About the Incubator

We recruit and support school leaders to launch innovative schools that provide families with high-quality diverse public school options. Our goal is to give every family in our community an opportunity to choose a high-quality public school that works for their child.

As of 2024, we have supported the opening of two schools and are currently working to open 5 additional schools in the Nashville area over the next 2 years.

As long as there is need and demand, we plan to continue to open 2-3 schools in Nashville each year and support other parts of our state looking to expand public school choice.

FAQs

  • A charter school is a free public school available to all student and families within a school district. Charter schools were started as a way to provide innovative choice to families. A charter school cannot restrict who attends, but if overenrolled they can institute a lottery system for acceptance. Charter schools have the ability to adopt innovative practices, schedules, and hiring practices while still meeting all state requirements for public schools.

    That said, not all innovative schools need to be charters. At the Incubator we desire to work with district school systems to build the schools families desire.

  • If selected for a founding fellowship, you will become a full-time member of the incubator with full salary.  The Incubator will provide relevant, localized, support to the Fellow, including support around charter writing, board development, securing a facility, and funding.  In addition, the Incubator will help arrange several school visits to inform the Fellow’s school model and fund all travel. Fellowships typically start on July 1. Selections for 2025 cohort will be made in Spring of 2025. If interested in finding out more complete the "Fellow Interest" form.

  • While each of our founders is a little different, a typical successful founder has experience in school leadership, instructional design, family recruitment, and expertise in an innovative approach. Most importantly our founders embrace our core values of innovation, entrepreneurship, and are data-driven and student-centered.

  • We would love to sit down with you to understand the gap you see in our current education systems in your community and work with you to build community support around your vision. Please fill out our "Partner Interest" form.

Executive Director

Scott Campbell

Previous to joining the Incubator, Scott was the Executive Director of Persist Nashville, the largest college persistence organization in Tennessee serving over 4500 high school graduates over the past 5 years.  Persist developed an innovative scalable city-based approach to college persistence using a Salesforce based data management system and continues to serve access and persistence organizations in Memphis, Austin, Denver, DC, and NYC.

Scott is a former classroom teacher and administrator. In his career he has worked at 6 different urban, rural, and suburban schools. He has led and taught at traditional public, magnet, and charter schools in 4 different states and DC.  Before moving to Nashville he was a teacher and Assistant Principal at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, the nation’s top rated public high school. In Nashville he helped lead and develop the early years of RePublic High School and Valor Collegiate Academies. As Principal at RePublic High School, Scott supported the construction and opening of a $15 million facility and supported the graduation of their inaugural class. He served on the TN Charter Commission Appeals Committee reviewing charter applications and is the Board Chair of TN Nature Academy. He is active in his church, a BBQ enthusiast, and a over committed youth soccer coach.

Director of Facilities

Shelby Goodfriend

Prior to joining the Incubator, Shelby served as the Director of Charter Schools for the Tennessee Department of Education where she supported state education agencies as well as charter operators and authorizers across Tennessee.

Shelby, a first-generation college student, began her career in education in Belzoni, MS as a Teach for America Corps Member in the Mississippi Delta Region. With an undergraduate degree in Interior Architecture and Design, Shelby’s plans to return to architecture school were derailed as she found her passion for education. 

Upon moving to Nashville, Shelby continued teaching and transitioned into administration at Liberty Collegiate Academy, where the school earned the highest state-wide designation as a Reward School in 2019. As Director of School Operations for Intrepid College Prep, Shelby led significant renovation efforts and supported the graduation of their inaugural class. 

During a sabbatical from education, Shelby worked for The Escape Game where she oversaw 5 new store launches, 2 store expansions, and 5 renovations across the country with 100% on-time delivery. This travel sparked her pursuit to visit every US National Park with only 39 left to explore. When not traveling, Shelby is focused on keeping her mischievous puppy out of trouble while attending as many concerts as Music City has to offer. 

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”

— William Butler Yeats