Tuesday’s school board meeting got off to an unusual start. District 1 representative Sharon Gentry and District 8 representative Gini Pupo-Walker were absent, while District 7 representative Freda Player-Peters and Director of Schools Adrienne Battle tuned in virtually. Because not all members were present at the top of the meeting, District 2 representative and vice chair Rachael Anne Elrod started the meeting with public comment, which usually follows the director’s report. Much of the meeting was rearranged so that Player-Peters could vote (virtually) before boarding a flight.
Public Comment
During the meeting’s public comment portion, several community members connected to a Westmeade Elementary sustainability program spoke to the values of such a program and voiced a desire to see more of them throughout the district. They weren’t the only commenters with the environment in mind. Many representatives from the Tennessee Nature Academy — an aspiring charter school whose initial application was denied in April — approached the board asking for approval of an appeal. Former students who experienced TNA programming spoke in support of the school. Before the meeting started, they brought a baby goat named Cinnamon to the MNPS administration building. Some adults associated with the school commented on errors they found in the district charter review team’s initial assessment of the proposed school. TNA co-founder Roy Renfro claimed that the charter review team’s initial report had “over 18 unfactual statements where the review committee either miscited Tennessee state law, or misrepresented the Tennessee Nature Academy application.”
One student speaker associated with Nashville Organized for Action and Hope talked about the need for more equitable and accessible advanced academic options. Another parent expressed frustration with a lack of engagement from the board.
A handful of parents, students, teachers and a former school resource officer took to the podium to address ongoing issues at William Henry Oliver Middle School. Some students spoke on behalf of teachers who had left the middle school. They all spoke of a toxic environment and an unsupportive administration that has left teachers and kids unsafe — including during an incident when a gun was found in the school.
“I taught at Oliver for 13 years,” said Jenny Broeder. “I wanted to be there until I retired, but I simply could not bring myself to work there under the current leadership any longer, and I left at the end of the [2020]-21 school year. The fact that over two dozen teachers, including all the band directors, left this year alone at a place that usually has very little turnover should be an indication that Oliver is broken. I can finally talk about it now without bursting into tears, and that's a direct result of the trauma that I endured because of my leadership there.”
Consent Agenda
The most significant discussion during the consent agenda portion of Tuesday’s meeting was about Knowledge Academies. The charter school company submitted an application to consolidate its middle and high schools back in April, but the board denied it. KA then appealed to the state charter commission, which approved the request. The MNPS board’s only options were to approve or defer the consolidation application — the board deferred voting and is now seeking more information about its legal options before returning to the discussion in August.
Charter Applications
The board had a handful of amended charter school applications to review, including those from KIPP Southeast Nashville College Prep Elementary School 2, KIPP Southeast Nashville College Prep Middle School 2, Saber STEM Academy and Tennessee Nature Academy. All of these schools applied to start or renew their contracts in April, and all of them were denied. Each charter application and appeal is evaluated by the district’s charter office, who then presents their findings on aspects like academics, finances and past performance to the board. Board discussions consider population growth and capacity in different districts. Ultimately, the board denied both KIPP applications, though District 4 representative John Little and District 6 representative Fran Bush voted in favor of them. Everyone present voted to deny Saber Stem’s applications, except for Bush, who abstained. A motion to approve the amended application for the Tennessee Nature Academy failed, but so did a motion to deny it. The board will have to meet again this month and make a final vote on the matter. Before the meeting, TNA co-founder Roy Renfro told the Scene that he would appeal to the state charter commission if the board denies his application.
Director’s Report and Board Discussion
The short director’s report was mostly led by Paul Changas, executive director of research, assessment and evaluation. Changas discussed district scores from the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program. Despite the fact that MNPS’ scores are still below statewide averages, the district’s students are catching up at a faster rate than the statewide average in many subjects. Though MNPS students are returning to pre-pandemic levels in some subjects, “We still have some work to do, particularly in mathematics, to get back to those levels,” according to Changas. It’s also worth noting that achievement gaps for student subgroups did not improve.
Slide: Metro Nashville Public Schools
Following the director’s report, Fran Bush called a board discussion regarding safety for elementary schoolers, including SROs. Bush asked Battle directly if she had an update on elementary school security, but according to District 5 representative Christiane Buggs, it was supposed to be a board discussion and as such, Battle was not advised to prepare with specific information. Though the discussion was shelved, the board members talked about security funds from the Metro Council, but not without some squabbling from Bush. Bush will submit questions to Dr. Battle and pick this conversation back up at the next meeting.
