It’s Open House time for Memphis City Schools Optional programs, and time to start thinking about the Fall in general when it comes to school as enrollment can come up quickly. There are two types of schools within MCS: in district and optional, and some schools have both programs.
In-District Schools are for kids who live within a specific geographic area, and everyone in the school is in the same program. If you don’t live in the school area but want to transfer in you can apply during Open Enrollment. This means that in the Spring (April 1st last year) you stand in line and pick up a transfer application that you turn in the following week. You will get in if there is space, and you’re high enough on the list (so people get in line early). Your child will get preference if your assigned school is in a “high priority school” (not doing well) and you want to transfer to a school in “good standing.”Â
Optional Schools run programs that are more focused in certain areas than in-district programs. Exactly what is focused on varies by school. Most kids are tested to get into these programs, and all of their parents stood in line. Some schools are 100% Optional and some are split between Optional and In-district programs. To learn more about Optional schools visit the MCS Optional Schools website.
Optional School Applications available January 22, 2013
As a public school mom, my recommendation is to tour several schools and ask around for opinions regarding each school (feel free to ask on the EMM Facebook page). Look into the PTA (involved parents are important) and find current parents to talk with regarding the school. The more you study your options the clearer things will become. If you want to learn more about TCAPs please check out this post.
No one knows what will happen to any school (optional or not) with the merger of Memphis City Schools and Shelby County Schools, but my husband and I figure that each year we can stick with a good public school is money in our pockets. So if we have to change schools later or switch to private we will. For now we are happy and so is our 3rd grader.
For a complete list of 2013 Open House dates for Memphis City Schools Optional Schools please download this PDF. Here are the MCS public schools recommended by the moms of East Memphis:
The Campus School
school website | Facebook page
Part of Memphis City Schools and the University of Memphis. Enrollment preference is given to students of faculty, siblings, then opened up to families that live nearby. Contact the school for more info. The new parent information meeting is Friday, January 4th from 9-11am. The registration period is January 28-31 from 8:30am-2pm and January 29th from 4-6pm. More info in this Word document.
We LOVE campus school – to best chance to get in is for first grade and you need to live pretty close to U of M. Go to website for registration packet under News and Information.
Grahamwood Elementary
school website | PTA website | PTA Facebook Page
“Enriched Academics” optional program for grades 1-5 and an “in district” school for grades K-5.
Optional Open Houses: Tuesday, January 15th and Thursday, January 17 at 9am & 6pm.
- Grahamwood has a very active parents association, a very large CLUE (gifted and talented) program, extracurricular programs, enthusiastic teachers, dedicated staff members, an outdoor classroom and more. Many Optional students live out-of-district, so if you’re in Memphis and are interested in this school you have a great chance of getting in….we moved here in June and my son got a spot, so be patient if you are on the waiting list.
- Grahamwood’s Optional Program has been fabulous, I truly can not say enough positive things about our experience there. This is our second year at Grahamwood. We actually switched our daughter out of private school due to finances and she wasn’t learning enough. She has caught up and exceeded expectations since we switched. She is now in 3rd grade and I’m ready to test for optional. I also have a son who is in special ed pre-k at g’wood. We love it there!! The teachers and staff are awesome!!
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| Students (including mine) in a Grahamwood Optional ad |
Idlewild Elementary
school website | PTO website | PTO Facebook page
A K-5th grade “Science and Technology” Optional school, no in-district programÂ
Optional Open Houses: January 22nd-25th, 9am-noon.
We have loved our year at Idlewild! They have optional kindergarten!Â
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| Idlewild K, 1st and 2nd graders at field day |
Peabody Elementary
school website | Parents Assoc. website
A 1st-5th grade “Enriched Academics/International Studies” Optional school with a PreK-5th grade In-district school.
Optional Open House: Tuesday, January 8th at 8:30am & 6pm
It is a small Optional School with a focus on International Studies with a Russian immersion language program. Because it is small (3 classes/grade level and only one optional class/grade level), and is highly sought after by the neighborhood, we only have a few spots for out of district students. But if you feel like camping out in line, your child will get an incredible education! Great school (Optional or Not) Definitely worth the line to get my daughter in three years ago.
Richland Elementary
school website | PTO website | PTO Facebook page
K-5th grades, not an optional school
- We have loved Richland Elementary- the parent involvement is so great and academically it seems pretty challenging. My Kindergardener can speak more Japanese than I ever thought possible. They have tours once a month. (901) 416-2148
- We’re so happy with Richland Elementary!
- You’ll have the best chance of getting onto Richland as a kindergartener.Richland is indeed best elementary ( not optional) and both my kids are / were prepared for optional middle schools.
- Richland is the best. And I was not zoned for it. I got there about 30-45 minutes before the doors opened. Got in line and waited until the very last moment for them to call. We did get in and my son LOVES it! It doesn’t matter the age, it matters where you are in line when you go and how many spots are opened! I will say, Grahamwood would have been my 2nd choice, but we never got a call from them. My daughter is a 4th grader at Richland and has received a top-notch education there since kindergarten. She started out with Spanish in kindergarten and 1st grade then Japanese was incorporated into the curriculum. She is on her 3rd year… of Japanese and loves it. She recently had an opportunity to use her language skills with native Japanese tourists visiting downtown Memphis. They were impressed. The teachers work hard to make sure these kids are prepared for White Station Middle. The parental involvement is awesome! Being a White Station (optional student) alum myself, I can vouch for the incredible quality of education at both White Station Middle School and White Station High School. Grahamwood has always had a terrific optional program, as well.
Riverwood Elementary
school website | Parents Assoc. websiteÂ
An optional school of “Community Service and Global Awareness” and an in-district school, K-5th grades.
Optional Open Houses: Tuesday, January 15th at 9am & 6pm
- Riverwood Elementary School is the Best!!!!
- Riverwood Elementry. Great MCS, great location, family atmosphere and the principal has gotten several state awards. On top of all of this the school is OPTIONAL. And the school is only two years old!!!
Sea Isle Elementary
school website
A PreK-5th grade school, not an optional school
- We are at Sea Isle and have been pleased so far. Small school (only 4 first grade classes.)
- That is my only wish for Sea Isle too (a foreign language program), but the teachers are great, and there is a great feeling of community there that I love.We love Sea Isle! We’ve had a great experience there…very active PTA and great teachers K-2..My daughter will be starting 3rd grade there this year and we’re very excited!
White Station Elementary
school websiteÂ
K-5th grade in district school, not an optional school
- I’ve been pretty happy with White Station Elementary. This is our first year (I have a Kindergartener and 1st Grader) and I like our teachers, PTO is great and so is the rest of the staff. I only wish that there was a foreign language program was offered.
- Could not speak more highly of this school! My child is in kindergarten and has learned so incredibly much there! He is now able to read “Level 2″ books (could not read when he started) and can add double digits. There are 19 kids in his class and everything is so organized and well-run. The school building is like new (6 or 7 years old). It is not overcrowded at all. There is an awesome gym and space to play, huge music room where each kid plays a xylophone or drum or other instrument, a huge art room, etc. Our child feels loved there and loves all if his friends. We knew no one going into it and have met so many awesome parents since. It is THE best kept secret in Memphis.
- All three of my boys went there, and I could not speak highly enough of WSE!! Great teachers, and I understand that the new principal is fantastic!
- Ms. Thomas, the principal IS fantastic!……and yes, the teachers are great
White Station Middle School
school website | Parents Assoc. website
6th-8th grade optional and in district programs.Â
Optional Open House: Friday, January 18th at 6pm in the WSMS auditorium, also an abbreviated open house at 9am that say.
- White Station Middle is a great school!
- A proud and happy parent of both Grahamwood Elementary and White Station Middle! Â
White Station High School
school website Â
9th-12th grade optional and in district programs
Optional Open House: Thursday, January 17th at 6pm
Kingsbury High School
school website
Open House: Tuesday, January 8th at 6pm
Kingsbury has some good things going on re: foreign language, international studies. And they are a truly diverse student body. Look at their stats.Â
Central High School
school website
Optional Open House: Thursday, January 24th at 6:30pm
We have neighbors who go to Central…always hear good things about their Optional Program
Overton High School
school website
Optional Open House: Monday, January 7th at 6pm
Overton. My alma mater. Best band director in the city, if your kid’s into that. Also, I believe it’s the only CAPA school in the city now.
White Station High School
school website Â
9th-12th grade optional and in district programs
Optional Open House: Thursday, January 17th at 6pm
Does anyone know if “enriched academics” or other optional programs means more homework? I want an advanced academic environment for my kids, but not the pressure cooker culture that comes with many competitive schools or the homework taking over our lives (it’s pretty bad at our regular school now!). Thanks!
My son was at G’wood for 1st grade and we are now half-way thru 2nd grade and I have never thought he had too much homework. Last year he did it in around 20 minutes, before school. This year it takes a little longer, and he has a monthly book club (read 8 books) and occasional projects (due in about a week, always at least one weekend to work on them).
This is our second year at Grahamwood. We actually switched our daughter out of private school due to finances and she wasn’t learning enough. She has caught up and exceeded expectations since we switched. She is now in 3rd grade and Im ready to test for optional. I also have a son who is in special ed pre-k at g’wood. We love it there!! The teachers and staff are awesome!!
Just curious about which private school you pulled your child out of because they weren’t learning enough. I am considering independent schools especially at prek3 stage because I do like smaller classrooms and Christian environment.
Just curious about which private school you pulled your child out of because they weren’t learning enough. I am considering independent schools especially at prek3 stage because I do like smaller classrooms and Christian environment.
I’ve been teaching for eleven years, and I’ve been at G’Wood for almost three. I love our staff, and the exciting things they do with children. We care about our students, and offer lots of enrichment. I hope to bring my 5 month old there with me one day! I know everyone says this, but Grahamwood students are the best! I love going to work everyday.
What schools have a good resource/cdc program? I gave gotten a lot of helpful tips from reading this article as far as what I must do for transfering.
Just posted the last post it would be for my 6yr who is elementary.
I asked about CDC on the EMM Facebook page.
“Sea isle elementary has a great program. My son went to the CDC preschool class for 2 years.”
“Some schools have a PK CDC, some have primary CDC (age. 5-7), certain schools might have both, etc. iAll schools have resource for any age.”
“Many of the public schools have excellent CDC programs. Not all of the schools will have a comprehensive hearing impaired program, so definitely look for a program/school that fits your needs. For Memphis city, contact exceptional children office. They should be able to help!”
“I would contact the exceptional children’s office as well. I would guess it depends on the age of the child. My son is in the special education pre-k class at Grahamwood and it’s for ages 3-5. They will test your child at Colonial and then tell you what they recommend, and what school they will send you to. You can always try to go to what school you prefer, but sometimes that takes a little work.”
“Kingsbury has a phenomenal program, Grahamwood also has CDC classes.”
My 6yr old has ADHD on is currently in a Charter School. I am looking to transfer into a MCS that can accomadate my child. MCS have way more resources then the charter schools. My child has a IEP and get OT and Speech but not enough hours along with resource pullout. What will be a good elementary MCS to look into?
I am doing open enrollment not the optional for my child. I was wondering if the open enrollment process is the same. Will I have to camp out or stand in line overnight?
I will be moving at the end of the school year out of the Dexter Elementary District into Sea Isle district. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with Sea Isle??? Should I look into private schools?
There are a couple of comments on Sea Isle in this post.
My son will be going into the 7th grade and I’m looking for a middle school that has a good resource program. He currently attends Kingsbury Middle but I’m not happy with their “inclusion” program. We are moving to the midtown area this month, any suggestions?
Snowden School
You can call them to schedule a tour: 901 416-4621
All the schools listed here have great reputations. I think it’s about time Shady Grove gets another look. With the new principal, things are really improving. My daughter has been going since Pre-K And we love it. She’s going into 1st next year, we’re looking forward to the new pickup/dropoff lane, learning Japanese, and we can’t wait to see who our new teacher will be. I think it deserves another look if anyone was wondering.
Yes, I just enrolled my daughter into Shady Grove. I have heard great things about them. My child is in third grade and this is the first year they will have the Japanese program and all students in the school will learn the language 30 min per day. Thanks for your post, Im excited !
I teach at Grahamwood in the optional program. If you put your child in our program, they will be ready for middle school and beyond. My oldest son is also in the program, and I wouldn’t send him anywhere else!
We loved white station elementary. Once we made it to the middle school, we became less than impressed. By the time we made it through optional & traditional classes in the high school we were completely disappointed. Our other son will not be attending any of the white station schools (fingers crossed we can afford it!) quite a disappointment considering we moved in the white station school district for the schools!
The whole system is paying the price for mistakes made long ago. They had a chance in 1973 to place Optional Programs in all the schools, but instead placed them in only a very few. About a decade later they were expanded a very little bit, then a bit more again later. The still cover only about 25% of the neighborhoods and its been forty years.
It’s not too late to fix that. I guess we will see what happens over the next decade or so, but who’s gonna wait for that?
Emily, why were you disappointed with Whitestation middle and High? I thought they were one of the top producing public schools in the city.