NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The withdrawal of charter school applications from a group affiliated with the controversial Hillsdale College does not end the potential political landmines awaiting the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission.
Later this month, the commission will consider applications from Founders Classical Academy — a group formerly affiliated with Hillsdale — to open taxpayer-funded charter schools in Sumner and Williamson counties over the objections of the local school boards, with powerful Republican lawmakers weighing in against the applications.
On Thursday, commission executive director Tess Stovall recommended that when the commission meets Wednesday, it should overrule the Metro Nashville school board and approve new taxpayer-funded elementary and middle schools proposed by the KIPP network in the Antioch area. On the other hand, Stovall sided with Metro in agreeing that a third application by Saber STEM Academy should be rejected.
Stovall also urged the commission to uphold the decision of the Clarksville-Montgomery County school board to reject Oxton Academy's application for a charter high school to serve at-risk students in that community.
"Any authorized public charter school is entrusted with the great responsibility of educating students and a significant amount of public funds," Stovall wrote. "For these reasons, the Commission expects that only those schools that have demonstrated a high likelihood of success and meet or exceed the required criteria in all areas will be authorized."
Such an approach, the executive director argued, "signals that only charter school applications of the highest quality will be recommended for approval."
Still, Stovall's recommendations are not binding.
In January, the charter school commission ignored her recommendation and approved Rutherford Collegiate Prep despite concerns about the group's ability to serve a diverse student population, including children with disabilities.
As a result of the Hillsdale controversy, the charter school commission has faced intensified scrutiny from Republicans and Democrats about its ability to overrule local school boards.
Earlier this year, the Metro Nashville school board rejected applications to open KIPP Southeast Nashville College Prep Elementary School and KIPP Southeast Nashville Prep Middle School, arguing that the district already had plans to build new schools to meet the high demand in the high-growth Antioch area.
Stovall's recommendation cited KIPP's "proven success within the Nashville area in addressing achievement gaps" and a "robust waitlist" of families who want KIPP schools.
On the other hand, the executive director agreed that Saber STEM Academy, which also wanted to operate in the Antioch area, "failed to provide sufficient evidence in the academic, operational, financial and past performance sections" of the scoring rubric.
Most problematic, Stovall said, is Saber's relationship with a for-profit charter operator, Education Management & Networks Inc.
"In any capacity, it would be a violation of Tennessee law to permit this for-profit entity to manage and operate a charter school," she noted.
In Clarksville-Montgomery County, Oxton Academy had proposed a small charter high school that would have served students who had dropped out of school or were at risk.
A local review committee had recommended approval of the Oxton Academy application, but the school board voted it down with little discussion.
"Oxton’s amended application does not demonstrate the ability to serve special populations and meet their enrollment targets, and there is little evidence to support that their plan is aligned to Tennessee state requirements," Stovall wrote.
"Additionally, the sponsor has not shown evidence of community demand for this school model, nor have they identified specific communities they wish to serve."
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