Independent review finds the Tennessee Career Academy’s application to open a new public charter school needs work

Founders of the proposed Tennessee Career Academy envision their public charter school as a solution to the growing need in Memphis for “world-ready” highly skilled workers.It’s one reason why they’re proposing to establish the career and technical education focused school on the former Memphis Technical High School location.  The facility is large enough for expanded services and it’s close to downtown and technical training facilities like Moore Tech and the Tennessee College of Applied Technology.“Our mission is to be the top-rated provider of world-ready graduates in the South by combining high- performance core curriculum with career-focused training and experiences,” wrote Tennessee Career Academy in its application. “Our vision is to reimagine education so that every young person has the skills to succeed in the modern global workforce.”The proposed Tennessee Career Academy would eventually serve 750 students in grades six through twelve with four career and technical education “Pathways” including Business and Communication, Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing, Health and Human Services, and Skilled Trades.Students would additionally have a path towards industry certifications and the school plans to partner with professional trainers from local industry and institutions.Some of those local business leaders wrote letters of support for the proposed school including Hyde Family Foundation president, Teresa Sloyan."With workforce demands higher than ever and students desiring to enter the workforce earlier, there is a pressing need now more than ever to ensure high-quality pipelines that align with the needs of the current and future workforce. We're encouraged that the new Tennessee Career Academy will provide an exceptional academic and career preparation experience leading to more high school graduates with certifications and credentials that will allow them to thrive in the workplace. I also believe that the TN Career Academy will serve as a proof point and model for reimagining career technical education in our city, county, and state,” said Sloyan.The Tennessee Career Academy is one of five proposed public charter schools that have applied to open in Memphis and it’s one of two with a heavy career and technical education (CTE) focus.The recently launched Quality Charter Review (QRC) has provided an independent analysis for each of them and though reviewers recommended Memphis-Shelby County Public Schools approve the other CTE focused school, they aren’t recommending approval for the Tennessee Career Academy.QCR reviewers praised the proposed school’s application for providing a unique academic focus, its emphasis on career work and the founding team having the expertise for start-up and school management, but they were concerned the Tennessee Career Academy’s curriculum isn’t set yet.“Overall, the application lacks explicit evidence that the school will offer research-based curriculum and teaching methods in core content areas, as the applicant does not plan to finalize the curriculum until March 2024. This may limit academic evidence necessary for application recommendation,” wrote QRC reviewers.QCR reviewers did find Tennessee Career Academy’s operations and financial plans meet state standards and they commended the school’s thorough explanation of how it intends to address the needs of students with disabilities and students who are learning the English language.The Memphis-Shelby County School Board is expected to make a decision on the Tennessee Career Academy’s application and others this spring.