“As a first-generation high-school graduate, it took me until my freshman year of college to realize that the quality of education I received growing up did not prepare me to compete with my peers. I knew that I wanted to help people like me avoid the fight I endured to keep up. As time progressed, I realized that my fight was for my community, and this sparked my passion for wanting to found and lead a school.”
Brenda Jones, Ed.D. (she/her/hers) firmly believes that all students deserve a high-quality education that prepares them for college, career, and life, and that it is her responsibility to provide such an education to children in her hometown of Nashville. Despite the growth of her city, education has been stagnant for many of its citizens. That’s why she’s committed to founding and leading a school focused on cultivating graduates who will be prepared to become leaders in their communities. Her proposed school will incorporate a culturally sustaining curriculum that will allow students to develop diverse worldviews, as well as training on life skills and habits of success. There will also be a focus on community service, which Brenda believes is essential to ensuring students become successful adults. “It takes a village to raise a child. Our schools need to be embedded in their surrounding communities, and our youth need to develop a heart for service to give back to their ‘village.’”
Brenda most recently co-founded Nspire Tutoring Center to support Nashville families with virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also served as a school success manager with Gradient Learning, where she coached school leaders on high-quality implementation of project-based learning, mentoring, and the development of student self-direction skills. Prior to this, she was the assistant principal at Knowledge Academies in Antioch, TN and spent seven years as a mathematics teacher and grade team lead in Antioch and Nashville. Brenda received her doctoral degree in leadership and professional practice from Trevecca Nazarene University. She also holds a Master of Education degree in curriculum and instruction from Middle Tennessee State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology and education from Belmont University.
