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The operator of the last charter schools in Tennessee’s waning Achievement School District is seeking to continue managing them as part of their original school system in Memphis.
A decade ago, the state of Tennessee took over Kirby Middle and Hillcrest High schools due to low academic performance and assigned them to a charter management group called Green Dot Public Schools, now known as Iota Community Schools.
The schools didn’t improve enough to exit the improvement district on their own under a turnaround plan that was never meant to last more than a decade.
But now, with its 10-year contracts with the Achievement School District soon to expire, Iota has applied with Memphis-Shelby County Schools for new charter agreements to manage the two campuses in southeast Memphis beginning with the 2026-27 school year.