Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West, was an all-boy

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

middle Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ...

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

located in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, United States. The school's focus was on

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is an umbrella term used to group together the distinct but related technical disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The term is typically used in the context of ...

education.

History

The school was an extension of the Bluford Drew Jemison Math Science Technology Academy initially opened in 2007 as a

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

, and named for

African-Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

who had found success in

STEM Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...

fields:

Guion S. Bluford Guion Stewart Bluford Jr. (born November 22, 1942) is an American aerospace engineer, retired United States Air Force (USAF) officer and fighter pilot, and former NASA astronaut, in which capacity he became the first African Americans, African A ...

and

Mae Jemison Mae Carol Jemison (born October 17, 1956) is an American engineer, physician, and former NASA astronaut. She became the first African-American woman to travel into space when she served as a mission specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavou ...

, and

Charles R. Drew Charles Richard Drew (June 3, 1904 – April 1, 1950) was an American surgeon and medical researcher. He researched in the field of blood transfusions, developing improved techniques for blood storage, and applied his expert knowledge to devel ...

. This original school was located at 1130 N. Caroline St. in the Gay Street neighborhood of Baltimore. This original BDJ lost its Charter license in 2013 (becoming a traditional school) due to low academic performance and financial issues, before shuttering for good at the end of 2014. Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West was launched as a spin off in 2010. Initially co-located within the Diggs-Johnson Middle School at 1300 Herkimer St, the school moved to the former

Walbrook High School Walbrook High School formerly known as Walbrook Senior High School (1971–1998) and Walbrook Uniform Services Academy (1999–2005), was a public high school located in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. History Establishment Walbrook was f ...

at 2000 Edgewood Street in the Fairmont neighborhood in 2010 when Diggs-Johnson was closed to make room for the Southwest Baltimore Charter School. However, by November 2013, the school board had decided to empty the Walbrook campus entirely, and BDJ West was recommended for closure along with its predecessor. Community protests kept it from closure and relocation, but the board did revoke its charter in December of the same year, announcing it would look for a new operator. In fall 2023, principal LaWanda Wilson proposed a merger with neighboring Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts, the move was then approved by the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners in January 2024.

References

External links

Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West at Baltimore City Schools
Public schools in Baltimore Public high schools in Maryland West Baltimore {{Maryland-school-stub