Memphis families seek new school options after last week’s closure vote

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Memphis-Shelby County Schools is extending its priority deadline for school choice transfers to next Friday, March 13 following a vote last week to close five schools.

Students displaced by this year’s closures won’t automatically be at the top of the transfer list, MSCS said in an emailed statement. Applications that allow students to attend a different school than their zoned one are reviewed each year on a first-come, first-served basis.

But families from Lucy Elementary, Frayser-Corning Elementary, Georgian Hills Elementary, Ida B. Wells Academy, and Chickasaw Middle only found out last week that their schools will close in June, leaving less than a week to fill out the transfer application before the original March 2 deadline. Priority applications are reviewed by the district first, maximizing a student’s chance of getting into the school of their choice before spots fill up.

Those closures are part of a larger district plan to shutter up to 15 schools in the next three years. How the district manages the impact to over 1,200 displaced students and around 57 displaced staff will likely set the model for those future closure decisions.

“We understand that transitions can raise questions, and our goal is to partner closely with families throughout this process,” MSCS said in its statement to Chalkbeat.

Most displaced students are being rezoned to attend a nearby MSCS school. But that’s raised safety concerns from some parents who don’t want their younger children put in the same building as older students, like K-8 or 6-12 schools. Others question whether the new schools will offer better academics or programming.

Erica Smith has two children who currently attend Ida B. Wells Academy. She praises the school for its small class sizes and individual attention – attributes MSCS leaders said won’t be exactly replicated in other district schools.

“The staff to student ratio as it is now, it’s just not sustainable nor is it cost effective,” Superintendent Roderick Richmond said during the closure vote last Tuesday.

Richmond said the district is exploring moving the Ida B. Wells program into Norris Achievement Academy, another alternative school further south.

But Smith said she’s never heard of that school, which only enrolls previously expelled students. Instead, she’s sending one of her kids to The Soulsville Charter School, a music-focused program in South Memphis; the other will be attending Rozelle Elementary, a magnet school for performing arts.

“I’m trying to put them somewhere where they’ll get the proper learning and education,” she said.

A quarter of Ida B. Wells students tested as proficient on last year’s state reading tests, and over 27% did the same for math. That’s higher than the district average. Rozelle, where Smith is sending her youngest child, surpassed the state average in reading but not math. Soulsville fell behind in both, with only a 13.8% proficiency rate on reading and 16.6% on math.

Smith said the school counselor at Ida B. Wells helped her and other parents fill out the transfer application quickly, so she already received those other school acceptances for her children. MSCS says families can apply to change schools up until the first week of classes in August. They get their final decisions back within four to six weeks.

“Families therefore have ample time to apply, and there is no immediate deadline concern at this time,” the district said.

Smith said she never received any communication from MSCS following Tuesday’s vote. But district leaders said they sent emails to both staff and parents last week.

Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.