My Vision For My City: A Conversation with Memphis Educator and Community Leader Dr. Bobby White

Dr. Bobby White has been a driving force in Memphis education for years, and Groundswell Network is fortunate to partner with him to expand our impact in Tennessee. With deep personal and professional roots in Memphis, Dr. White is bringing his leadership and vision to our collective efforts. As we amplify our focus on Memphis, he shares his aspirations for the city and the passion that fuels his commitment to the community. Below is an interview with Dr. White, edited for clarity and length.

Interviewer: To start, what does the broader education scene in Memphis look like to you when it's thriving? Essentially, what’s your vision for the future?

Dr. Bobby White: Every student—regardless of ability, challenge, zip code, or history—has a place. The new opportunity charter schools legislation allows us to address gaps that traditional charter schools haven’t yet filled. (Note: The Opportunity Charter Schools Act was passed last spring, read more about it here.) Charters have served a critical purpose and continue to do so, but there are still areas they haven’t reached. We now have charter schools, schools for the gifted, traditional public schools, and alternative schools. But too often, alternative schools have been where kids go to ‘serve their sentence.’

When we’re truly thriving, Memphis has a diverse portfolio of schools that offer an option for every child, no matter their circumstance. This legislation is a tool for us to build intentional support for specific groups of kids who have been left behind.

Interviewer: For those who aren’t familiar with the opportunity legislation you referenced, could you quickly explain what this is?

Dr. Bobby White: The new bill states that if a charter school has 75% of its students meeting one of eight specific criteria—such as being adjudicated, in foster care, parenting, or over-aged and under-credited—the school will be evaluated using different metrics than those applied to traditional schools. These criteria allow us to rethink what types of schools can and should exist to serve all kids. It’s a chance to create new models that meet unique needs, without being penalized for not always fitting into the standard accountability measures.

Interviewer: Given your vision for Memphis, where do you see strengths in the current education system, and where are the biggest challenges? 

Dr. Bobby White: A big strength, as it has been for years, does lie in the charter movement. The traditional charter that starts one grade at a time, that has an application, and a waiting list is, for the most part, serving students at a pretty high level. The charters have high expectations, students buy in, the accountability for students is strong. And this is going really well for a lot of families. There are also some new models that charters are implementing too, particularly with STEM, and their approach is a bit different than what we have traditionally seen in the charter space. A lot of students are benefiting from these schools. 

The challenge is that there are still a lot of kids who are being left behind in our city, who are not represented in these charter schools. These are the students that I’m really hoping we can create new opportunities for.

Interviewer: Given these gaps, and the new opportunity that this legislation provides, what are some of the ideas or reforms that you’d like to see take off in the city?

Dr. Bobby White: There are three things I think about. 

First, Career and Technical Education (CTE) is essential. We need high schools that offer students struggling in traditional settings a chance to graduate and be ready for a stable career. I visited a school where students combine standard courses with hands-on work like carpentry. They spend one semester tearing down a house built the previous year and the next rebuilding it—an incredibly powerful learning experience. Memphis needs this.

Second, schools must prioritize student well-being from the start. Many schools offer counselors and such, but their models often don’t fully address the challenges students face. By intentionally designing programs that do, schools are more likely to see better outcomes, particularly for children who’ve experienced trauma.

Lastly, I saw a school in New York where every student is part of a team led by a coach, not a teacher. The coach provides academic and behavioral support, creating a powerful sense of structure and camaraderie. Creative models like these stand out to me, and we need these innovative ideas in Memphis. (Note: The school Dr. White refers to here is part of the Urban Dove network, one of Groundswell Network’s partner organizations)

Interviewer: How do you imagine your work with Groundswell Network supporting your vision for the city?

Dr. Bobby White: We have to educate folks about what the opportunity legislation can do and the types of schools we can have. Then, we need to expose people to what the possibilities actually are. It’s one thing to tell people the opportunity and ask them to dream, but dreams are limited based on what people have seen. I want to expose people to different models so that someone in this city can learn from what works around the country and figure out a way to bring it here. I have a huge network of leaders and educators who are ready to do this work and I’m just excited to dive in with them.

Interviewer: Thank you so much for your time and insights, Bobby. This has been an inspiring conversation.

Dr. Bobby White: Thank you. Looking forward to seeing how it all unfolds.

Dr. White and the Groundswell team are holding community meetings across Memphis to learn directly from the families, students, local organizations, and elected officials these opportunity schools will partner with and serve. This is part one of Groundswell’s broader strategy to engage the community, identify local leaders, and support proven models that meet students' needs. Follow our blog, newsletter, and social channels for more stories from the field and Dr. White’s leadership in Memphis.