A collage of various photographs including a group of people posing outdoors, children in a classroom, a protest with signs, and a street scene with parked cars and buildings.

A community-based learning course honoring and preserving the legacy of Fayette Street Outreach in Southwest Baltimore

Community-Based Projects

In Spring 2024, undergraduate students at Johns Hopkins University spent a semester working in Southwest Baltimore. Through a course supported by the Center for Social Concern, the Center for Africana Studies, and the Chloe Center, co-taught by historians, archivists, artists, and community partners, students learned grassroots neighborhood history, developed new skills in community archiving, and practiced engaged public arts beyond what they knew—or thought they knew—about Southwest Baltimore. Residents of the Fayette Street community led the way and re-introduced students to a part of the city long stigmatized for its narrative ties to The Corner (1996), later The Wire (2000s), by organizing class discussions, creating neighborhood walking tours, and providing interviews to the students. This website offers a snapshot of what was a dynamic, community-engaged classroom that took shape well-beyond campus boundaries.

A diverse group of people standing and talking on a city sidewalk in front of colorful row houses

Oral Histories

Group of people sitting around a table, engaged in reading and writing, with an instructor standing at the side of the room, in a conference or classroom setting.

Neighborhood Maps

A diverse group of nine people standing in front of a building with boarded-up windows and upside-down American flags. They are smiling and posing for the photo, some making peace signs. There are bags and paint cans on the ground nearby.

Community Art

Link to Projects

Fayette Street Outreach

Fayette Street Outreach (FSO) is a nonprofit all-volunteer organization founded in 1993. The organization’s community boundaries encompass Mulberry Street, Monroe Street, Gwynns Falls Parkway, and Warwick Avenue in Southwest Baltimore. FSO’s mission is to build a better, safer, and healthier community; help our youth be able to fulfill their dreams; help our senior citizens feel safe in their neighborhoods; and build a brighter future for every resident of our community. FSO aims to achieve this mission by building up our community so that we can meet our economic needs, our youth can build a brighter future for themselves, and we can help heal our community from the violence within our society. Ms. Edna Manns-Lake is founder and president and FSO.

Edna Manns-Lake, “The History of Fayette Street Outreach” (pdf)

Learn more
Colorful mural on a building wall depicting children playing outside. One boy in a blue shirt and glasses is crouching, while a girl with blonde hair and glasses is bending down. The background has clouds, a map outline, and flowers at the bottom.
Logo for Fayette Street Outreach with the slogan 'Moving Our Neighborhood Forward', featuring an illustration of a building and trees, the year 1993, and the acronym FS0.