>Low literacy and behavioral issues lead to increased prevalence of criminal activity and other associated antisocial behavior. This costs the city of Baltimore billions of dollars a year in economic costs, due to the fact that it takes a person with a lot of grit, determination, and relatively high tolerance of risk to move here, be economically productive, and raise a family, creating a high barrier for the best and brightest (even with Johns Hopkins). This city is relatively will-integrated and deeply affordable compared to the rest of the East Coast. It should be booming and rapidly growing, but it isn’t.

You're correct on this part; strongly agree. But all the other major east coast cities have already been where Baltimore now is. For that reason I think your proposal isn't the most feasible. Instead, Baltimore's elected officials need to unbury their heads from the sand and actually focus aggressively on growth-oriented public policy and investments to address affordable and inclusionary housing, land use, transportation, and real estate tax reform. I realize this might be asking for much, but given all the cities that are eating Baltimore's lunch, should it be?

Baltimore isn't growing because: we're an old historic city with car-centric Sun Belt city aspirations; our leaders resist fundamental principles of good urbanism; and for some reason said leaders find it perfectly okay to charge us double the price of their competitors for shoddy public service delivery. Baltimore really shows no urgency to sustainably attract economic opportunity to the city. While every student here can't become a world-class scholar, a growing city with more businesses of all sizes, that at minimum pay living wages, could provide more opportunities for steady employment and improved quality of life for less-educated residents.

All this to say that a growing city that is more dense, accessible, and economically competitive can help deconcentrate poverty, which can lead to improved educational outcomes. But leadership needs to have a holistic view of the city and the willingness to move beyond status quo at a faster-than-marginal pace.