BALTIMORE — PS 103 on Division Street is remembered as the elementary school Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall attended more than 100 years ago.

"This is PS 103 which means that in the segregated school designation, this was the third designated school," said Dr. Alvin Hathaway, the president of Beloved Community Services Corporation . "The third colored school."

From the outside to inside, it looks like the educational environment Justice Marshall experienced in 1914. Even an original desk sits inside a classroom turned office space at the Justice Thurgood Marshall Amenity Center .

"70% of the glass that you see is original glass," Dr. Hathaway said. "It's all original wood."

Dr. Hathaway was behind the effort to renovate the former elementary school and turn it into a community space. It was a $15 million project. The center opened its doors in July 2024.

Dr. Hathaway knows the story of Marshall and this building well.

"We have a room downstairs that we call our 'timeout' room," he said. "This is the room where the principal would send Thurgood Marshall when he would act up in class."

He said when Marshall would misbehave, he would receive a copy of the Constitution to read.

"The timeout was not punishment," Dr. Hathaway said. "The timeout was a time for further education."

The history behind these walls explains why Hathaway wanted to preserve this space but most importantly, give it back to the community.

"We have small group meetings here," Dr Hathaway said. "We have these media walls that you see where I'll have Saturday movie matinees for children."

It's a community space looking to aid in transforming West Baltimore.

"We did not want to just have a monument or museum for Justice Thurgood Marshall," he said. "We don't believe that he would have just wanted that. He would want something that would be an action-oriented center."

Center tenants

Retired Judge Alex Williams Jr. runs The Judge Alexander Williams, Jr. Center for Education , Justice and Ethics based out of the University of Maryland.

"We deal with all the challenges that are out here in the world, educational deprivation, lack of health access," Williams said.

He's one of the first tenants at the center which is already attracting people living right across the street.

"We've had a few neighbors who've come over here and been part of the programs that we've put on," he said.

Williams said the organization has hosted town hall discussions on gun violence and other challenges residents face. They are also offering programs focused on health, leadership and youth engagement.

"We've invited and taken students from three high schools to [University of Maryland] College Park for a full day," he said. "We had breakfast and lunch and a number of discussions on critical issues that interest them."

This is just the beginning of the work that's being done here. Williams said he's working to bring a re-entry program to this site and build an ethics academy.

"We're going to introduce some discussions and lectures about the responsibility of public officials and citizens."

Williams adds large space even houses another academic from the University of Maryland — a professor who conducts research on the impact gun violence has on families.

Additional center resources

Hathaway is adding onto these programs through a partnership connecting West Baltimore to opportunities at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, a library and an artificial intelligence education program.

"We have a partnership with the Maryland Aviation Administration which allows us to bring to this center BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport," he said. "We created a program called 'Project Takeoff.' And Project Takeoff will be housed here and persons will come, and they'd be able to get experiences in aviation, airport management, hospitality."

He also identified a partnership with University of Maryland Baltimore.

"They have a program called 'Mini Medical School,' Hathaway said. "They teach out about protocols. They teach you about medicines. They teach you about procedures. It makes you better informed. So, that's going to be housed here where we conduct those classes for person who are interested."

Road to National Historic Status

One of the biggest efforts is protecting the site's place in history.

In November, a bill was introduced in the House and Senate to establish PS 103 as a National Historic Site and designate it as an affiliated area of the National Park System.

"The intent is that it would be resubmitted in this new 119th Congress, Dr. Hathaway said. "From all indications that I hear, it will pass with flying colors."

Hathaway said this historic status assists with preservation efforts and operating funds.

"We'll be able to accurately tell the story of the amazing people that live in this community and the amazing work of Justice Thurgood Marshall," he said.

Reminding of all the excellence that lives here.

"People will now understand that this was done for you," Hathaway said. "Yes, it is done in honor of Justice Thurgood Marshall and his amazing legacy but this is his gift to you."