As the nation prepared to inaugurate Donald Trump as president, a group of Baltimore teens gathered in a sun-soaked school library to discuss the election that returned him to power and that’s poised to shape the start of their adult lives.

Concerned. Disappointed. Terrified.

Those are a few of the words the Academy for College and Career Exploration students used to describe their reaction to Trump’s victory and Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss. The 10th-, 11th-, and 12th-grade students travel from across the city to attend the Hampden high school.

Teacher CJ Sindler said he gathered the students to talk politics because he feels young people need safe spaces where they can discuss their hopes for the future.

“We teachers act as shepherds to guide our students along their own path to discover their own truths,” said Sindler, who teaches government courses at the school.

Young voters across the country favored Harris over Trump by 4 points — a much smaller margin than young voters gave President Joe Biden in 2020, when he won their support by 25 points over Trump. What changed?

In a wide-ranging conversation, the students offered their theories on why Harris lost, how they connected with her, and what they think is to come in Trump’s second term. At the request of the school district, The Banner is identifying the students by their first names only. Officials wanted to protect them from the threat of online harassment.

“I had nothing to do with this election, but I might have an impact on the next one,” said Ma’Ryan, 16.

Several students said they thought Harris’ gender unfairly sank her candidacy. Rodney, 16, said he heard several people say they would not support a woman for president. Jayla, 16, said a family member who supports Trump “went on a whole rant” about how women can’t run the country.

“These people don’t like seeing women in power, especially Black women, because when they see a Black woman in power, they want to tear that down.”

Black women are “tired and hurt,” said Favour, 16. She’s trying to stay hopeful but plans to lie low until the next election.

Dream thought Harris was qualified to serve as president and expected her to be the first woman to hold the office. Knowing Harris’ long record of public service didn’t propel her to victory makes Dream wonder if there is a ceiling to her own success as a Black woman in America.

“No matter how much work we put in to try to be better, it seems a man will always overpower us,” said Dream, 17. “I don’t want to think like that, but that is what this [election] is showing me.”

The students said they found some Harris policy proposals appealing — her plan to offer tax credits to small business owners. Mostly, they said they liked her because they appreciated her desire to connect with young Americans, something they said Biden didn’t prioritize when he was the nominee.

“She was on Tiktok, and we’d be on Tiktok,” Dream said.

“I don’t think Joe Biden knows how to use a phone,” Rodney added.

“It wasn’t that Joe Biden did badly — he just never tried,” said Ma’Ryan. “His main connection to young people was people making jokes about him being old.”

Looking ahead, the students said they fear how Trump might harm women, by restricting their access to reproductive health care, or targeting immigrants for deportation.

Raven said she worries that women’s access to contraceptives may shrink under Trump. She added that her mother has floated the idea of putting her on birth control now.

“I’m not sure what I want to do, and she hasn’t said whether I have a choice or not,” said Raven, 16.

Hayley, a child of immigrants, said she wanted to cry when she saw the election results because she knows Trump has promised mass deportations. The 15-year-old said she fears being taken from class one day by a federal agent, even though she is a U.S. citizen. (Under current law, that’s illegal.)

“I think about how much my parents suffered. They left their home country. They left their families and never looked back,” Hayley said. “They wanted to give me and my siblings the opportunity to pursue an education or a career.

“What happens if they get deported?” she added.

Ritesh, 16, said he fears what Republicans might do with control of all three branches of government. Alijah, 16, said he doubts Trump’s ability to improve the economy. How could the incoming president understand average Americans’ concerns when he’s so wealthy?

Although national politics was the focus of the discussion, the students also offered a message to Gov. Wes Moore, who just introduced a state budget that slashes anticipated funding for Maryland schools. Moore has called for pausing plans to give teachers more time during the school day to collaborate with colleagues and train.

“Cut something else,” Rodney said bluntly.

“We deserve it,” said Dream. “It’s for the betterment of not only us but the world moving forward.”