For the last three years, Living Classrooms has been leading the planning for Sail250 Maryland on behalf of the State of Maryland and Baltimore City to bring the world to Baltimore with 14 international tall ships as well as U.S. Naval ships, waterfront festivals, and an amazing multiday airshow to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary! In June, all the ships including our own fleet of Historic Ships were open all week, free to the public for touring. Over 600,000 visitors enjoyed Sail250 waterfront festivals on the Inner Harbor, Fells Point, Baltimore Peninsula, and at Martin State Airport in Baltimore County bringing significant economic development value to the Baltimore region. Governor Wes Moore, Mayor Brandon Scott, and other leaders joined us for Sail250 welcome ceremonies. "America is a nation of strength because America is a nation of sacrifice," Governor Moore emphasized. "To everyone who has sailed here, to everyone who has come down to the harbor today. Welcome to Sail250. Thank you for being part of history. Thank you for remembering the men and women who made this history possible as we celebrate the greatest experiment that the world has ever seen."

It was amazing to see the waterfront alive with hundreds of thousands of people visiting from near and far, all coming together to commemorate this momentous occasion and enjoying our beautiful city. Sail250 involved years of planning with multiple partners and city and state agencies in addition to coordinating over 800 volunteers, fundraising, and collaborating with organizations such as Sail Baltimore to create a well-organized, safe, educational, and fun Sail250. The Living Classrooms team is grateful to all our dedicated staff led by our Sail250 Director Chris Rowsom, and multitude of partners and sponsors. We thank our major sponsors—Maryland State Department of Commerce and Northrop Grumman—who helped make Sail250 an amazing success for the history books!

Summer 2026 has been in full swing at Living Classrooms with daily programming at all of our sites, giving hundreds of children ages 6-17 and workforce development participants a variety of multidisciplinary options and safe spaces for learning, exploration, creativity, and growth, while having fun and interacting with peers!

James Hardison joined our Project SERVE Program on March 30, 2026, after serving 39 years in prison. For 26 years, Project SERVE (Service, Empowerment, Revitalization, Validation, Employment Training) has helped returning citizens successfully reenter the workforce by providing rapid attachment to employment, job training, reentry resources, and other wrap-around support. Project SERVE is designed to reduce recidivism and remove barriers to meaningful employment in Baltimore City.

While completing the application process, Mr. Hardison assumed because of the name, that joining a Living Classrooms program meant he would be going to school. When he arrived and found it was a steady, hourly paid job, he was excited. Mr. Hardison had never had a job before Project SERVE and is now learning new skills, gaining necessary work experience, and earning certifications that will set him up for success. Mr. Hardison is part of our Project SERVE family with 35 fellow SERVE members and staff and has a great appreciation for the program, "Project SERVE means everything to me. If you are trying to better yourself, get in this program!" Mr. Hardison's next step will be to secure future employment with the assistance of our Project SERVE employment specialists and case managers.

This month, Living Classrooms' Historic Ships in Baltimore was awarded Maryland's 2026 Preservation Award for Excellence in Restoration! Maryland Historical Trust's award recognized our recent USS Constellation rigging restoration project, the first comprehensive conservation of the ship's three masts and rigging since 1999. The six-month project combined traditional maritime craftsmanship with historically appropriate materials and served as a "living classroom," providing hands-on training opportunities for participants in Living Classrooms Foundation's Maritime Workforce Skills Training Program.

Thank you to the State of Maryland and Maryland Historical Trust for funding this significant restoration project and to our Historic Ships team for all their hard work completing the work on schedule and on budget. Living Classrooms is honored to be recognized for ensuring that the USS Constellation remains a strong national historical landmark and an inspiration and "living classroom" for future generations of students and visitors to Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

On June 12, students in our Baltimore Urban Gardening with Students (BUGS) and Fresh Start Programs assisted our partner BioHabitats (a company that provides nature-based solutions that help create a more resilient world) to plant two unique wetlands including a hand-crafted floating wetland in the Lancaster St. Canal adjacent to our East Harbor Campus. BUGS is one of our out-of-school-time enrichment programs working with our Crossroads Middle School students using urban horticulture to support academic success. Fresh Start is our workforce development program for adjudicated youth that uses carpentry as a medium to provide vocational, academic, and social skills training.

Our Fresh Start students were tasked with constructing a 21' miniature Chesapeake Deadrise boat to hold the floating wetland; our students also utilized a new 25' onshore planter. Marsh Hibiscus, Smooth Cordgrass, Sturdy Bulrush, and four other species were planted in both the floating wetland and in the onshore planter with the goal of improving the water quality of the canal!

Living Classrooms recently partnered with DC United, the Major League Soccer club based in Washington, DC, on Kingman Island to plant 562 new native plants and shrubs helping expand critical habitat areas. Kingman and Heritage Islands are conservation areas on the Anacostia River managed by Living Classrooms Foundation and the Department of Energy and Environment. A protective barrier and two new benches were also installed, safeguarding the new vegetation and providing much needed places for visitors to rest and connect with nature on the trail.

We are grateful to DC United for partnering with Living Classrooms and helping to maintain this urban conservation area.

If you would like to partner with Living Classrooms and our programming on Kingman and Heritage Islands, please visit our web site or email Allie Dudley!

For the second year in a row, Living Classrooms partnered with Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) Assists, the Women's Lacrosse League (WLL), USA Lacrosse, and Harlem Lacrosse Baltimore to hold an event for youth lacrosse athletes in Baltimore City. The May 28th event was designed to raise awareness of our Baltimore Urban Lacrosse League and Harlem Lacrosse partnership and joint mission to expand access to the sport by introducing more Baltimore youth to the opportunities, mentorship, and life skills that lacrosse can provide.

Student athletes sailed with WLL and PLL players on Living Classrooms' Mildred Belle and Sigsbee, participating in maritime education activities, before enjoying a reception at the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park. Athletes, coaches, families, and veteran lacrosse players of all ages had a great time celebrating lacrosse and its impact on young people's lives in the city. Each young athlete also went home with a brand-new lacrosse stick from ECD Lacrosse! We are grateful to our partners for their dedication to providing access to Baltimore youth and uplifting the sport of lacrosse in Baltimore City.

On May 20, Living Classrooms' Crossroads School Robotics Club held a celebration to showcase the projects they have been working on all semester in partnership with Morgan Stanley.

Led by volunteers from Morgan Stanley's IT Department, the Robotics Club offered two tracks: one group built robots capable of navigating an obstacle course, while the other learned to code their own video games. Students used Python, a high-level programming language, to complete their projects. During the celebration, they showcased their robots and video games, giving friends, family, and mentors the opportunity to see the results of their hard work.



Special thank you to the Morgan Stanley volunteers who took time weekly to help teach our students invaluable skills in computer science and robotics!

On July 15, Living Classrooms in partnership with Nace Law Group, Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE), Department of Employment Services (DOES), and the Terry McLaurin Foundation held a job readiness assembly for students participating in the Green Zone Environmental Program (GZEP). GZEP, a paid internship program serving approximately 50 students, utilizes our educational spaces on Kingman Island and at our Dent House Community Center to provide experience in a myriad of energy and environmental career fields. The event had three stations for students to participate in: Hands-On Tools Exploration, Elevator Pitch Practice, and Professional Clothes for the Workplace. Terry participated in all three stations, talking with our students and answering their questions.

The Terry McLaurin Foundation also presented Living Classrooms with a $20,000 grant to support our educational programs in Washington, DC. Thank you, Terry McLaurin and the Terry McLaurin Foundation, Chris Nace and Nace Law Group, DOEE, and DOES for your partnership and for helping us create an unforgettable event for our students!

Our Fresh Start students led a carpentry experience for the St. Paul's School 8th grade woodworking class, working together to build wooden bird boxes. Having our Fresh Start students lead trainings is a great way to showcase and practice the leadership skills and the vocational skills they have been learning throughout their time with Living Classrooms. Our Fresh Start students made some new friends and guided the 8th graders through each step. The St. Paul's students' birdhouses were exemplary, and they were able to take them home to place in their yards.

On June 23, Living Classrooms Foundation kicked off America's 250th anniversary commemoration with our first Friends of James Beard Dinner. Despite a rainy morning, the sun returned, granting us a beautiful evening. Spike Gjerde, James Beard Award winner and restaurateur of Woodberry Kitchen, La Jetée, and Bar Dalí, led an all-star group of local chefs, curating a beautiful cocktail hour on the Cardin Pier with passed appetizers, an oyster shucking station, and craft cocktails followed by a wine-paired, multi-course meal held in the Founders Room of the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park. Tony Foreman, local restaurateur and owner of the Tony Foreman + Co. restaurant group was also part of our team, creating the beverage program for the evening, carefully pairing each course with exquisite wines. The chefs prepared the meal over open grills, giving guests a front-row seat to the culinary experience as the aromas of each course filled the waterfront. The evening was a true celebration of Baltimore's culinary talent, vibrance, and diversity.

Thank you to all those who joined us for this extraordinary experience, and thank you to the James Beard Foundation, Spike Gjerde, Tony Foreman, Jeff Cherry, all our participating chefs and mixologists, and to our sponsors. We greatly appreciate your support in uplifting our mission and programs as we welcomed the world to Baltimore watching international tall ships sail into Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

Join us for our Second Friends of James Beard Dinner Series with Living Classrooms in Washington, DC on October 14th!

Save the date for a night you won't want to miss! The second Living Classrooms collaboration with the James Beard Foundation will be held on October 14, 2026 in Washington, DC.

More information to come!