If the last few days are any indication, Memphis is close to an open revolt against the Achievement School District.

It doesn’t take much more than a cursory look at the news since the announcement of the ASD’s nine new takeovers to reach this conclusion.  The revolt is coming every quarter, both from within the schools being taken over and from those outside the schools in the community. It’s even coming from district leaders and, one can infer, from the charter operators themselves.

What make it notable is that it’s all much more intense than what we’ve seen in previous ASD takeovers. Its no longer bordering on dissent – it appears we’ve moved now into open revolt. Lets take a look at the facts behind what’s been happening the last few days.

added 2:18 PM, 10/28: I want to make one note before proceeding; I’m reporting very little that is new. These are all facts gleaned from newspapers, online publications and a couple of interviews I’ve had, with one speculation based on facts. My main goal is to simply pull it all together and interpret what it all means.

Teacher Revolt

First, teachers within each of the schools have expressed anger and frustration much more vocally than I’ve seen in the past. They’re doing this by organizing themselves. So far as I know, groups have been formed at Southside and Airways middle to oppose the takeovers with the goal of making the public aware of the situation at each school.

These aren’t just interest groups – they aim to make a splash. The group at Southside sent out a press release asking why KIPP was the only charter operator being considered for their school and directly challenging the ASD’s performance record. We’ve contacted the group about doing and interview with them and hope to hear back from them shortly.

Community Revolt

Second, it’s not only teachers. Parents and community members are also openly revolting against the ASD in increasingly visible ways. School meetings at Raleigh-Egypt High and American Middle last night went very poorly for the ASD to say the least, as parents stood up to protest against what they viewed as an intrusion by outsiders into their community. The meeting at American ended particularly badly as community members refused to let Yes Prep complete their presentation and shouted them off of the stage after an hour of them trying to get their point across.

added 9:50 PM, 10/28: According to some first-hand accounts I heard throughout the day, the Raleigh-Egypt High event was similarly negative, if not quite as explosive, when compared to the American Middle meeting. Those who were there report a very tense environment, but not the same type of open hostility seen at American Middle. No shouting or chanting. However, it doesn’t sound like the Q&A went terribly well for those running the meeting. Words I’ve heard to describe the mood during the Q&A are “unraveled,” “disappointment” and at one point “jeering” in a response to a question about gangs in the community to which Green Dot demonstrated a lack of knowledge on the issue. I also heard several accounts who said that the meeting seemed unorganized and lacked semblance of an agenda.

Leadership Revolt

Third, the front of cooperation between SCS and the ASD (which I’ve always been surprised about) also showed cracks yesterday, as the Commercial Appeal reported in the same article cited above for Yes Prep that Supt. Hopson told the school board last week that “SCS has no say in the matter of takeovers” and that he wasn’t happy about several of the selections. This represents a change in attitude from just a month ago, as in September Chalkbeat indicated a much more congenial level of cooperation (termed co-opetition) between the districts (when referring to the iZone and the ASD).

Additionally, at least one school board member has come out firmly opposed to some of the takeovers and has her own thoughts on what needs to be changed to fix our schools. Stephanie Love, the District 3 school board representative, was at the meeting last night. I had a chance to talk to her this afternoon to get her perspective on the entire process.

She entered late from an out of city training and said that it looked like “a hostile takeover.”

According to Love, the crux of the problem lies in the way that these takeovers are being conducted.

“People are meeting behind closed doors about our children and our communities who don’t know anything about our children, don’t ask us question about what’s best for our children and our communities.”

When asked how the decisions were made about which schools were taken over, she indicated that she had never been included in the process.

She believes that instead of charter takeovers, we need to focus on holding SCS accountable for putting resources in the right location. She would rather see those schools being taken over included in the iZone to give them extra support but within the current framework of SCS.

update 9:05, 10/29: I wasn’t able to make it to last night’s school board meeting (papers to grade) but it appears as if more leadership opposition is underway here in Shelby County. Supt. Hopson announced efforts to expand the iZone in an effort to keep low performing schools in the district and Board Chair Teresa Jones advocated for legislation that would push for a moratorium on ASD expansion until it has been able to demonstrate its effectiveness with the schools it has, saying “the ASD does not have a magic bullet.” Thanks to Chalkbeat for the great coverage of this important meeting!

Operator Revolt (Maybe)

Forth, a more indirect revolt may occurring among local charter operators.

Let me start by saying that unlike the previous facts, this one is a bit of speculation. However, I don’t think its too much of a leap in logic and therefore is worth at least considering alongside everything else that has happened in the last few weeks.

On Monday of this week Freedom Prep and KIPP, two of the authorizers slated to take over ASD schools, both indicated that they would not be opening new schools this next year.  Both authorizers cited logistical concerns that would hamper their ability to take over schools and allow them to focus on existing schools.

Here’s reason for doubting that this has no connection, at least in part, to the ASD’s troubles. First, a year ago, a month ago, two weeks ago, they felt that they had the capacity. What has changed during that time besides the growing dissent with the ASD? Second, these authorizers have ties to Memphis. They want to keep functioning and expanding in Memphis. But they’ve recognized that opposition is continuing to grow when it comes to the ASD and that if they want to continue to be relevant, they can’t couple themselves with the organization.

Again, let me emphasis that this operator revolt is speculation only, but isn’t a logical stretch.

Summing It Up

We all want kids to have the best education possible. But the increasing opposition to the ASD is making me personally question if they will be able to live up to that ideal in Memphis without a major change in the way that they operate.

It hasn’t mattered in the past as things have blown over after the fall. However, I’m questioning whether or not this will continue to blow over year after year. I’ve termed this entire collective opposition as a “revolt” not to be hyperbolic, but because it truly feels like one. And when Memphis revolts, it revolts.

Memphis has shown in the past that it is willing to take drastic steps if it feels that its children are feeling threatened. Exhibit A: the charter surrender/county merger. Right now the dissent has reached a boiling point. If we don’t take care, it may boil over into something much bigger and just as disruptive as the merger.

I understand that the ASD is trying to help. Its goal of moving the bottom 5 percent of schools to the top 25 is ambitious and important if possible. We want this to happen. We want every student to succeed. But this outpouring of anger and frustration as, in the words of Chalkbeat, become our “ritual every fall in Memphis.” Anger and frustration should never become a ritual, and if it does, it means its time for something to change.

I’ll conclude in a personal note – I know people that work in the ASD. They are good people who believe in their mission and want to see all students receive an excellent education. I truly don’t believe that they are trying to take advantage of anyone in any community for any reason other than the very worth while mission that they’ve been tasked with by the state. But this same scenario has continued to play out three years running, which is unacceptable. If the ASD continues on its present course without a major change in tactics, I’m skeptical about its ability to deliver on any of its promises, let alone move the bottom 5 percent of schools to the top 25 percent. One can deal with dissent, but not the revolt we have brewing here in Memphis.

I’ve also reached out to the ASD for comment, hopefully posting it soon.

If you want to learn more about the ASD’s overall performance, check out an analysis compiled using public data from another one of our writers Ezra Howard in which he compares it to another local school improvement initiative, SCS’s iZone.

By Jon Alfuth

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