Metro Nashville Public Schools Board of Education denies every public charter school application after two members say publicly that they oppose the concept of charters

School Board members Zach Young (left) and Rachael Anne Elrod (right) (Photos by Metro Nashville Public Schools)

Metro Nashville Public Schools District 3 Board Member Zack Young serves a northeast section of Davidson County that currently has just two public charter schools in its school cluster.

 A recent Tennessee Firefly analysis of state testing found one of them, Republic High School, outperformed the cluster’s district-run high school in every subject, and the other, Smithson Craighead Academy, outperformed a majority of the district-run elementary schools in the area in a majority of subjects.

 Despite that performance in his own district, Young told fellow board members before Tuesday’s vote on three charter school applications that he just doesn’t support this kind of school.

 “I think it’s no secret that I am just philosophically opposed to the idea of charter schools,” said Young.

 Moments later District 2 Board Member Rachael Anne Elrod expressed a similar opposition about charter schools, that are free public schools operated by a non-profit organization under a “charter” with either a school district or the state.

 “I am typically not a charter school advocate in frankly any way. I believe that we don’t need those seats and that is usually a big part of the reason why I will stand against a charter school just for fiscal responsibility,” said Elrod.

 For charter school supporters, the two statements will no doubt back up their frustration with the district that hasn’t approved a new public charter school since 2021. Concerns about anti-charter politics in Nashville even led to new legislation this year that’s designed to take politics out of the approval process.

 That legislation won’t go into effect until July and doesn’t directly apply to Tuesday’s board decision to vote down charter applications from the Rock Academy, the Forge School, and Rocketship Public Schools. Each applicant will have the ability to submit an amended application for review in the summer though and the new law would apply to any board decision then.

 Potential optimism for the Rock Academy

Dr. Ahmed White (Photo by the Rock Academy)

Of the three denied applicants, supporters of the Rock Academy may feel the most optimistic about approval with an amended application as multiple board members expressed an interest in it.

The Rock would be Nashville’s first opportunity charter school, designed for students who are at-risk because they’ve either dropped out, faced criminal charges, have been retained at least twice, or are more than a year behind academically.

Founder, and former Smithson Craighead Academy Principal, Dr. Ahmed White told board members the proposed high school would help students who are already lost to the system before they get a chance to attend an alternative learning center.

“That’s where Rock Academy comes in. We’re not an alternative learning center. We’re not a last stop. We’re an opportunity charter school and that is something totally different,” said Dr. White. “We are designed to get to students before they fall through the cracks with a model that blends trauma-informed care, career-connected learning, and authentic relationships. We’re not here to compete, we’re here to walk alongside the district.”

The Rock’s application received a single vote of support from new District 1 Board Member Robert Taylor who said at-risk students might benefit from a different approach.

Board Member Robert Taylor (Photo by Metro Nashville Public Schools)

“I love what MNPS is doing for the overwhelming majority of our students however I do know that in my community specifically, there are students that could use additional resources and support,” said Taylor. “I do know that our educators work very hard to address those needs and address those concerns, but I also know that there are students that do fall through the cracks, and I see them at the grocery store. I see them at my church, I see them in my neighborhood, and I just want them to have an opportunity to be successful.”

Additionally, multiple members of the board, including Young and District 8 Board Member Erin O’Hara Block who made the motion to deny the Rock’s application, expressed “intrigue” in the proposed school, though they still had concerns about its ability to serve special populations and how it would work alongside alternative learning centers.

“If we were voting tonight on whether Dr. White is the person to lead a school like this, I think it would probably be a unanimous yes,” said Young. “This intrigues me in a way that others do not, and I think it’s because of this particular approach as an opportunity charter and the certain segments of the population that it could serve.”

“I’m intrigued by this, but we’re not there yet,” said Block. “I don’t think the application clearly reflects how the program both differs and builds upon our systems.

Less support for the Forge and Rocketship

The board was noticeably less supportive of the other two proposed charter schools.

The Forge School would serve up to 825 students in grades 6-12 in the Donelson and Hermitage communities. Supporters of the school propose aligning a project-based learning curriculum to prepare students for careers in architecture, construction, and engineering.

“At the Forge School, we build. We build knowledge, skills, community, confidence, and the future of Nashville together and in that spirit, we would like to build relationships with you,” said school founder and former MNPS Director of Social Emotional Learning Sara Tuttle to board members Tuesday night.

Board members unanimously voted the Forge down citing concerns about whether it would offer something different than existing schools with an architecture and construction pathway.  Some additionally expressed concern related to another public charter school, Invictus Nashville, opening in the area soon.

Invictus delayed opening until next fall because leaders struggled to find adequate facilities. District 4 Board Member Dr. Berthena Nabaa-McKinney mischaracterized that delay as instead being the result of a challenge recruiting students. She questioned whether the Forge might face a similar challenge.  

“They (Invictus) were unable to open their first year and had to delay it their second year and even now they are struggling with enrollment, so I’d like to hear more about recruitment and enrollment and the demand for this school in our district,” said Nabaa-McKinney.

Board members also unanimously voted down a request from Rocketship Public Schools to add a fourth school in Nashville. It would serve up to 576 students in grades K-5 in the Antioch and Cane Ridge Clusters. 

The district currently has plans to build a new school in the area and some board members questioned the need for another public charter school there when Rocketship’s existing schools are not at capacity.

District 6 Board Member Cheryl Mays represents sections of the Antioch and Cane Ridge Clusters, and she additionally questioned the performance of Rocketship’s existing schools.

“One of the things that really concerned me about this application was the previous performance and the concern that I didn’t see anything in this application that would make me believe that it would improve,” said Mays.

The Tennessee Firefly compared state testing results for Rocketship United in the Glencliff Cluster south of downtown Nashville and Rocketship Dream Community Prep in the Cane Ridge Cluster in South Davidson County to elementary schools in the same clusters. Rocketship United outperformed half of its cluster’s schools in every subject and Rocketship United outperformed most schools in the Glencliff Cluster.