Dr. Brenda Jones made Nashville education history Friday by not just becoming the first Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) graduate to open a public charter school, but also the first former district teacher to do so.
Members of the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission voted unanimously to approve Jones’ appeal to open Invictus Nashville Charter School. The vote overturns a July decision by the MNPS Board of Education to deny Invictus.
“I am so thankful for the unbiased and equitable process provided to me by the Tennessee Charter School Commission. We are grateful that they honored our robust and comprehensive plan to start and sustain this school,” said Dr. Jones. “The discussion prior to the vote showed a deep commitment to asking the tough questions and surfacing discrepancies with our process and application at the local level. I appreciated the recognition of community input and involvement being centered as a top priority for Invictus as well as the Tennessee Charter School Commission. We are so eager and excited to serve the community.”
Invictus Nashville’s founder grew up in East Nashville’s Cayce Homes complex and attended her MNPS zoned school until high school when she utilized a special transfer to switch to Hillsboro High in Green Hills.
Jones says she designed Invictus to serve students like she was and bring out the best of the public education system to serve the needs of diverse communities in Donelson and Hermitage.
The proposed school will provide a Montessori curriculum for elementary students then change to a project-based learning model with Montessori undertones in middle school, so students are able to self-direct their learning path.
During the appeal process Invictus faced opposition from parents of students who attend the area’s other Montessori school. Supporters pushed back on that opposition by pointing out Invictus aims to serve a more diverse population than the existing Stanford Montessori Elementary School that’s student body is just 28 percent black.
Commissioners overwhelmingly sided with Invictus.
Multiple members spoke in agreement that the area needs another Montessori school, especially one serving students of color.
“I think this application highlights why choice plus community support is so powerful,” said Commissioner Terence Patterson. “It is unbelievably important that our black and brown children have access to the same types of educational choices that their counterparts have in other parts of the country and other parts of their city.”
“I thought this was a fantastic application,” said Commissioner Lauren Smith. “Just really was glad to see your responsiveness to the community on tweaking the model to what parents wanted. And as a local, I live in East Nashville so very close to where this school would be located, I can affirm that there is a very strong desire for another Montessori model in the community.”
Nashville Collegiate Prep Denied
Commissioners denied the appeal from the other proposed public charter school in Nashville but there were signs of hope for supporters of Nashville Collegiate Prep High School in the future.
The proposed high school would serve as an extension of the existing Nashville Collegiate Prep elementary and middle schools, offering additional sports facilities and innovative art and technology pathways.
MNPS board members unanimously voted the application down in July and commissioners narrowly voted 5 to 4 to uphold that denial following questions about Nashville Collegiate Prep’s existing academic performance. Multiple commissioners seemed to struggle with the decision, and the appeal may have been approved if commissioners had access to data from the upcoming School Letter Grades. That data won’t be available until next month.
Nashville Collegiate Prep’s existing middle school students won’t enter high school until the 2025/2026 school year so the charter operator could re-apply next year and if approved, open in time for those students’ Freshman year.
Third Straight Year of Overturned Decisions
This is the third straight year the MNPS Board of Education has seen its denials of proposed public charter school overturned by the state commission.
Last year commissioners overturned all three MNPS denials including two appeals from KIPP Nashville and another from the Tennessee Nature Academy. In 2021 commissioners overturned an MNPS denial of Nashville Classical.
The district issued a statement applauding the commission’s decision to deny Nashville Collegiate Prep while disagreeing with the decision to approve Invictus Nashville.
“The MNPS Board of Education’s decisions to deny the NCPH (Nashville Collegiate Prep High) and Invictus applications were based on careful consideration of the analysis of the expert review team, which showed they did not meet rigorous standards for approval. We agree with the Charter Commission’s decision to uphold the denial of NCPH and disagree with the decision to overturn the denial of Invictus,” said MNPS in a written statement.
