Public charter schools haven’t exactly received the warmest of welcomes from the Metro Nashville Public Schools Board of Education in recent years, but Dr. Brenda Jones hopes to change that Tuesday night.Dr. Jones’ proposed Invictus Nashville Charter School is one of three charter applications board members will be deciding whether to approve. The board denied all three in the initial round of the approval process last April. That vote followed a similar denial of every proposed public charter school the year before.Jones hopes Invictus Nashville will find an easier path with its education model that focuses not just on academic outcomes, but social and emotional outcomes, opportunities for students to direct their education, and help students figure out what they want to do and what they can do to pursue their goals.

The halls of Cheatham County’s middle and high schools will look a bit different when students return August 7.  Students will no longer be carrying backpacks to class.

Members of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Board of Education voted to deny four out of five applications Tuesday night from public charter schools vying to transition from the state’s Achievement School District (ASD) and into MSCS.The vote means an uncertain future for Humes Middle School, Martin Luther King Jr. College Preparatory High School, Cornerstone Prep Lester, and Fairley High School in the 2024/2025 school year. Each school could face closure, a merger into the district’s Izone turnaround school model, or potentially even remain open as public charter schools if leaders successfully appeal to the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission.Each of the five schools applying for transition to MSCS is doing so because the school is in the last year of a ten-year term with the Achievement School District. The ASD is an intervention run by the state to serve schools that are in the lowest five percent of schools, or a low achieving school across the state.

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) selected Christine Tran to represent her fellow MNPS students on the school board next year. Tran is a rising junior at the soon-to-open James Lawson High and former student of the recently closed Hillwood High School.

A short-handed Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Board of Education chose an unexpected path in the public charter school approval process Tuesday night. With several members absent, the board voted to support a proposed public charter school that failed to pass multiple reviews while denying others the district itself rated higher.

Shelby County Commissioners chose non-profit leader Mauricio Calvo to fill a vacant spot on the Memphis-Shelby County School Board.District 5 has been without representation since former Board Vice Chair Sheleah Harris’ abrupt resignation last month.At Monday’s meeting, commissioners voted 7 to 4 to confirm Calvo to serve as interim board member until the end of Harris’ term in September 2024. Calvo beat out three other candidates for the appointment.

Shelby County Commissioners chose non-profit leader Mauricio Calvo to fill a vacant spot on the Memphis-Shelby County School Board.District 5 has been without representation since former Board Vice Chair Sheleah Harris’ abrupt resignation last month.At Monday’s meeting, commissioners voted 7 to 4 to confirm Calvo to serve as interim board member until the end of Harris’ term in September 2024. Calvo beat out three other candidates for the appointment.

The approval process for proposed new public charter schools is about to begin its second round for school districts across the state.Four school boards will be voting on amended applications this month from nine public charter schools that were all denied in the spring.

The Knox County Schools board of education approved a policy to allow students to leave school for an hour to earn elective credits for religious courses.The 7-1 decision came with some reservations from board members, including Reverend John Butler. The District 1 board member raised numerous concerns about the vagueness of the policy.

Hamilton County Schools announced Dr. Martha McMillan and Alisan Taylor will take over as the new principals for East Ridge Elementary School and Thrasher Elementary School.

Four proposed public charter schools may face a tougher road to finding approval in Memphis.The Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) charter review team is recommending school board members deny applications from every proposed public charter school this year, including Pathways in Education, CHANGE Academy, Empower Memphis Career and College Prep, and the Tennessee Career Academy.

A “deep dive” review of student support services by Knox County Schools (KCS) found challenges providing resources to special education students and English language learners.That review of the district’s Student Success Division found many parents of these students were unsure where to find resources and a general need for improved communication with families.

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) has launched a “Back to School” webpage to help families prepare for the new school year that begins August 8.“The morning rings August 8, welcoming students, teachers, and staff in schools across the district - ushering in a traditional and exciting start of a new academic year. We are so glad we'll be back together,” wrote MNPS.In addition to having information to help get families and students ready for back-to-school season, the page provides information and resources for enrolling students, COVID protocols, and transportation.

Interim superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams is no longer a contender to lead Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) on a permanent basis.At Tuesday evening’s school board meeting members approved a contract for Williams to continue serving as interim superintendent through August 29, with the key stipulation that she devote full-time attention to her duties of interim superintendent and not seek the position permanently.

Special needs students in Rutherford County may get to live out their dreams of becoming superheroes in the near future.At Thursday’s Rutherford County School Board meeting, The Every Kid Is A Hero Foundation presented board members with a proposal to give special needs students in the district a chance to become heroes in a comic.“What we have done, we’ve become a foundation called The Every Kid Is A Hero Foundation,” said foundation representative Lee Colvin. “Within this county’s school system, what we’re trying to do is we’re trying to come in and we’re trying to work with the special needs high school programs.”

Members of the Metro Nashville Public Schools Board of Education plan to consider using Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding approved for COVID expenses, to address an inequality in pay raises for teachers.Last week Metro Council approved a 6 percent cost of living (COLA) raise for Metro employees but the budget only included a 4 percent COLA for school district employees.

Shelby County Commissioners voted in favor of building two new high schools and providing a substantial raise to teachers Monday night.Both are key educational priorities in the county’s 2023/2024 budget that could receive final approval Wednesday morning.The capital spending plan approved by commissioners includes $65 million for building improvements and the construction of high schools in Frayser and Cordova. The backing from commissioners follows last month’s event in Frayser where students held a press conference to rally support for the new school.

The Memphis-Shelby County Schools, Tennessee’s largest district, received almost $776 million in federal relief funds to help students recover from the pandemic — more than any other school system in the state.But anyone interested in learning how the district spent that hefty sum might be left scratching their heads.

The path that Pathways in Education (PIE) takes its name from began decades ago with the challenges organization founder John Hall faced when he was in school.Hall has a learning disability and couldn’t read until the age of 13.