School Turnaround Program is working for two Memphis schools

Memphis schools Hawkins Mill Elementary and Trezevant High have been on the state’s priority list since the list’s formation in the 2011-12 school year. This means their students are consistently in the bottom 5% of state tests or have less than 67% graduation rate.Those years of challenges led both schools to be prime candidates for the state’s School Turnaround Pilot Program and there are new signs both are seeing positive change.Wednesday afternoon, the Senate Education Committee held its first meeting of the year to discuss the program and how it’s helped improve these two schools from the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) district.For both schools, the program created a partnership with the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE), MSCS, and global education non-profit Cognia, to help create a path for improvement.The results have shown up in testing.Hawkins Mill has seen a nearly 5% growth in state testing for English Language Arts (ELA) since the 2018-19 school year while Trezevant has seen a 10% growth in ELA and nearly a 4% growth in Math score during that time.Hawkins Mill’s improvements lead the school exit the state’s priority list last year while Trezevant met the state graduation rate for the first time since 2011-12.Dr. Thomas Rogers of Memphis-Shelby County Schools told Senators he believes Trezevant will exit the priority list this year.“The thing that we believe that kept us on the list this school year was the graduation rate…but now, in preparation of this school year we’ve already met the qualifier that’s required for the state graduation rate. Based on what we’ve seen instructionally in the leadership moves and teacher moves we feel confident that Trezevant will exit the priority list this year,” said Rogers.The School Turnaround Pilot Program Act was signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee on May 27, 2021. This bill allowed the TDOE to form a four-year turnaround plan starting the 2021-2022 school year for five schools needing intervention.In selecting schools in need of intervention, TDOE chose five geographically diverse schools, including Hawkins Mill and Trezevant, that have struggled to move beyond their designation as a priority school. The department then partnered with outside organizations like Cognia to conduct a comprehensive analysis for schools to use to develop their own School Turnaround Plan.Cognia Director Morgan Eaves said a part of the pilot program is incentivized funding. The vendors that work with those schools get 50 percent of those funds and only get the remaining 50 percent if the schools come off the priority list.“One thing that is particularly important to these pilot schools is stakeholder involvement. Not just community members, not just district and school leadership, but making sure parents and families, and folks in the neighborhood—businesses in the community—that they all get together in ensure student success. Students need a breath of support and that comes from all angles,” said Eaves.The goal for both Memphis schools and others in the pilot program is to build a solid foundation for continued improvement so that once a school leaves the priority list, it will not return.The School Turnaround Pilot Program will continue to provide resources to Hawkins Mill, Trezevant, and the other schools through the 2024-2025 school year to ensure their success continues.“If you let these schools languish, you lose a generation or more of children. It’s not just an education issue, it’s a workforce issue. It’s tied to every single policy area [Senate of Education] talks about. It’s important to be innovative to enact real change and I firmly believe, especially based on the results and the trajectory because of this pilot, we’re making positive progress,” said Eaves.