State charter commission overturns one Memphis-Shelby County School Board decision and upholds another

The Tennessee Public Charter School Commission provided a mixed bag for supporters of two public charter schools vying to transfer into the Memphis-Shelby County School (MSCS) district.Commissioners unanimously upheld the transfer appeal from Cornerstone Prep Lester Friday but denied Fairley High School. The decision means Cornerstone Prep will continue to operate as a public charter school as it transitions to MSCS while Fairley faces an unknown future with Green Dot Public Schools no longer serving as its operator.Cornerstone Prep and Fairley are in the final year of a ten-year contract with the state-run Achievement School District (ASD), an intervention that serves the lowest achieving schools. Both schools applied to transfer into the district in hopes of continuing the turnaround work as public charter schools.Memphis-Shelby County School Board members denied the transition applications from both in July and school leaders appealed to the commission hoping to overturn those decision.

Cornerstone Prep Improvements

MSCS board members voted against Cornerstone Prep Lester’s transfer application citing a history of low performance, but members of the commission disagreed.Commissioners applauded the commitment of the school’s leaders and operators, taking it from the lowest performing school in the Achievement School District (ASD) to being one point away from exiting intervention priority status.Commission Chair Chris Richard and former Binghampton resident Vice-Chair Chris Tutor in particular expressed appreciation for Cornerstone Prep Lester’s contribution to the community and praised the school for its growth.“I know children and families who have directly benefited from these schools and so I just want to personally thank the team, the leadership, the teachers on the ground. This school is an anchor in Binghampton, which is one of the poorest communities in our city. It’s absolutely amazing to me that they’ve taken it from the lowest performing school in the ASD to the cusp of exit status,” said Tutor.The commission also acknowledged the community support Cornerstone Prep has received during the appeal process, saying it demonstrates the work the school has done for the families who took the time to speak at the public hearing and write public comments.

Fairley High School Denied

The commission took a different point of view in its decision to unanimously deny Fairley High School’s appeal.MSCS board members cited low performance in their July decision to deny Fairley’s transfer application. Green Dot Public Schools Tennessee Executive Director Jocquell Rodgers addressed the those concerns directly, telling commissions the organization has been working to address both the chronic absenteeism problems, intervention efforts, and the needs of all students.“We serve a very unique population. I am so committed to these students because they are my neighbors. I do not drive into Fairley. I can walk to work. I live in that community. I’ve worked in this community. I believe in this community. I believe that we are a better option than what Memphis-Shelby County Schools offers. Yes, we did not meet the performance, but there are so many other things that we have done at Fairley High School that go beyond performance and go far beyond what you see on paper,” said Rodgers.Commission Executive Director Tess Stovall acknowledged the continued outpouring of support from the community for Fairley High School, but recommended commissioners deny that application.Stovall agreed with the district that Green Dot lacked evidence its curriculum is translating into improved student outcomes.“Fairley High School is a staple within the Memphis community. It has been for a very long time, and we saw that both in terms of public comments from students and the alumni association, written comments – we got more written comments on this appeal than any other appeal that we received – so I don’t take lightly the community and their love for Fairley High School. However, when I look at was the intervention within the Achievement School District, the operation of Green Dot at Fairley High School, did it show progress towards exiting the priority list to meeting higher academic standards than previously were under Memphis-Shelby County, I simply did not find evidence that this operator should have a new ten-year charter term,” said Stovall.The commission’s decision likely means Fairly High School will merge into the MSCS district’s IZone turnaround school model. District leaders indicated that was a possibility last July.