Mercy High School (Baltimore, Maryland)

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Mercy High School is a private and independent Catholic high school for young women sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy that is located at 1300 East Northern Parkway in Baltimore, Maryland. Its mission is to offer students a superior education in an environment rooted in Christian values. The school first opened its doors on September 26, 1960.

Mercy seeks the development of each student's full human potential, emphasizing the values of personal responsibility and cooperation with others, the practice and attitude of careful and critical thinking, and the commitment to excellence. Three groups of people — faculty, students and parents — share in the educational venture that is Mercy.

"Loyalty, leadership and service" is the school's motto. To that end, in their junior year students complete 50 hours of community service through a program that has been in place since the early 1970s. The idea of hospitality, a tenet of the Sisters of Mercy, is another guiding force at this school; visitors often comment on the warmth and friendliness of students.

Mercy is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and has been named an Exemplary Private School by the United States Department of Education and the Council for American Private Education. The school is a member of the Association of Independent Maryland Schools (AIMS) and the Mercy Secondary Education Association (MSEA), an international affiliation of Mercy-owned schools.

Mercy's colors are red and white. The sports team is called the Magic. A magician and rabbit serve as mascots.

Mercy's longest sports rivalry is with the Institute of Notre Dame (IND), a Catholic girls' high school sponsored by the School Sisters of Notre Dame, which is also located in Baltimore City. Each year since 1961 the two schools' basketball teams have played in a match-up known to fans simply as "The Game." It is the most well-attended high school sporting event in the state of Maryland. As of 2008, the series stands at Mercy 25, IND 16.

Notable Mercy alumnae include:

The Honorable Mary Ellen Santiago Barbera, a judge with the Maryland Court of Special Appeals; The Honorable Carol E. Smith, a judge with the Baltimore City Circuit Court; The Honorable Kathie Stokes Molinar; Lea Gilmore, international singer and civil rights activist; Barbara Barrett Clapp, President of Barb Clapp Advertising and Marketing LLC, Baltimore; Nancy McColgan, Chief Operating Officer, Legg Mason Investment Counsel, Baltimore; Mary Ella Franz Marion, Mercy High School Athletic Director and Varsity Basketball Coach; Ellen Callegary, Baltimore attorney; Lisa Rogers Bands, Owner, My Cleaning Services, Inc., Baltimore; Janice Uhlhorn Teeter, Baltimore entrepreneur; Dr. Niccole McGowens, Child Psychologist, The Children's Hospital of Philadelpia; Mary Claire Helldorfer, children's author, Baltimore; Lynne Spigelmire Viti, writer,lawyer and senior lecturer at Wellesley College, Massachusetts; Fran Dukehart, mime artist and senior yoga advocate.