Hamilton County board votes to deny amended Tennessee Wildflower charter application

The Hamilton County Board of Education voted to deny an amended charter application from Tennessee Wildflower Public School after staff and a review committee concluded the proposal did not meet standards in multiple required areas.

Scott Bowles and Fene Moore, the district’s charter coordinator, presented the review. The staff review followed state board rule procedures allowing applicants 30 calendar days to submit an amended application after an initial denial. Moore said Tennessee Wildflower submitted an amended application and the review committee, composed of internal and external reviewers, used the state rubric to rate four major sections: academic plan, operations plan, financial plan and portfolio/performance record.

The review found the amended application “partially meets” or “does not meet” standards in several sections. Moore told the board the academic plan lacked measurable goals and had insufficient detail on how Montessori methods would be aligned to Tennessee standards, special populations and staffing levels; the operations plan lacked clear oversight, staffing levels were low (the application listed 3.14 FTE classroom teachers, 0.25 FTE ESL and 0.5 FTE special education in year one), and facilities and implementation milestones were underdeveloped. The financial plan was judged not to meet standards; reviewers said budget assumptions underfunded key areas and required documents such as audited statements were not provided. The review also raised concerns about the proposed charter management organization’s (CMO) portfolio record and missing financial documents.

Board members asked procedural questions about next steps. Moore explained that if the district denies the application the sponsor may appeal to the state Charter Commission; if the Charter Commission approves the school, the commission serves as the authorizer and the district would not be the LEA for that school. The board then took a roll-call vote and approved the staff recommendation to deny the amended application.

A majority of board members supported the staff recommendation. Members who spoke during the vote voiced frustration that the amended proposal lacked a secured site and sufficient funding, and one board member described the application as a poor use of the district’s time given the missing readiness indicators.

Ending: The board’s denial means Tennessee Wildflower may pursue the Charter Commission; staff said the district’s review and the committee’s evaluation followed the rubric required under state rule.