COMMUNITY: Reisterstown is a suburban residential community of approximately 30,000 persons located in the northwestern section of Baltimore County. The residents are employed in a wide variety of jobs. Throughout the years, the school has had the loyal support of the community as demonstrated by the scholarship program and the PTSA membership. The class of 2008 received close to $150,000 in community-based scholarships and approximately $2 million in merit-based financial awards. With its rich 190 year history, Franklin is the oldest high school in Baltimore County.

HISTORY: Click here to read more about Franklin's history.

SCHOOL CHARACTERISTICS: Franklin is a comprehensive high school with an enrollment of approximately 1600 students in grades 9-12. The Class of 2009 has 355 students.

STAFF: Franklin has a professional staff of 129. It is composed of classroom teachers, instructional assistants, a library media specialist, counselors, administrators, a school resource officer, a probation officer, and nurse. A majority of the faculty holds advanced professional certificates and has 10 or more years of teaching experience. We are very proud to announce that Franklin High School's Advanced Placement Psychology teacher, John Billingslea, was named Baltimore County Public Schools 2008 Teacher of the Year and has reached the finalist stage for the state of Maryland Teacher of the Year competition.

INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMS: Franklin offers the curricula developed by the Baltimore County Public School System. The program is intended to prepare students for post-secondary education or immediate entry into business or industry occupations.

Gifted & Talented and Honors courses are available in all academic areas in grades 9-12. Advanced Placement courses in mathematics, English, science, social studies, and world languages are available to those meeting the prerequisites.

In addition, Franklin offers extensive programs in art, business education, special education, physical education, technology education, vocal and instrumental music, and work study. Our award-winning Marine JROTC program provides our students with the opportunity to develop leadership skills as well as to prepare for their post-secondary plans, including higher education.

The Library Media Center includes a print and nonprint collection of 18,000 items, a fully-automated catalog and circulation system, and two computer labs. Through telecommunications, students and faculty can access the Internet and a vast array of subscription databases from home as well as from school. The Library's 45 computers are available for research, word processing, and multimedia production. Over the past eight years, the Library has received funding totaling more than $330,00 designated exclusively for purchasing books. Franklin's web address on the Internet is http://franklinhs.bcps.org.

GRADING: The grading system for all courses is a five-step scale: A, B, C, D, and E. Each grade is determined by student achievement in relation to the objectives of the designated instructional level. Grades for courses are determined by the following percentages:

TESTING PROGRAM: Students have the opportunity to participate in the following college testing programs: PSAT/NMSQT, SAT I and II, AP, TOEFL, and ACT. Franklin students consistently score above the county, state and national averages.

Last updated: September 9, 2008