Knox County Charter School Review Committee Faces Questions of Bias

Knox County Schools Central Office (Photo by Knox County Schools)

When members of the Knox County Board of Education voted 5-4 to approve the county’s second public charter school in 2023, a recommendation from the district’s evaluation team swayed the deciding vote.

That team, made up of district staff and community leaders, reviewed Knox Prep’s application to open an all-boys 6-12 grade school and provided an optimistic recommendation for its approval.

“Overall, the academic plan as presented, along with the interviews of the founding team, gave the review team confidence this group can successfully open and operate a school that meets the academic and social-emotional needs of the boys who attend,” wrote evaluation team members.

Regulations set by the Tennessee State Board of Education require local district evaluation teams, like the one in Knox County, to conduct a “fair” and “unbiased” evaluation of proposed charter schools to determine whether they meet state standards for approval.  That requirement of fairness is one reason why an appointment to the review committee that will evaluate charter applications in Knox County next year raised eyebrows among supporters of public charter schools.

Appointment of Charter Opponent Raises Eyebrows

District leadership successfully nominated 12 people to serve on the committee, including Knoxville NAACP President Rev. Sam Brown, who spoke out against Knox Prep’s application in 2023, by attacking the concept of charter schools as causing “serious harm” to public schools.

The Knoxville NAACP appeared to double down on that opinion in a Tennessee Firefly social media post about Brown’s appointment, confirming that his role would be to provide “dissent” to future charter applicants.

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Knox County Schools’ Response

Rev. Sam Brown (Photo by Brown)

The Tennessee Firefly reached out to Knox County Schools Superintendent Dr. Jon Rysewyk to ask what assurances he can provide that Rev. Brown will review future charter applications fairly, as required by state regulations. Rysewyk’s office responded with a statement from the school district that stressed its Charter School Review Committee “does not approve or deny applications,” and that its members will receive training.

“Members of the committee are selected to ensure a range of perspectives and experiences across Knox County Schools. All members will be trained and are expected to follow the state’s evaluation process, apply the rubric consistently, and base their recommendations on the evidence presented in the application—not personal viewpoints. The review structure is designed specifically to promote fairness, transparency, and fidelity to state standards so that all applicants can have confidence in the process.”

Superintendent Rysewyk’s office did not detail any specific qualifications that Rev. Brown has to serve on the committee, as requested by the Tennessee Firefly. Brown’s LinkedIn page lists a history of pastoring and serving in other roles at churches, as well as leading the NAACP chapter and serving on the board of the student support program Project GRAD Knoxville.

Rev. Brown himself has not responded to Tennessee Firefly requests for comment.

Review Team Impact on Final Decisions

Local school boards don’t have to follow their review team’s recommendations, but their impact has been noticed across the state.

This year, school boards in four counties voted on 10 charter applications. Members followed the review team’s recommendation in all but one of those applications.