Supporters of three potential new public charter schools made their case this week that the Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) Board of Education wrongfully denied students in Antioch and Cane Ridge needed educational opportunities.
MNPS voted down charter applications from KIPP Southeast Nashville College Prep Elementary and Middle School and the Tennessee Nature Academy in July claiming these additional charter seats were unnecessary in the Antioch and Cane Ridge clusters. Administrators from those schools appealed to the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission who listened to comments at a public hearing Wednesday.
More than twenty speakers addressed the commission in both hearings including parents with young children in tow pleading for an alternative to traditional classroom-bound learning. Multiple homeschool families explained their decision to leave MNPS schools and why they would prefer the option of enrolling their children at the Tennessee Nature Academy to better meet their developmental needs.
The commission also heard from former KIPP student Miguel Rena who said his choice to attend KIPP ultimately led to a degree at Vanderbilt University and plans to someday become a public school teacher.
KIPP Southeast Nashville College Prep
KIPP Nashville opened its first school 17 years ago and has grown to operate one high school, three elementary schools, and three middle schools in Davidson County.
The charter network’s current model for North and East Nashville families includes two elementary schools and two middle schools feeding into KIPP Nashville Collegiate High School. KIPP Nashville hoped to utilize these two proposed schools to provide the same model feeding into the soon to open KIPP Antioch College Prep High School.
“KIPP’s existing elementary and middle schools in Antioch are in high demand, and new schools are needed to meet that demand,” said KIPP Nashville Executive Director Randy Dowell in a written statement to the commission. “KIPP strongly believes that approval of the elementary and middle school applications will fundamentally improve the lives of disadvantaged students by providing high-performing alternatives to traditional schools.”
MNPS provided commissioners with a number of explanations why the two applications from KIPP Nashville were rejected including claims that KIPP elementary schools haven’t consistently outperformed district schools in consecutive years and projections that find no problems with overcrowding in Antioch and Cane Ridge schools.
Tennessee Nature Academy Appeal
Tennessee Nature Academy wants to establish the first nature-based public middle and high school in Middle Tennessee but its application with MNPS was filled with controversy.
Administrators with the Tennessee Nature Academy argue MNPS board members received an inaccurate report on their application from the district’s charter evaluation team who are alleged to have made 18 incorrect statements in their recommendation against the Tennessee Nature Academy.
“TNA has publicly noted that errors had been made in the review process that we believe incorrectly justified partially-meets and does-not-meet ratings of our application.” Said the Tennessee Nature Academy in a written statement provided to the commission. “MNPS lost 4,000 students during the COVID-19 pandemic to other districts, homeschooling, or private schools. TNA’s model has been popular with such families and stands to bring families back to the district.”
MNPS provided commissioners with a number of explanations why the Tennessee Nature Academy application was denied including budget concerns, questions about accessibility for students with disabilities, and projections that find no problems with overcrowding in Antioch and Cane Ridge schools.
The hearings for KIPP Nashville the Tennessee Nature Academy are among a record 13 charter school appeals commission members will decide next month.
