Proposed “career focused” public charter school in Memphis receives high marks from independent reviewers

There’s a specific reason why the founders of Empower Memphis Career & College Prep chose Orange Mound and South Memphis for the home of their proposed public charter school.The area suffers from high poverty levels and a lack of innovative school choice options. School leaders believe their focus on career exploration will be uniquely capable of meeting the specific needs of the area’s students.“In partnership with families and community, Empower Memphis Career and College Prep is a K-8 charter school with an unwavering obligation to accelerate academic achievement, foster individuality, and cultivate career mindsets of all students as early as Kindergarten. Through differentiated instruction, interest-based studies, leadership development, financial planning, and career simulations and internships, students develop future-ready skills for success in the global market,” wrote the school in its charter application.Empower Memphis Career & College Prep is one of 16 proposed public charter schools that have applied to open in Tennessee. That includes five applying in Memphis.The proposed school would eventually serve 450 students in kindergarten through eighth grade with a Career Technical Education (CTE) focus that’s designed to provide students with academic and technical skills through hands-on training and experience.As part of that, the school would provide students with 16 career pathways to choose from, each reflecting the industries of need in Memphis.The targeted focus in career development is among the attributes that attracted the support of Alex Shawe with real estate and development company Level Field Partners.“Having worked with dozens of charter schools with varied programmatic missions, I am enthusiastic about Empower Prep’s innovative goal to provide hands-on career awareness opportunities for its students. This sort of curriculum has the potential to mitigate certain structural inequities too often found in economically disadvantaged communities that generally lack access to upward mobility and related career readiness,” wrote Shawe in a letter of support.This spring school board members with Memphis-Shelby County Schools will decide whether to approve Empower Memphis Career & College Prep’s application and an independent review is now recommending that they do.The recently launched Quality Charter Review (QCR) found that the proposed school's academic, operations, and financial plans all meet state standards and reviewers commended the school’s thorough explanation of how it intends to address the needs of students with disabilities and students who are learning the English language.It’s estimated that ten percent of the students who would attend Empower Memphis Career & College Prep will be students with disabilities and more than four percent will be English Language learners."Overall, the applicant team brings a depth of diversity and experience that illicit confidence for successful school start-up and management. Proposed partnerships will equip leadership to respond to the needs of the community. The applicant proposes an organizational plan that is strong and coherent,” wrote the QCR in its report.QCR reviewers also gave the application high marks for its plans to provide transportation and provide teacher salaries.Reviewers encouraged school leaders to considering forming partnerships with area non-profits due to the high number of economically disadvantaged students that would attend the school.