Katie Smythe knows that Memphis’s most famous celebrity will loom large over her school even once the renovations are complete.¶
“It helps put (the school) on the register,” Smythe said.¶
Smythe is the founder of Memphis Middle and High School for the Arts & Technology (MEMArtsTech), a new public school for grades 6 through 12 that will provide academic instruction alongside professional-level arts and technology training. The school is being developed in partnership with New Ballet Ensemble & School, which was also founded by Smythe and will continue to operate independently.¶
The school will operate in the former Humes Middle School in North Memphis, where Elvis Presley attended as a child. Humes Middle closed July 31, 2024, and was owned by MSCS until MEMArts Tech closed on the purchase on June 13, 2026.¶
Each day, students at the school will take on their traditional coursework, but for three hours they will have a set time to work on their chosen arts or trades pathway.¶
Who is Katie Smythe?
Smythe grew up a daydreamer.¶
“Sometimes, it would keep me up late at night, all those things that might make people think I'm a little crazy,” Smythe said.¶
As a child, she danced everywhere she went. She would grab an umbrella, put on a yellow slicker and rain boots, pretend to be the girl on the Morton Salt logo, and splash around in puddles. She reminisced about it when she saw her granddaughter splashing in a puddle of rain recently.¶
She was very imaginative, and it took imaginative teachers to hold her attention in school. Her mother used to tell her she had a high IQ and needed to “assert herself” more in school. She was instead asserting herself in the ballet studio, in the school choir, while playing the piano, and even running lighting tech booths at Theater Memphis at the age of 13.¶
“I was dancing 15 to 20 hours a week with adults as a young child, but I also grew up with a lot of privilege, and I was able to go to the Royal Ballet School at age 14,” Smythe said.¶
She eventually interviewed with the then-principal, Florence Leffler, for a spot at Central High School in Memphis. She found a home there, and Leffler proved to be more than just a mentor but someone who would stay in Smythe’s life for decades to come.¶
After high school, Smythe’s dancing career took her to Minneapolis, New York, Los Angeles, and eventually back to Memphis, where she saw a void for children who could not afford to be immersed in the arts while in a school setting.¶
“I saw all the structural barriers to entry, mainly our transportation system and poverty, and wanted to change that,” Smythe said.¶
That is when she had the idea for New Ballet Ensemble & School. The school provides professional dance training for children regardless of their financial status. It serves more than 400 students weekly and boasts a 100 percent rate of students progressing directly to either college or a career path since opening in 2003.¶
Now, her mission is MEMArtsTech.¶
The Humes Campus
After acquiring possession of the building, Smythe has begun campaigning to pay for its renovations. The school sits on 8.5 acres and is more than 100 years old, but despite its age, the fit is palpable.¶
“I have toured at least 20 schools, elementary, middle, and high, and I’ve never seen one with a community and family resource center attached to it, so that parents have access to what they need through their children’s school,” Smythe said.¶
Aside from that, the school’s classrooms are so large that no walls will need to be built or knocked down to create nine dance studios. There is also a 1,200-seat auditorium perfect for large performances with a generous backstage area.¶
Good word of mouth has also helped MEMArtsTech gain traction in the community. The only downside, Smythe said, is that there might not be enough space for all the initial applicants. But she believes that they could be accommodated in the future.¶
“I think there's enough flexibility within the parameters of what you can do within historic buildings that we can create those spaces, those communal spaces that don't currently exist,” Smythe said.¶
