Our Mission
As a statewide resource center, The Maryland School for the Blind (MSB) provides outreach, educational and residential services for students to reach their fullest potential by preparing them to be as successful, independent and well-rounded contributing members of their communities as possible.
A 501 (c) 3 non-profit private school, MSB currently serves approximately 1,200 students identified as blind or visually impaired throughout all twenty four Maryland jurisdictions.
To achieve its multiple responsibilities, the School is committed to safety, wellness, fairness, respect, personal responsibility, ethical standards and continuous improvement of program quality, professionalism, customer service and stewardship of funds.
The Maryland School for the Blind, serving as an integral part of Maryland’s special education continuum, will exceed student-achievement expectations by setting high standards and providing best-practice programs in state of the art facilities.
Our History
In 1853 our school, first known as the Maryland Institution for the Instruction of the Blind, first opened its doors in downtown Baltimore. The first superintendent was David E. Loughery who was a blind graduate of the Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the Blind.
Though the first eleven years saw several changes in leadership, the school settled into a period of tremendous growth under the direction of Frederick Douglas Morrison, who was superintendent from 1864 to 1904. Mr. Morrison was a national leader in his profession, who was instrumental in the founding of the American Association of Instructors of the Blind and an early proponent of a controversial new system called “braille”.
In 1868 Mr. Morrison moved the campus to much larger quarters on North Avenue and changed the name to The Maryland School for the Blind. In 1872, when segregation was still common practice, he was a founder of The Maryland School for the Colored Blind and Deaf and served as the superintendent of both schools..
In 1908 John Frances Bledsoe, who became superintendent in 1906, moved the school to its present location in the Northeast corner of Baltimore City.
The leadership at The Maryland School for the Blind reads like a Who’s Who in Education for the Blind in America. Francis M. Andrews, Herbert Joseph Wolfe, Richard L. Welsh, and Louis M. Tutt were all internationally recognized innovators who moved the school forward into the 21st century.