Metro Nashville Public Schools addresses teacher vacancies, welcomes back Brick Church Middle

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) has made significant progress in recent efforts to address teacher vacancies in the district, according to a back-to-school update given by Director Adrienne Battle at Tuesday’s regular board meeting.

Battle said that as of this school year, which began last week, the district has managed to fill about 98 percent of its teacher vacancies, thanks to investments in teacher pay raises and hiring more support staff, among other measures.

“We are off to a strong start to the 24-25 school year after an excellent first week of schools,” she said.“We have made tremendous strides in filling vacancies and bringing in strong, highly talented educators to join team MNPS across the district, and that work will continue,” she added.

“We are seeing one of the lowest vacancy rates in recent memory, and our investments in classroom associates helped to ensure that when there is a vacancy, our students have a dedicated staff member, many of whom are previous certified teachers who know them, know the school and can plan for transitions between teachers.”

In addition to updates about vacancies, Battle told attendees that the district has brought Brick Church Middle School back under its wing this school year. She said the district hired Robyn Beard, who previously served as principal of Alex Green Elementary School, to serve as the school’s principal.

“This year, we not only welcomed students back to schools across the district, but we also welcomed back one of our schools to the MNPS family. We have successfully launched the new-and-improved, back-and-better Brick Church Middle School, which had previously been under the authority of the Achievement School District and the LEAD charter school network."

MNPS took over the school after the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission rejected LEAD Public School's request to continue operating the school under the commission's authority.

Battle also noted that the district has continued its commitment to providing free lunch for all students. The district now joins others throughout the state that have taken advantage of recent changes in federal rules governing free meal program eligibility, such as Kingsport City Schools, Overton County Schools and Tullahoma Schools, among others.

“We have no cost meals for every student. This is something that started during the [COVID-19] pandemic with Federal USDA waivers, but it's something we committed to as a board continuing beyond that time, and we are the leader in the state in ensuring that our students - regardless of income or zip code - have access to no cost breakfast and lunch every day," she said.