Public Schools

While public schools, in general, and Memphis City Schools, specifically, tend to get a bad rap, there are enough jewels in the public systems that it's certainly worth your time to explore all your options there, particularly if money is a consideration (as it is for most everyone).

A word on MCS/SCS consolidation: The referendum that occurred in March 2011, in which city residents voted to transfer control of Memphis City Schools to the county school board will certainly impact public school choices in Memphis in the future, but at this time, both the city and county systems are operating as usual. We will be posting the best media reports on our "School Consolidation Articles & Resources" page to help keep you updated. 

Neighborhood Schools

As you start your search, we always recommend checking out your neighborhood school, regardless of what rumors you might have heard about it from friends or neighbors. If there is a principal in place who values and incorporates input from parents, you might find that the school your child can walk to is a great option after all. Check out this video of what happened when one determined Chicago mom found just such a principal waiting in her neighborhood school.

With so many schools in Memphis and surrounding areas, it can be tough even to figure out what school you're zoned for. Here's some help:

Open Enrollment

All public schools in the state of Tennessee must offer public school choice (open enrollment) under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (or ESEA, formerly referred to as "No Child Left Behind") which states that children who are enrolled in a school that does not meet targets for improving achievement have the option of enrolling in another school that is meeting the targets. If your child is enrolled in one of these schools (MCS list available here), your school system will notify you and provide you with instructions for requesting a different school. 

The Memphis City Schools system also allows open enrollment forany students who wish to transfer from their assigned school. As mandated by school board policy, the process is first-come, first-served (after ESEA and sibling requests are fulfilled), so parents must line up on an announced date to receive bar-coded registration materials in order to get priority in the selection process. This year, open enrollment will begin on Friday, March 23rd. Last year, registration materials were handed out from 6:30 a.m. until 4:45 p.m. at the MCS School Board Offices at 2597 Avery Avenue (go to the back parking lot). A few things to take note of . . .

  • MCS does not allow an "official" line to form until 5:30 a.m., but eager parents have been known to start lining up early the previous day (this year's optional line-up actually started two days ahead!), and your shot at getting into the school is dependent on your number in line, so you'll want to take that into consideration when deciding when to arrive at the board office.
  • Once they start the process at 6:30 a.m., the line moves quickly, so you won't be there long from that point.
  • All you need on line-up day is your child(ren)'s name(s) and birthday(s), unless you are new to MCS, in which case you'll need the child(ren)'s social security number(s) too.
  • You do not have to make a school decision on line-up day -- you're simply there to get your barcoded application.

This helpful video on the MCS website goes into even more specifics.

Optional Schools

Memphis City Schools have 44 Optional Schools which offer a somewhat more specialized education, similar to "magnet" schools in other cities. In some optional schools, all classes are considered optional, while in others, only some sections of each grade are optional classrooms (click here for lists of each type). Optional programs may focus on topics such as international studies, the arts, government, etc. Optional programs generally start in 1st grade - not kindergarten, though there are a few exceptions to that rule.

  • Researching Optional Schools: The MCS Optional School Handbook is a good place to start. It provides a list of frequently asked questions, a description of each optional school's program, and each program's admission requirements. You will also want to look at how many optional transfer spaces per grade there are. Optional schools' open houses are in January and the schedule is on the MCS Optional Schools website.

  • Admission: Admission is merit-based, and is generally based on a student's report card, admissions test results, and/or TCAP scores. However, each optional school has its own requirements (some require higher test scores than others), so you will want to check to see what they are. The easiest way to find out individual schools' requirements is to consult the MCS Optional School Handbook, or click on the school you're interested in from this list and then download the school's flyer.

  • Applying: The Frequently Asked Questions section of the Optional Schools site does a good job of explaining the application process. The most important thing to know is that in order to get one of your priority schools (if it is not the school you are geographically zoned for), you will want to be in line at the school board office (2597 Avery Avenue) on the first day that the bar-coded applications are available. In 2012, that date will be Monday, January 30. Sign up for our email updates to be kept abreast of the 2013 date. The officially recognized line-up doesn't start until 5:30 a.m., but many parents start lining up on the sidewalk much earlier than that (even the day before in many cases), so you may want to consider that if you are hoping for admission to a  school with limited available space.