs are industry-connected with real employer partnerships in the Baltimore-Washington corridor - not credential-mill programs that lead nowhere. Trades pathways are introduced in middle school, not offered as a last-resort alternative for students who have already struggled. Counselors are trained and expected to recommend trades and CTE as first-choice options. Every CTE pathway has a documented post-graduation employment connection and a living-wage outcome. The new CEO's year-one plan includes a CTE equity audit examining which schools have access to which programs and whether students in under-resourced neighborhoods have the same options as students elsewhere.

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Pillar 4 of 10

Safe Schools, Whole Children - Wellness as Infrastructure

A child who is frightened, grieving, hungry, or in crisis cannot learn. The board cannot fix Baltimore's poverty - but it can ensure every school has the staff, culture, and resources to see every child as a complete human being.

1

One Mental Health Professional Per Building

A mental health professional shared between three buildings is not a mental health professional. They are a symbol. The proposed FY2026 budget allocates $85 million for counselors, social workers, and college advisors. Ash's commitment is that no mental health professional should be required to serve multiple buildings - and that this is a floor, not a ceiling.

How this happensAsh will advocate for this as a guardrail in the CEO's goals: the superintendent will not allow any school to go without a dedicated mental health professional through staffing arrangements or budget cuts.
2

End Out-of-School Suspension for K-2 Students

Suspending five, six, and seven-year-old children does not change behavior. Research consistently shows it increases absenteeism, feeds the school-to-prison pipeline, and disproportionately harms Black children with unaddressed learning differences or trauma. The policy limiting this exists. The compliance monitoring does not.

How this happensPolicy Committee requires annual public compliance reporting on K-2 suspension rates by school, disaggregated by race and disability status. Ash will use the Policy Chair role to ensure the policy that exists is actually followed.
3

Strengthen Our Infrastructure of Mental Health Partners

City Schools already has partners doing meaningful, evidence-based mental health work inside our school buildings. The opportunity is not to invent something new - it is to invest in what is already working, remove the barriers that prevent these partners from serving students effectively, and build a stable funding infrastructure so their presence does not disappear when a grant runs out. Too many proven programs end not because they failed but because the funding did. The board's job is to fix that.

How this happensThrough the Safety and Wholeness Committee, Ash will push for a formal mapping of current mental health and wellness partners operating in City Schools buildings - identifying where there are gaps, where there are barriers to participation, and where strong partnerships exist that need sustainable local funding to continue. The goal is a districtwide infrastructure of community mental health partners that is woven into the school system, not bolted on by grant cycles.
4

Safe Passage as a District Commitment

Students navigate gun violence every day to reach school. Safe passage programs - adult monitors on dangerous routes, coordination with community violence intervention organizations - have shown results in reducing near-school violence. These programs should be in the district budget, not dependent on grants.

How this happensFund safe passage programs through the district operating budget with a dedicated line item. Establish partnerships with credible messengers and community violence intervention organizations as formal district contracts, not volunteer arrangements.

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Pillar 5 of 10

Buildings That Support Learning - Facilities as Dignity

Johns Hopkins research found City Schools students lost 1.5 million hours of class time over four years due to building failures. A school building that harms children is not an operational inconvenience. It is an equity issue. And a building where classrooms cannot be locked is a safety emergency.

1

Classroom Door Locks in All Schools

The Baltimore Teachers Union stated explicitly that the Trump administration's federal fund clawback halted the installation of door locks in every classroom. In a moment when school safety is a national emergency, the inability to lock a classroom door is unacceptable.

How this happensAsh will advocate for city and state bridge funding specifically to complete classroom door lock installation across all schools in 2026 - not as a capital project dependent on federal reimbursement, but as an emergency safety expenditure from the district's reserve fund.
3

Safe and Healthy Schools - A Public Commitment

Every family in Baltimore City has the right to know that their child's school building is safe and healthy. Where hazards have been identified in school buildings, parents deserve transparency about what is being done and on what timeline. Addressing these conditions fully requires investment beyond what the district can absorb alone. The board must be a vocal advocate with our city and state representatives to secure the dedicated funding needed to remediate building hazards and bring every City Schools facility up to the standard every child deserves.

How this happensPolicy Committee requires a public facilities health report published annually, school by school, documenting known hazard status and remediation timelines. Ash will actively engage city and state representatives to advocate for dedicated funding to support remediation efforts that exceed what the district budget can absorb. No family should have to wonder whether their child's school is safe.
4

Facilities Equity Audit

Not all City Schools buildings are equal - and the disparities often follow race and income lines. An independent facilities equity audit that maps building condition against student poverty and race is the foundation for equitable capital planning.

How this happensCommission an independent facilities equity audit in year one with results made public. Future capital investments are prioritized based on audit findings, not historical patterns or political access.

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Pillar 6 of 10

Teachers Who Stay - Educator Support as the Foundation

Teaching in Baltimore City is extraordinarily hard work. The starting salary in Maryland is about to hit $60,000. But compensation alone does not keep teachers. Culture, support, and leadership do. A great board creates conditions where great educators stay.

1

BTU Contract as the Floor, Not the Ceiling

The 2024-2027 BTU contract is a genuine step forward. Ash's commitment is that every provision of that contract is implemented fully - and that budget pressure is never used as justification for non-compliance. The board adopted this contract. It owns what is in it.

How this happensAsh will advocate for contract compliance as a board guardrail: the superintendent will not allow violations of the BTU contract as a budget management strategy. Annual compliance review is part of the CEO evaluation.
2

End the Culture of Asking Teachers to Cover Systemic Failures

Teachers in City Schools are regularly asked to manage overcrowded classrooms, work without adequate supplies, cover mental health crises without support, and absorb every institutional failure. These are governance failures. The board should track them and hold leadership accountable.

How this happensEstablish a formal process for documenting and reporting on conditions that require teachers to compensate for systemic gaps - substitute shortages, supply deficits, understaffing. This data goes to the board and informs the CEO evaluation.
3

Multilingual Educator Recruitment

As Baltimore's immigrant population grows, so does the need for Spanish, Amharic, and French-speaking educators. City Schools should partner with HBCU teacher preparation programs, Coppin State, and Morgan State to recruit and retain multilingual educators - with targeted incentives to make Baltimore a destination for bilingual teachers.

How this happensNew CEO receives a board recommendation within 90 days of arrival to develop a multilingual educator recruitment strategy with specific partnership agreements, loan forgiveness advocacy, and hiring pipeline targets.

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Pillar 7 of 10

Community Schools, Not Charity Schools - Family and Community Power

The organizing impulse that created elected board seats in 2022 is the most important asset this school system has. This platform is built on the belief that the people closest to the problems are closest to the solutions.

1

Parent Leadership Academies in Every School

Parents who understand how the school system works, what their rights are, and how to advocate effectively are more engaged - and their children do better. Not top-down parent training, but peer-led multi-session programs that build genuine civic power among Baltimore families. But leadership academies are only part of the picture. Schools themselves must be welcoming environments where families feel they belong - not places that only contact families when something is wrong. Families should see themselves as partners in their child's education, not bystanders to it. That means warm, proactive outreach from principals and teachers; family events that celebrate community culture and student achievement; translated communications; flexible meeting times that work for working families; and real, meaningful roles for parents in school decision-making beyond SGAs and PTAs. When families feel welcomed, they show up - and when families show up, students do better.

How this happensPartner with community organizations already doing civic leadership development - including Baltimore Unity Hall's community partners - to design and fund school-based parent leadership academies in every City Schools school. The curriculum is co-created with parents, not designed for them. The new CEO receives a board recommendation in year one to develop a districtwide family engagement strategy with measurable targets for family participation and welcoming school climate, disaggregated by school.
2

Board Meetings in Schools Across the City

The board holds public meetings at City Schools headquarters on North Avenue. Most Baltimore families cannot easily access that location. Getting to the people rather than asking the people to come to you is a basic principle of community organizing - and it should be a basic principle of governance. The board has already seen what is possible: hosting board meetings in school buildings across the city generated real community energy, higher attendance, and direct connection between families and their elected commissioners. That model should be formalized and expanded.

How this happensAsh will advocate for quarterly community sessions held in school buildings across rotating neighborhoods - Cherry Hill, Sandtown, Southeast Baltimore, Hamilton - where families set the agenda. These are listening sessions, not town halls where commissioners present. Building on the success the board has already experienced hosting meetings in schools, Ash will push to make community-based board meetings a permanent, calendared commitment rather than an occasional event.
3

Real Community Engagement on School Closures

The Baltimore Collegiate closure demonstrated that the current process for school closures is inadequate. Schools are community anchors and they are central to how families access school choice in this city. Closing a school is also a direct disruption to the school choice process - it removes an option families have built their transportation, their routines, and their plans around. Closing one requires a genuine moratorium, an independent community impact study, and a process where community voices have real authority to delay or reverse the decision.

How this happensPolicy Committee drafts and adopts a formal school closure policy that establishes a moratorium period, an independent community impact study requirement that examines the effect on the surrounding school community and the school choice ecosystem, and a community review process with real authority. This is a year-one Policy Committee priority.
4

Language Access as a Civil Right, Not a Nicety

Every City Schools communication - meeting notices, discipline letters, report cards, IEP documents, bus route changes - should be available in Spanish and Amharic at minimum. Language access is not optional. It is a legal requirement and a moral obligation to the 54.5% of City Schools students who are economically disadvantaged and the growing multilingual population in Baltimore City.

How this happensPolicy Committee adopts a language access policy with specific translation requirements, a timeline for compliance, and an annual compliance report. The new CEO receives this as a year-one implementation expectation.

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Pillar 8 of 10

Defending Baltimore from Washington - Federal Defense

The Trump administration clawed back $48 million in promised federal funds. It ended tutoring for 1,100 students and after-school programs for 3,000. It named Baltimore by name in an attack. The board is not a passive recipient of federal policy. It must be an active defender of the children in its care.

1

Federal Funding Stability Reserve

The City Schools rainy day fund of approximately $69 million was built for genuine emergencies - and it absorbed the $48 million federal clawback without a financial crisis. But that cannot be the permanent strategy. A dedicated federal funding stability reserve - a separate budget line built specifically to buffer against future clawbacks - is prudent governance in the current federal environment.

How this happensAsh will advocate for the board to formally adopt a federal volatility reserve policy with a target fund level and a contribution schedule. This is a fiscal responsibility argument, not a political one.
2

ICE Non-Cooperation Policy - Formal and Permanent

Families should not fear that sending their child to school exposes them to immigration enforcement. The board has the authority to adopt a clear, formal policy - and to communicate it in every language spoken by City Schools families.

How this happensPolicy Committee adopts a permanent, board-level ICE non-cooperation policy in year one. Communication plan developed in partnership with immigrant community organizations. Published in Spanish, Amharic, and French at minimum.
3

Coalition with Other Urban Boards

Baltimore City is not alone in facing federal hostility toward urban public education. Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, and other cities face the same attacks. Shared legal strategies, advocacy approaches, and coordinated political pressure are more powerful than each district fighting alone.

How this happensAsh will advocate for City Schools to formally join the Council of the Great City Schools and other national urban education coalitions - and to use those platforms to coordinate advocacy with peer districts facing the same federal threats.

⚖

Pillar 9 of 10

Equity is Not Optional - Race, Disability, and Belonging

The City Schools student body is 90% students of color and 54.5% economically disadvantaged. Outcomes stratified by race and disability are not accidental. They are the result of decades of policy choices - and they can be changed by better policy choices, made deliberately.

1

Equity Audit of Every Major Budget Decision

Before the board approves a budget, a public equity audit should document which communities benefit and which are disadvantaged by proposed spending. Schools serving the highest-poverty, highest-need students should receive proportionally more support - not the same share as schools in more advantaged neighborhoods.

How this happensPolicy Committee adopts a formal equity review requirement for all budget proposals above a threshold amount. Results are presented publicly before any vote. This becomes a board norm within year one.
2

Discipline Equity - Public Reporting and Real Targets

Black students and students with disabilities are suspended at higher rates than white students for identical behaviors. This is documented, and it is wrong. The board should require annual public reporting on discipline disparities, set specific reduction targets, and hold school leaders accountable for meeting them through the CEO evaluation chain.

How this happensAnnual discipline equity report published school-by-school, disaggregated by race, disability status, and grade. Report is tied to the CEO's annual evaluation as a board guardrail. Schools with persistent disparities receive targeted support and intervention - not just scrutiny.
3

IEP and 504 Compliance - With Families at the Center

Students with legally mandated accommodation plans whose plans are not being followed are being denied their civil rights. City Schools has documented IEP compliance gaps. Ash's commitment is that no child's legal education rights are treated as aspirational. But compliance monitoring cannot be purely administrative. The families of students with IEPs and 504 plans are the most direct witnesses to whether accommodations are actually being implemented - and they are too often the last people consulted when something is not working. Their experience belongs at the center of how the board understands and measures compliance.

How this happensThe board commissions a comprehensive IEP and 504 audit - not just a compliance rate report, but a qualitative examination of whether students and families are experiencing the supports they are legally entitled to. The audit includes structured listening sessions with families of students with IEPs and 504 plans, conducted in partnership with disability justice organizations and in multiple languages. Results are published publicly, school by school. A public compliance monitoring dashboard is established with data updated annually. The executive director of special education has the authority and resources to enforce compliance. IEP compliance rate is a board goal with a target above 95% - but the audit and family listening process are the means of getting there honestly, not just bureaucratically.

🗳

Pillar 10 of 10

Democracy in the Schoolhouse - Civic Power and Student Voice

Baltimore City has the lowest voter pre-registration rate in Maryland - under 25% for 16 and 17-year-olds. Schools that do not practice democracy do not produce democratic citizens. This pillar is about building the pipeline from classroom to civic life.

1

Student Commissioner with Full Voting Rights

Ash testified in Annapolis before taking her seat to give the student commissioner a full vote on the board. A voice without a vote is optional. Baltimore's student commissioner should have the same weight at the table as every elected and appointed member.

How this happensContinue state legislative advocacy for full student voting rights and - critically - for an additional student commissioner seat. The Task Force established to study student board representation found that Baltimore City's large and complex district places an extraordinary burden on a single student commissioner. Having worked directly with student commissioners during her time on the board, Ash knows this firsthand: one student cannot adequately represent 76,000 students in 151 schools across every neighborhood in this city, and they should not have to do it alone. A second student commissioner would mean two student voices in deliberations, two students who can consult each other as board work moves through committees, and a more sustainable model for student participation in governance. Baltimore's students deserve real representation - not a token seat and an impossible workload. Ash will advocate in Annapolis for both the voting rights legislation and the additional seat, and will ensure student voices are formally solicited and publicly documented in every major policy decision until both are achieved.
2

Pre-Registration Drives in Every City Schools High School

Maryland allows 16-year-olds to pre-register to vote. Baltimore City's rate is under 25% - the lowest in the state. Every City Schools high school should hold an annual pre-registration event, staffed by student leaders, that makes the process easy, social, and celebrated.

How this happensPartner with Baltimore Votes and City Schools student government to run pre-registration events in every high school before spring 2027. Build this into the 75-hour service-learning requirement so students can earn graduation credit for civic participation.
3

Election Judge Pipeline from Every High School

Baltimore consistently struggles to staff polling places. Students 16 and older can serve as election judges and earn $300 per election. Every City Schools high school should have a formal pipeline to the election judge program - recognized as civic achievement and supported by school administration.

How this happensFormally partner with the Baltimore City Board of Elections to create a City Schools election judge pipeline. BTU building representatives promote the program. Service-learning credit confirmed as counting toward graduation requirements.

Part Four

Accountability - How You Know If We Are Doing It

A platform without accountability measures is a wish list. Every commitment here carries a specific way to verify it is happening. Ash will publish an annual public accountability report - in plain language, in multiple languages, at community events across Baltimore.

Year-One Targets by December 2027

Commitment	Measurable Target
New CEO in place	Binding year-one goals published and publicly accessible before start date
Chronic absenteeism	Rate reduced by at least 5 percentage points from 2026 baseline
MTA partnership	Formal service-level agreement signed or legislation introduced in Annapolis
Classroom safety	Door locks installed in all schools - zero exceptions
Discipline equity	First public school-by-school discipline equity report published
ICE policy	Formal non-cooperation policy adopted by board vote
After-school programs	Restored for all 3,000 students who lost access in 2025
Community schools	Coordinators funded in at least 20 additional Title I schools
Pre-registration	Drives held in all City Schools high schools before spring 2027
Facilities equity audit	Audit commissioned and timeline published publicly
Commissioner emails	All commissioner emails published on City Schools board website

Governance Commitments for a Second Term

Student outcome goals belong to the full board - they are adopted collectively and monitored together. What Ash can commit to individually is how she will show up as a commissioner: the governance work she will do inside her committees, the relationships she will build, and the processes she will strengthen. These are the commitments that are hers to keep.

Governance Commitment	What This Looks Like in Practice
Strengthen board governance through committee work	Continue as an active and prepared member of the Policy Committee and Safety and Wholeness Committee, using those roles to advance equity-centered policy, monitor implementation, and bring community priorities into the governance process
Participate actively in legislative processes	Engage with the Maryland General Assembly as a school board member - testifying, building relationships with state legislators, and advocating for City Schools priorities including student commissioner voting rights, transit access, and early childhood funding
Meet regularly with recognized groups	Maintain ongoing working relationships with the Baltimore Teachers Union and other recognized stakeholder groups, engaging them as genuine governance partners on policy development, not just as contacts to notify after decisions are made
Follow up on public comment	Every person who takes time to speak at a public board meeting deserves to know their comment was heard. Ash will establish a practice of following up on public comments - documenting themes, responding where possible, and reporting back on how community input shaped board decisions
Constituent responsiveness	Maintain an accessible, responsive constituent inbox with personal replies within five business days, and publish her commissioner email publicly so every Baltimore family can reach her directly
Advocate for student voting rights	Continue legislative advocacy for a full student commissioner vote and an additional student seat, given the Task Force finding that one student cannot adequately carry the representational load for this district
Support transparent CEO evaluation	Use the annual evaluation process rigorously and publicly - ensuring the CEO is assessed against goals the community helped set, and that results are reported to the public in plain language each year
Protect community voice in major decisions	Require independent community impact studies before school closures, advocate for language access in all board communications, and ensure community engagement is substantive and not ceremonial

How Ash Stays Accountable

Annual People's Platform Report

Plain language, published every January
Documents progress on every commitment
Available in Spanish and Amharic
Distributed at community events across Baltimore
Posted at ashleyesposito.com

Quarterly Community Check-ins

Four sessions per year in rotating neighborhoods
Community sets the agenda - not the commissioner
Listening first, reporting second
Results documented and published

72-Hour Vote Explanations

Every board vote accompanied by plain-language explanation
Posted within 72 hours of the board meeting
Names what Ash voted and why
No hiding behind procedural language

Open Constituent Inbox

Dedicated email address - not a form that disappears
Personal response within five business days
Commissioner email published on City Schools board website
You should be able to reach the person representing you

Part Five

Protecting Baltimore From Those Who Claim to Speak For Us

Baltimore's residents are the subject matter experts of their own experience. We do not need reporters from other states, national organizations funding smear campaigns for clicks, or outside actors with political agendas to tell our story or hold our systems accountable. We are capable of doing that ourselves.

There is a difference between accountability and exploitation. Genuine accountability comes from within - from the parents who show up to board meetings, the teachers who document what is not working, the community members who demand better for their children. Exploitation comes from outside actors whose business model depends on Baltimore's failure.

Baltimore City Public Schools is one of the most scrutinized school systems in the country. Some of that scrutiny is earned and necessary. But a significant portion comes from reporters based in other states, national organizations funded by interests that have never set foot in Cherry Hill or Sandtown, and media operations with documented financial and political agendas who have decided that Baltimore's schools make good content. Clickbait dressed as accountability is not accountability.

The Community Has the Agency, Intellect, and Power

Anyone who does not believe in the agency, intellect, and people power that still lives and breathes deeply in this city will be held accountable and named. That is not a threat. It is a commitment to the same transparency we demand from the district. When special interest money funds attacks on Baltimore's schools or leadership for political purposes, Baltimore residents deserve to know who is writing the checks and what they stand to gain.

The antidote to outside narratives is a stronger inside truth. When Baltimore builds its own robust public accountability mechanisms - plain-language board reports, school-by-school dashboards, community forums in every neighborhood, published commissioner emails, transparent CEO evaluations - it leaves less room for outside actors to fill the information vacuum with their preferred story.

1

Naming the Difference Between Accountability and Destabilization

There is a difference between a community member demanding better outcomes for their child and an out-of-state operation whose revenue model depends on conflict. There is a difference between investigative journalism grounded in documented facts and political operations using transparency language to pursue an agenda. The board must be fluent in that distinction and respond to each accordingly.
2

Protecting the New CEO from Political Interference

A new CEO arriving in Baltimore needs to lead without being immediately targeted by actors who profit from the narrative of Baltimore's failure. Part of the board's job during the transition is to serve as a buffer - protecting a new leader who is still building trust from forces that will attempt to define them before they have had a chance to act. A board that does not protect its CEO is a board that sets them up to fail.
3

Baltimore's Accountability Infrastructure is the Defense

The best defense against nefarious accountability theater is genuine accountability. This platform is the blueprint for building that. Every dashboard, every published vote explanation, every community check-in, every plain-language report is both a genuine service to Baltimore families and a direct counter to the claim that this system cannot be trusted to govern itself.

The message is clearBaltimore's residents are not a story to be told by people who do not live here. They are the authors. And this board will act like it.

"Many people know that when I started this term I said: I am only guaranteed 48 months. So I am going ham for 48 months. My first year on the board I clocked almost 600 hours in board service. I spent time in professional development learning from other districts about what effective school board governance looks like and effective ways to improve student outcomes. That is the standard I set for myself on day one, and it is the standard I will carry into a second term.

If elected, my school board seat will be your seat - the community seat. I will ensure that policy and budget priorities are identified by you and that you are engaged in decision making."

- Ashley "Ash" Esposito

Four years later, that commitment is stronger than it has ever been.

Baltimore City Public Schools is at a crossroads. The new CEO is arriving. The federal government is hostile. The budget is under pressure. And 76,000 children are counting on the adults in the room to do better. Ash Esposito is ready to do the work - not for four more years of the same, but for the schools Baltimore's children deserve.

ashleyesposito.com Text TEAMASH to join actblue.com/donate/espositoforboard2026

From Ashley

A Letter to Baltimore

In her own words - why she ran, what drives her, and what she is fighting for.

Ashley Esposito, Baltimore City Board of School Commissioner

A Letter from Ashley

Hi everyone,
my name is
Ashley Esposito.

I am a proud momma of an elementary school student, a neighbor, a porch gardener, an artist, and the first woman ever elected citywide to the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners.

I ran for school board because I believe every child in Baltimore deserves to grow up with a sense of possibility - to walk into their classroom and feel the difference. Not just talked about in meetings. Showing up every day in the places where they learn and grow.

I believe every child in Baltimore deserves to grow up with a sense of possibility.

I ran for school board because I have turned the pain from my own education experiences, and the experiences of peers I grew up alongside, into purpose. That pain became a guide. And that guide has shaped everything I do in this seat.

I graduated high school with a 1.4 cumulative GPA. I spent time in the foster care system. I know what it feels like to sit in a classroom carrying weight that no one around you can see, and to have the system make assumptions about your potential based on what it sees on paper. I carry those experiences with me every time I sit at that board table - not as baggage, but as a compass. They are why I hold a deeply judgment-free view of every student and every family navigating personal struggles. Because I have likely been there too. When a family is not showing up the way the system expects, I do not see failure. I see a person doing the best they can with what they have. And I see an opportunity for the system to do better.

My lived experience taught me what it feels like when systems are not designed for you, and it gave me a responsibility to make sure the next generation does not have to learn that same lesson. I got involved in education advocacy during the pandemic with my newborn at my side, driven by a simple belief: the people who know the cracks best are the people who fell through them, and those are the people who should be helping to fill them.

"My story didn't make me less qualified. It made me urgently aware of what is at stake."

Over the past few years, bringing that perspective to the board has led to real change. I have chaired the Policy Committee and helped shape policies that center multilingual learners, students with disabilities, youth in foster care, and young people experiencing housing instability. I have worked to strengthen transparency, equity, and how community voices are included in governance. And I do this work as a mom of an elementary school student, navigating this system the same way thousands of Baltimore families do every day.

I want schools where kids feel safe, seen, and celebrated. I want families involved early and often, not as an afterthought. And I want leadership that reflects the people it serves and genuinely believes in their brilliance.

Power, to me, is not about holding authority. It is about sharing it. This is not just my seat. It is our seat. We build this together.

"When people with lived experience hold power, we don't just improve outcomes. We transform what's possible."

My name is Ashley Esposito, and I am running for re-election to the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners, to continue building a school system that listens, evolves, and delivers for every student.

I am only guaranteed 48 months. So I am going ham for 48 months.

With love, courage, joy, collective power, radical inclusion, and community,

Ashley "Ash" Esposito

Commissioner, Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners

About Ashley

Commissioner Biography

Background

Ashley "Ash" Esposito is a mom, artist, porch gardener, and community organizer rooted in Violetville in Southwest Baltimore. She is a former foster care youth who experienced housing instability, addiction, homelessness, and selective mutism before finding her voice and her community in Baltimore City.

A neurodivergent person who did not receive the right supports until adulthood, Ash graduated high school with a 1.4 GPA before going on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Software Development and Security from the University of Maryland Global Campus and is currently pursuing her MBA. She is a 2021 Baltimore Weaver Awardee and co-founder of a neighborhood wellness unassociation in Violetville.

On the Board

Elected in November 2022, Ash and Commissioner Kwame Kenyatta-Bey became the first-ever elected members of the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners in the district's 124-year history. She is the first parent and the first woman elected at-large citywide to the board.

As Chair of the Policy Committee and a member of the Safety and Wholeness Committee, Ash has logged nearly 600 hours of board service in her first year, completed professional development in other districts, and worked on policies for multilingual learners, students with disabilities, foster youth, and students experiencing housing instability. She is currently navigating this system as a mom of a neurodivergent child, bringing that lived experience as a neurodivergent family directly to her work on the board.

Role

Chair, Policy Committee

Member, Safety and Wholeness Committee

Community

Violetville, SW Baltimore

Executive Director, Baltimore Unity Hall

Endorsements

Baltimore Teachers Union

Greater Baltimore DSA - Vote Mama - Moms Demand Action Gunsense Candidate - United Against Book Bans

Philosophy

Lived experience is leadership. Community voice is expertise. The people most impacted must be the ones shaping the solutions. Power is not about holding authority - it is about sharing it. This seat is not just my seat. It is our seat.