The Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) Board of Education rejected four proposed public charter schools Tuesday night and opened the possibility that future charter applicants might bypass district approval altogether.¶
Legislation approved last year by the General Assembly allows charter applicants the ability to apply directly to the state-appointed Tennessee Public Charter School Commission in school districts where three charter denials have been overturned. MNPS received the first “strike” last year when the commission overturned a denial against The Rock Academy.¶
Tuesday’s charter denials included amended applications from The Gate School, Music City Academy, Nashville School of Excellence, and Empowerment Academy – West Tennessee. Some, if not all, of these applicants are expected to appeal to the commission in the fall, and at least two of them will have history on their side.¶
MNPS staff awarded The Gate School and Music City Academy with the highest ratings of any charter applications since 2014, and, notably, both applications received higher ratings than the last charter school directly approved by the board in 2021. The charter commission has overturned at least one MNPS denial each year it’s been in operation, including three in 2022 and 2024.¶
Music City Academy and The Gate School
Music City Academy would function as a traditional grade nine-12 high school with a proposed enrollment of 480 students. It would use athletics as a pathway into each student’s academic and personal progress, using teamwork and coaching to provide targeted guidance and mentorship.¶
Former Tennessee Titan Kevin Dyson is the school’s founder, and he told board members that Music City Academy would be about much more than sports.¶
“Sports are not the destination. They are the vehicle,” said Dyson. “Our mission has never been to build a school about athletics or winning championships. Our mission is to build a high-quality public high school that uses the power of sports to engage students in rigorous academics, wellness, and meaningful post-secondary opportunities.”¶
The Gate School, contrastingly, would serve grades six through eight with a proposed capacity of 360 students. Its classrooms would revolve around the Harkness Method, which uses classes of no more than 12 students, places their desks in a circle, and uses teacher-guided discussion as a key learning tool.¶
Its founder, former Nashville educator Burrus Cox, told board members that his school will cultivate excellence.¶
“Excellence is already present within our students. Our job is not to manufacture it. Our job is to cultivate it,” said Cox. “That is what The Gate School will do.”¶
Lone Supporter on the Board
Board member Robert Taylor was the lone board member to vote in favor of both the Music City Academy and The Gate School. He said he’s heard from many parents seeking alternatives for their children, including families on magnet school waiting lists, which he said reflects the demand for additional educational opportunities.¶
"I want to support the district in making our zone traditional schools the best options for parents,” Taylor said. “And we are moving the needle, but as a parent myself, do I want to wait four, five, six years before we get the needle moved enough to where I feel confident that my child is going to receive the highest quality education, no matter what part of town I live in?"¶
Votes to Deny
Multiple board members who voted against these applications, including Vice-Chair Dr. Berthena Nabaa-McKinney, have high-performing charter schools in their own districts. STRIVE Collegiate Academy, a public charter school in Nabaa-McKinney’s district, outperformed every other middle school in Donelson on last year’s state testing.¶
Nabaa-McKinney expressed concern about a perceived negative cost of charter schools before voting against The Gate School and Music City Academy.¶
“I just cannot support the opening of a new school,” Nabaa-McKinney said. “Every new charter school redirects public funding dollars away from MNPS, while the district remains responsible for the fixed costs of operating more than 160 schools, transporting students, maintaining facilities, providing special education services, ensuring school safety, and supporting more the more than 80,000 students we currently have.”¶
Under the state’s Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) funding formula, each dollar of per-pupil funding is tied directly to each student. That means charter schools receive state dollars for students who leave district schools to attend them, but school districts receive savings in the process as they no longer have to pay for teachers, transportation, or other operations that benefit those students.¶
Empowerment Academy and Nashville School of Excellence
Board members unanimously denied applications from the Empowerment Academy - Middle Tennessee and Nashville School of Excellence.¶
The Nashville School of Excellence would have served grades six through 12 in the Nolensville Road area, with the goal of supporting the more than 40,000 Kurdish immigrants in the community. Its educational model would consist of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math)-focused instruction, with an emphasis on individualized academic and social support, and community engagement.¶
Empowerment Academy – Middle Tennessee would have served as a traditional elementary school enrolling students in kindergarten through fifth grade, with a focus on agriculture and STEAM education. The charter applicant also applied to open schools in Memphis and Chattanooga this year but was denied in each.¶
