December 8, 2025 • 44 mins
We are learning about Freedom Prep Charter School from Dr. Arthur Rosenthal and Melody Webber on The Bev Johnson Show on WDIA Radio.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
Be justn't show bell tup tie with this talking and
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Speaker 2 (00:20):
In time?
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Be just say show bet Joe, let's go bell just
then we you'll make youry Hey.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
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Speaker 3 (00:38):
Know it's talpa Bet, just show tap of the belt
of show like let's go.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Good afternoon, and welcome back to WDIA, the hardened soul
of Memphis. It's Monday, December A, twenty twenty five. We're
rocking and rolling on this day. As I said earlier,
put your ears on as we share the good news,
the good news about Freedom Prep Academy charter school, and
(01:42):
I want to know more about that. And in the
house with me this afternoon, we want to say welcome, Welcome,
welcome to doctor Arthur Rosenthal, who is head of Freedom
Prep the Westwood Elementary Campus, and Miss Melody Webber enrollment
service says manager. Good afternoon, lady and gentlemen. How y'all doing,
(02:05):
We're doing great? Thank you for all for having us here.
Speaker 4 (02:08):
You are welcome, good afternoon, an honor to be here. Man.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
Thanks So I'm telling my listeners, I got I got
to talk you about about your doctor, doctor Rosenthal. He said,
I grew up listening to you. I'm going like, I
want to say, how old were you growing up listening
to me. He's trying to make me sound old, Doc Rose.
(02:33):
I'm not old. I'm just a cougar. Thank you, thank you,
thank you, thank you, thank you. You were listening to
me on the radio with your mama, your grandmother, your
Oh you were just listening.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
With the mother and father.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Oh wow, ma'am.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
And they told me they've actually met you a few times.
Speaker 5 (02:52):
Okay, probably your old family cleaning up the house of
the morning.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Right right, listening to the absolutely well, well, welcome into
the show. I love y'all smiling face. And it's the holidays.
I love that.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
I love that.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
I love that when guests come in and they're smiling,
that means you're happy. That's the only way to be.
So I will start with doctor Arthur Rosenthal, head of
Freedom Prep. What is Freedom PEP Prep or Freedom Prep.
Speaker 6 (03:23):
We are a network of five schools here locally. We
actually have a school in Birmingham and another school that
will be opening in the Montgomery area. And we're a
charter network, a charter network that's really focused on getting
our babies, our students prepared for college. Our mission is
actually to have them excel in college and in life.
And so we pride ourselves on preparing our students not
(03:44):
just to go to college, but to be college graduates
and productive members of society.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
So is Freedom Prep K through twelve.
Speaker 6 (03:53):
Yes, ma'am, over the five local schools here in Memphis,
from kinder into the twelfth grade, Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
So you have five schools in Memphis, Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
I didn't know that.
Speaker 6 (04:02):
Oh, yes, ma'am. We have two elementary schools, two middle schools. Yes,
since two thousand years. Yes, ma'am, sixteen years.
Speaker 5 (04:10):
There's two campuses in Westwood, two in white Haven, and
the high school is also in white Haven.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
I didn't know that.
Speaker 7 (04:18):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
See, that's why I like folks come and I learned
new information myself. I didn't know that, yes, ma'am. I'm
trying to think I heard of Freedom Prep. I think
I heard the name, but I'm thinking that it is
under the Memphis Shelby County Schools.
Speaker 6 (04:37):
Well, we're a charter network and Miffy Shelby County Schools
is our authorizer, and so they definitely support us and
to make sure that we're complying with certain certain things
that we have to be responsible for. But we do
have autonomy as our own independent charter network.
Speaker 5 (04:52):
Okay, okay, so y'all been here, Yes, ma'am. I founder
Roblin Webb had a vision and she started the school
with sixth grade one sixth grade class, ninety students and
it has grown into an organization that serves over two
thousand students in two states now two state, two states,
(05:15):
Alabama and Tennessee. So with that vision, we are able
to do what we do and the proof is in
the pudding. Doctor Rosenthal can speak to the accolades from
his campus. As a network, we've accomplished a lot in
that sixteen year period.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Wow. So doctor rose Fall, tell us about what goes
on your campus. So you're in the Westwood.
Speaker 6 (05:41):
Era, yes, ma'am. My school is the west Woods is
one of the elementary schools. Okay, so from kender to
fifth grade. Okay, he actually has pre K. Yeah, we
do have pre K in.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
The okay, Okay, So tell me a little bit about
the school over there.
Speaker 6 (05:55):
Oh, at our school, it's a loving school, the nurturing school.
Of about just not my school, but all the schools.
It's a commitment to the overall student. And so we
have core values where we talk to the kids about character, education,
being respectful, being responsible, having integrity, excellence in community. In
terms of community, we have weekly grade level meetings where
(06:16):
they meet in a circle. We call them community circles,
and it's a chance for them to connect. It's on
a deeper level, like as a school of family. We
have field trips. You know, a lot of schools field
trips are kind of frowned upon, but we have we
call them freedom lessons because again the big thing is
exposure for our students. At my campus in particular, we
(06:37):
have a game room, we have a toy store. We
have a system where eagle books because again it goes
beyond just the books. We're going up trying to have
them be productive member of society. And so they get
rewarded Eagle books kind of a school based money where
they can exchange for the toys of once nine weeks
(06:57):
and they get those ego books for a teen for
test performance, for exhibiting the core values. And again it's
about making sure or promoting them to be consistent in
their excellence, and in the ego store, I'm able to
push even more in terms of delayed gratification, saving a
financial peace. At my school, again an elementary school, we
(07:19):
actually incorporated a stock market element where we have cohorts
track in the stock market and how much money that's
stocked that they chose makes they get paid in ego books.
So I'm just able to implement. All of our schools,
We're able to implement a lot of life lessons through
our school offering.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
You know, doctor Rosenthal. We hear a lot about students
and their learning and not learning and students not able
to read. Yes, ma'am, how successful has your school been?
Speaker 8 (07:47):
Oh?
Speaker 6 (07:47):
Our school, our network. Let me just brag on a
network all of our schools. I'm not sure how the
listeners are. They're familiar with school accountability in Tennessee, but
they measure student growth right, students grown from year to
year and tv OS levels the highest levels of five.
All five of our schools were Level five schools two
years in a row. Our other elementary school was a
(08:10):
reward school and that's recognized one of the top performing
schools in Tennessee. Our other elementary school was a reward school.
Three years in a row, since I took over my
school in November of twenty twenty three. Prior to my
coming to the school, we were what was called a
priority school. But since I've been there, I took events,
(08:30):
some opportunities, things that I saw, and now we've increased
our student proficiency, meaning our students performing on grade level
over one hundred percent, almost two hundred percent, so we're
two hundred percent increase and so our kids are really
really growing. But again beyond that, we're able to push
them in terms of their life exposures, being able to
(08:53):
experience things that frankly, for some of my students would
not be able to otherwise. So I'm very proud of
the work that we've done.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Students do they primarily come out of the Westwood community
for the most part, A good deal of them do.
Speaker 5 (09:08):
But we are not a zone school, where a choice school,
so parents choose to send their students to us. So
we do have students that cross the city that come
everywhere Cordova, Kryvil, Raleigh, Yes, ma'am, So we're not just
a Westwood white Haven school. Any family that is interested
(09:30):
in Freedom Prep can attempt to apply and get into
the school, so it's not you have to live in
that zoned area.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Okay. So also Ms Webber. So we have the Westwood School, Yes, ma'am,
tell me where the other schools are located.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
So I have two elementary schools. One is white Haven
and one is in Westwood.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
Okay. We have one on Bill Branch.
Speaker 5 (09:56):
We have one on Park Roads, which doctor Rosenthals a
head a school of We have two middle school campuses,
one off Shelby Drive on Joonetta in Westwood. The other
middle school is off of Elvis Presley on Brownlee. The
high school is also on the Brownlee campus as well.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
Okay, So again, and I love what you said. It
was a choice school, and I was gonna ask you,
so parents make the choice to send there. They could
send their child to that school.
Speaker 5 (10:28):
Yes, ma'am. We're very proud of our families. Like I say,
it's a choice, so they could choose to send their
student to another organization or another school, and they choose
every single year to send their students back every single year.
We're like a family. It's not everybody knows everybody. I
(10:53):
have people that walk up to me in the grocery
stores and say, hey, me's Whateber.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
I know you don't remember me, but you help me
get my students. Okay.
Speaker 5 (11:01):
So it's like a family more so as a just
the school to send your students to.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
And so miss Webber, being the enrollment manager, you you
help to get students into these schools. Absolutely. So I'm
thinking is it hard to do? It is not hard
at all. What happens.
Speaker 5 (11:21):
So if you are a brand new family, you can
go to www dot freedomprep dot org. The twenty six
twenty seven application opened up at eight o'clock this morning.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Okay, give that website again, slow because with our listeners listening,
surely they'll be emailing me. What was that?
Speaker 5 (11:40):
It is www dot freedom prep dot org. Now they
can actually call me if they would like to.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (11:50):
My phone number is nine oh one for nine eight
eighteen forty nine and my name is Ms Webber.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
So enrollment is going on now for next year, yes, ma'am,
the twenty six twenty seven school year. Okay, and usually
you all start when in August, in August, start in August,
start in August.
Speaker 4 (12:12):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
Now, I was going to ask you what these schools
and you say it is a choice school. Do you
have bussing. Oh yeah, there is.
Speaker 5 (12:24):
It is first come, first served, Okay, so it's part
of the application process. Does address do you need transportation needs?
So once they complete that, there's also meetings that happened
between the parents actually being seated as a Freedom Prep
student up until their first day of school. So there
(12:47):
are parent meetings, There are back to school meetings, meet
your principal meetings, and at each one of those stages
they get more and more information because we have to
determine where the families are coming from.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
So it is a process. But yes, we do have buses.
Oh good, good, good, because if a parent is listening
a guardian doctor Rosenthal, they need to know, well, maybe
what is the transportation how would my child get to
that school? Right right?
Speaker 4 (13:17):
Yeah, yes, ma'am.
Speaker 6 (13:18):
And I would just add that we really pride ourselves
on the fact that we like to coin it. We're
offering a private school experience.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
But it's free. It's a public school school.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (13:29):
And with that, you know, our children wear uniforms Freedom
Prep specific uniforms and but again and we're giving the
freedom of their time just to give them so many
more experiences.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
And we're very proud of what we offer good. What
I'm sitting here thinking every time I hear this name,
were you all in the white even Christmas Parade? We
have been, but I have I don't know. I need
to connect with all.
Speaker 5 (13:51):
This year because I think and I've heard that, and
now we have had our cheerleaders. Yes, ma'am, they've been
in the Christmas Parade before, but I'm not quite sure
if they did it this year.
Speaker 8 (14:00):
This year?
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Okay, okay, So being a choice school, well let me
say that question. I'll take a break, okay, and we're
gonna come back, and then I'll give our listeners an
opportunity to ask you questions. If you have questions, we
are talking about Freedom Prep charter schools. If you've never
heard about Freedom Prep and you want to know more
(14:22):
about it, this is your opportunity. My guest is doctor
Arthur Rosenthal. He is the head of Freedom Prep Westwood
Elementary Campus. And Miss Melanie Weber is here, the enrollment
services manager, is here to answer your questions. Five three
nine three four to two is our number. Eight hundred
(14:45):
five zero three nine three four to two eight three
three five three five nine three four to two will
get you in to us you're listening to the heart
and soul of Memphis. W d I A wishing you
(15:10):
and yours a merry Christmas and happy Holidays from the
Bev Johnson Show.
Speaker 8 (15:15):
And w d I A.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
You're listening to the Bev Johnson Show. Here's Bev Johnson
and we're talking about Freedom Prep. It's a charter school
here in Memphis. My guest doctor Arthur Rosenthal. He is
the head of Freedom Prep up at the Westwood Elementary Campus.
Miss Melanie Weber is here enrollment services manager. Lady and gentlemen.
(16:08):
I'm going to the phone lines to talk to our listeners.
W d I A high caller.
Speaker 9 (16:16):
Hey, Miss Johnson, how you doing. That's a great show
that you got going on right now.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Well, thank you, well, well, well, thank you. Unforgetful you
have a question for my guests.
Speaker 9 (16:27):
Yes, I'm listening, Yes now. I was just letting you
know that was a great show that you had going
on early and right now.
Speaker 7 (16:35):
Oh, thank you.
Speaker 9 (16:37):
I just want to congratulate miss miss Webb Webber because
y'all are doing it. Y'all are doing a great job
with the future of the kids that's coming up right now.
Because I'm saying some things I don't like me Johnson. Okay,
the children today they not really being educated, miss Johnson
(16:58):
and rows and thoughts you do your school has this
mind set a teaching kid about technology and still to
teach them the basic I want to ask you that question.
Speaker 6 (17:11):
Well, it's a great question, and thank you for your
kind of words, sir. What well you know in this
day and age, we absolutely have to have them comfortable
with technology. So we do technology, but nothing beats just
that good old thinking and deep processing and basically common sense.
And so again, what I love about our particular network
is that we're able to have the autonomy to we.
(17:32):
Of course, we have to teach certain standards that are
kind of preset by the statement, so we definitely do that,
but we can go above and beyond by incorporating like
real life again common sense values that we do each
and every day. So yes, sir, but again we would
be doing our tuner of disservice if we did not
have them using technology, because that's frankly their world.
Speaker 2 (17:52):
And doctor Ross, you still have to teach the basics,
don't you. Oh?
Speaker 6 (17:57):
Absolutely, you got to think first. The computer cannot think
for you.
Speaker 9 (18:00):
Right, Yes, I want to throw this out to you,
and I hope you uh go research and sign out
what I'm talking about. You ever hear the s Q
three R theory?
Speaker 2 (18:13):
The what.
Speaker 9 (18:16):
The what? I forget the letter the letter S letter
two three, I mean the number three and then the
r okay two three R theory? Have you ever heard
of that?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
No, we've never heard of that? What is that?
Speaker 9 (18:35):
Miss? I want you to one day and miss, well,
go on now and just check out that stuff. You're
you're basically signing in a psychologis or books or whatever.
You know, you're just learning about that because it's a
great two about the nine of people.
Speaker 7 (18:51):
You know.
Speaker 9 (18:52):
It helps because most people today it depends on so
much technology to do their work, you know, but they
don't want to use their Oh God, give the thing
which is a brain.
Speaker 2 (19:02):
It might well, you know what, unforgetful, let me tell
you this. We have humans who have a brain who
made the technology. Think about that. Thank you, unforgetful. W
D I a high caller.
Speaker 8 (19:18):
Good afternoon of the Sister and the Queen of But
you had some good luck this past weekend, did you not?
Speaker 2 (19:26):
I didn't have any good luck this past week in
Moley see y'all want to rub it in to me? See,
let me tell, Let me tell doctor Rosenthal and miss Webbers.
See they you know I just told you d I
love Jackson State. We didn't win the swat. Come on, Moley,
you had to rub it in.
Speaker 8 (19:41):
Did you?
Speaker 2 (19:43):
No?
Speaker 8 (19:43):
I didn't, you know, you know what, Moly?
Speaker 2 (19:47):
And then I have and I have two nieces that
go to Prairie View, so you know they rubbed it in.
Speaker 8 (19:55):
Well, sister, good afternoon to you, and good afternoon too,
Doctor Rosenfield and miss miss Rosenthal. I'm sorry. My question
to your guest is, this is the second time I've
heard the phrase used with respect to a charter school
(20:16):
on your program thev What is the private school experience
in terms of their interpretation and what they believe that
it is and that they are presenting. To be up front,
my daughter attended a private school, predominantly white private school,
(20:39):
from junior kindergarten through the seventh grade, and then it
was time we felt, you know, even though we go
to a black church, she needed a more black experience
in terms of the school relationships. I also sat on
the board of trustees of that school and spent six
(21:01):
years in education before I went to law school. So
my question again is what do you consider to be
the private school experience?
Speaker 4 (21:14):
Yes, excellent question, Yes, sir.
Speaker 6 (21:17):
Well, as I said earlier, it's really a commitment to excellence.
It's really pushing kids to think above where they are.
In all of our offering, again, as I alluded to earlier,
in our basic offering, we're able to incorporate things to
deal with whole life experiences again like the Eagle Books,
(21:38):
the Store of Freedom lessons, and then our high expectation. Frankly,
when we talk about these core values of being excellent
of community, we hold the children to that.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (21:48):
And it starts and kinder. You know, we have kindergarten
students that talk about they go to the cohorts are
named after colleges. So again that's how early we're pushing
college graduation, being a co as graduate. And so you
have a kinder baby talking about, you know, they're a
part of Harvard or they're a part of Tennessee State University,
which is an awesome university. I must have added that
in and we push that across the board. Again, there
(22:11):
are expectations of behavior in terms of conflict resolution. We
have social emotional learning. In our buildings, we have a
social worker actually as opposed to traditional guidance counselor, and
so we're just exposing kids and pushing high academics. I'm
a frankly able as a building leader, I can make
(22:32):
some educational decisions based on the students reading and math
ability that Frankly and other situations I would not be
able to because.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Our bar is hot higher.
Speaker 6 (22:44):
Our bar is just not the student came to school
and did their best. Our bar really is are you
learning to read at grade level? Past grade level?
Speaker 4 (22:53):
Am I? Are you?
Speaker 6 (22:54):
Am I really preparing you to be successful again, not
just to graduate high school, but to be successful in college,
to be successful in life and a field lessons. Again,
we're committed four times out of the year. Every nine
weeks they take a freedom lesson to go and learn
about some of the cultural aspects of the city. And
this happens from kinder all the way up to twelfth grade.
(23:14):
And so again it's very heightened service that we give
our children, expecting them excellent, expecting to be the best
that they can be, despite wherever they're coming from or
whatever whatever situations they're dealing with. Because we know as
the other college said, we have a lot of our
children are dealing with issues in our city. But we're
really preaching resilience, right, We're really preaching no excuse making,
(23:38):
you know, let's push yourself to be the best version
of you that you can be. And it's reinforced throughout
our different offerings.
Speaker 8 (23:47):
It sounds absolutely excellent. Of course, I commend anyone who
has dedicated themselves to that world of education. And what
people really don't is that you have a hard job.
Being a able educator is a lot of hard work,
(24:08):
and because of the impact that you have on lots
of children and how they turn out. I like your
reference to the conflict resolution because for me, that ties
into the possibility of character education. And I consulted with
(24:29):
a cousin of mine who is a high school principal
in New Jersey, and they turned that curriculum around, so
they included music education, chess, financial lit. You mentioned that
very important, and then of course character education. So best
of luck to you, and I hope you do well,
(24:49):
and I hope your children your students. When I was
in education, I used to call my students the ragamuffins
that they do well. Take care.
Speaker 5 (25:02):
Now I do want to add that we cannot talk
about the excellence of our students without talking about the
excellence of our parents. Okay, First of all, our parents
trust us with their babies. For me, that's like the
highest respect I can have or receive from a person,
(25:23):
is you trusting me with your children. And for our
parents to choose freedom prep Every single year, we have
families who their students have started with us in kindergarten
and their seniors this year. So those families, we cannot
talk about the student's excellence without talking about the parents' excellence,
(25:47):
their dedication to making sure that the students show up
their present, they're actively engaged when they are present.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
I have parents.
Speaker 5 (25:57):
My unique situation is I've been with the organization ten years,
and out of ten of those years, I taught seven
of them. Okay, And for parents to say, no, don't
let something happen the first time and you not call me,
you call me immediately. I need to make sure that
my student understands that this is a connection between me
(26:17):
and you, and you and I are on the same page,
and they must comply. So I cannot speak about all
the accolades.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Of the school.
Speaker 5 (26:27):
The students are doing the work, but we have amazing
parents that support these students in order for the students
to actually achieve all the rewards and awards that they
have received.
Speaker 6 (26:40):
I absolutely have to jump in with that as well,
because I've been doing this work twenty years and I've
never had parent culture what I have in my building.
It's made me, It's pushed my growth because I've been
in some situations where frankly, you want to keep parents
separated from kids because you don't want your children to
expose certain things. But since I've been a freedom for
which Wood, I've had to totally or recalculate that because
(27:03):
I've had such supportive parents. Any anything we do, they're supportive,
They're there. It's an awesome culture. So definitely.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
So a small story.
Speaker 5 (27:10):
I came to doctor Robinsall's campus the week before Halloween
and I walked in the office and I asked the
Dean of operations.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
I said, oh, I see the wagon with the candy
in it.
Speaker 5 (27:21):
And she turned around and looked at me and said,
Miss Weber, my parents showed out. She said, you don't
see the five boxes that's in the operations office that's
boxed up because they have been. We sent out the
message and they have been showing up. So we appreciate
every single parent that we have in our organization.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
Because before we went to break, I was gonna ask
about a parent being a part of a Freedom Prep
because a lot of times, you know, other schools, you know,
you can't get the parents trying to call the parents,
and but your parents are engaged.
Speaker 6 (27:59):
There's so much, so, ma'am that I had to have
a I had to incorporate a hospitality room this year
because I had so many parents wanted to come and
eat lunch with their babies having birthday, had so and I,
frankly again in my twenty years, I hadn't had that.
So I had to take a room and dedicate it
as a hospitality room so they could come in, they
reserve it and have like a little VIP kind of
(28:21):
a stylen.
Speaker 4 (28:22):
So absolutely great, great great.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
So So when coming Ms. Webber and Doctor Rosenthal, when
putting their child into a Freedom Prep, parents have to
be engaged, have.
Speaker 5 (28:34):
To be yes, this is a team effort. We can't
do it without them, Okay, we cannot. Our kids. They
love their parents right, and to see a student whole
demeanor change. When we're having a program and they look
up and see somebody from their family as a representation,
(28:57):
this child's whole spirit changes.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
So it is a team effort.
Speaker 5 (29:04):
We cannot do it without the famili's support.
Speaker 6 (29:08):
We speak to our parents about you know, let's use
the same language again. We have these core values. We're
talking to your students or our students, your babies about
being respectful, about excellence, about community and U. And our
parents go home and they say those same messages at home,
UH and again. And I always tell my parents we're
all on the same team. And I've been in situations
(29:28):
where uh, it's in previous experiences at previous schools I've
been at where parents kind of felt like it was
parents against the schools or parents against the teachers.
Speaker 4 (29:37):
And it can't be that for our community.
Speaker 6 (29:38):
It has to be we're in this together because we
all want I call them our babies, we all want
our babies to be successful. And so uh, you have
to trust us to make the decisions while while whether
with us, and then we're entrusting you to reinforce we're
teaching them.
Speaker 7 (29:52):
UH.
Speaker 6 (29:52):
And it's worked out very well at Westwood and a
free our freedom prep school.
Speaker 5 (29:55):
Sometimes it's the small things, Okay. In my years of teaching,
I one of my parents called me and say, Miss Webber,
did you fuss at the kids about getting these stuff
together at night and being prepared in the morning.
Speaker 2 (30:08):
I said, yes, ma'am. I said, what happened?
Speaker 5 (30:10):
She said, well, we're getting out of the house sooner
now than we had been because my baby told me.
Miss Webber said, I was supposed to lay my stuff
out the night before so I can be prepared in
the morning.
Speaker 2 (30:22):
That's right.
Speaker 5 (30:23):
I said, well, yeah, I do, I said, and let
me tell you what your baby did to me.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
In the classroom. She came in. She said, Miss Webber,
did you lay your stuff out last night? I said
I did. She said, were you late? I said no,
I said why, she said, Miss Webber, she said, we've
been watching you.
Speaker 5 (30:42):
She said, we ain't never seen you come to school
with something like this, so so I started laughing. I
got offended at first for a minute because my middle
schools are so honest, and.
Speaker 2 (30:51):
Then I asked her. I said why you say that?
She said, because you always come to school looking so pretty.
She said, but this the outfit don't look.
Speaker 5 (30:57):
Like you I said, I need you to have this
dedication that you watch me every day and my lesson,
and we both had a moment. So when I told
her mom about it, she said, you know what, she
do me like that at home now. So it's a
team effort. So the things that I learned from my students.
Every single day, I have students that I go back
into the buildings to do work and they approach me.
Speaker 2 (31:20):
Hey, mi's whatever. Let me show you my grades. Good.
Speaker 5 (31:23):
And some of these are students I've been out of
classroom almost four years, okay. And some of these are
siblings of the students that I've taught okay. And some
of my students now are college graduates. Good, I've been
there long enough. They're college graduates. They're I saw r
ours now they are inviting me to. Two weeks ago,
one of my students messaged me and said this whereber
(31:44):
I want you to come to the police officer's graduation.
I'm graduating. Oh wow, And I taught her three years ago.
That's fabulous. So it's a family. Yeah, you don't just
because your students also graduate. And a lot of people
think when students graduate, I'm done. On We're not done.
We also have an alumni association.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
Oh good, But.
Speaker 5 (32:05):
We asked the students to come back share your experience.
It's okay to tell them you came into fifth grade
and you were not reading on grade level, but you
graduated with the GPA of this. It took hard work, yes,
but they will hear it from the heart of you
as a student that did it. So come back and
(32:25):
share your experience and share with your community your accomplishments. Now,
be honest with them. Tell them I couldn't see it
when I was in the seventh or eighth grade, but
I see it now.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
Yeah. So that's another layer to who we are and
what we do. I was gonna ask another layer, another layer.
If you all have it at Freedom Prep? Do you
have Miss Webber, doctor Roseo. The art? Yes, we do,
because I worry about that now. You know, they've taken
(32:58):
a lot of the arts of the schools. You know,
it's the music, it's the it's the theater, it's you know,
it's it's painting, I mean the arts.
Speaker 4 (33:08):
Yes.
Speaker 6 (33:08):
Man, there's so much pressure on any school leaders that
are listening. It's just so much pressure with accountability and testing. Okay,
and yes, testing has its place, but again, there's nothing
that replaces just developing the whole child. So short answer, yes,
and all of our campus we had was called Liberation Arts.
But there's a little instrument playing good. Uh, they're creating uh.
(33:30):
And I just love the fact at our campus were
able to incorporate African American history. So they're not just
learning African American history in February and that's it, they're
learning me throughout the year. I've got first graders learning
about the Middle Passage, but let me say, prior to
the Middle Passage, how they were African kingdoms, Yes, before enslavement.
Speaker 4 (33:49):
Before we were free.
Speaker 6 (33:49):
So and we're able to incorporate that in with the
dance with the instrument playing with library so yes, wet.
Speaker 4 (33:56):
At our school we have school clubs.
Speaker 6 (33:58):
So that was once a month and that's again we
have teachers that just share a hobby, a hobby or
passion with a group of students to push relationship and
exposure to the students. We have sports at the high
school and the middle school level.
Speaker 5 (34:12):
Middle school and high school has choired Oh good, we
have an AMA shout out to Mss Gray at the
high school, we have an amazing an amazing art teacher.
Speaker 2 (34:22):
She teaches I think intro to arts. She also teaches
ap art.
Speaker 5 (34:27):
Yeah, and the amazing art work that comes from these
young people. Several of them have done artwork. I think
it was displayed, correct me if I'm wrong in the airport.
We had a piece that one of our students did
and they reached out. Somebody wanted to commission the piece
that the young lady had designed. So Mss Gray does
(34:52):
amazing things, and she thinks outside the box, and she
has our students thinking outside the box where they were
using outside elements to create art rocks, leaves, and it
was beautiful. She does these displays in our front of
our high school building has a display case, so every
time I go in, I have to swing by to
(35:12):
see exactly what the students are doing and what they're
up to.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Okay, take this last phone call, w D I a
high caller. Hey chaplain coming.
Speaker 7 (35:24):
Hey listen, I've been born in here some some representative
school system, I mean for for for years. I really
I really enjoyed, which is what they're doing. I'm glad
to fit the five at Mannouncer's huh. Probably one of
the first black engineers in there. And when they had
on and I was just thinking, I saw the just
(35:49):
falling away. And when I would receive people sometime and
I would be wondered, what did they learn how to say?
We had to speak well coming up through the second
third grade and so but I know that was another time.
The other thing happened in our social order that they
called out for people to stumble or be put back,
(36:10):
not evenything of their own doing so. But I just
wanted to appreciate them so much and everything like that.
And you know, if we military retire, we we push
education and we do a lot of things, and we
help a lot of people do a lot of things.
But I just like the way they laid it out,
so I can understand a little bit more so if
you if you, if you think about it, I just
(36:30):
said it very quickly to your guess that that uh
I think I had. It was about eight steam engineers
that whole United States maybe when I went in for
twenty years, and so I had a part of man crew,
So you know, I had a problem. But at the
same time, due to the very vary loving care that
I had with my teachers, that Manasa and another places
(36:52):
in my inn schools. You know, I was able to
not only surviving go ahead, but the teacher, other young
men and young ladies who able to make a good
living when they retired. So I just wanted to tell you,
tell them to thank you again for just lay it
out for those of us who are not really involved
that we want to know. And so just thank you,
thank you, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (37:12):
Chaplain coming. Yeah, yeah, you need to know before you
all get out here. I want to ask that I'm
glad you have the arts because I'm a person out
music and I'm glad you all have that. Someone's listening
this weapon. And you said, now it's the enrollment time, yes, ma'am.
(37:32):
Tell them again how they can enroll or maybe not
even enroll yet, find more more about Freedom Prep.
Speaker 5 (37:40):
Absolutely, if they want to find out more information, if
they have access to a device, they can go to
www dot freedomprep dot org. They can go to our website.
The application is on the website. Uh, information about all
five schools is on the website. The locations is on
the website. They can hit the frequently asked questions that
(38:02):
a lot of our parents have asked.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
Us over the years. Is there a deadline, yes, yes,
and no. Okay.
Speaker 5 (38:09):
So we're always taking applications because things change in every
day life. Someone may have to move and a space
will come available. So we're always taking applications. But in
order for a parent. Two, if I don't have space
(38:30):
in a grade level that you have a student for,
you will be possibly placed on a wait list. I
tell every single parent they hear wait lists, and what
they hear is I'm not getting in. So what I
want to tell you is weight list does not mean
you're not going to get in. That just means you're
next in line. Once you're on that wait list. If
(38:54):
a space becomes available, we will notify you immediately. Once
that space comes up available, you have three days to
accept the offer. We will send you an offer. You
have three days to accept the offer. Once you receive
the registration linked to actually register, you have seven days
(39:14):
to complete the registration. If you miss either one of
those deadline, it rolls to the next available parent. So
it is very crucial that parents understand you have three
days to accept the offer and then seven days to
actually finish the registration. If you are having any issues
with the registration, please please please reach out to me
(39:38):
Monday through Friday eight to four.
Speaker 2 (39:40):
If you don't mind, can I give them my phone number,
Miss Bank, Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 5 (39:43):
My phone number is nine oh one four to nine,
eight one, eight four nine, and my name is Miss Webber.
Monday through Friday eight to four. I'm gonna answer the phone. Okay,
any question, any question, any question, any questions.
Speaker 2 (40:01):
We actually do tours as well. Oh good, So.
Speaker 5 (40:03):
If parents want to do a tour, they'd have to
go to enrollment at freedomprep dot org and send an ink,
fill out the inquiry or send an email to that
email address, and we'll send them the link where they
can sign up for a tour for the campuses. Because
we want to make sure that we're not overstepping testing
(40:28):
or anything that we have to do as far as
regulations guidelines are being compliant, we want to make sure
that we hold that space sacred.
Speaker 2 (40:39):
But we do have space available to.
Speaker 5 (40:41):
Do tours in the building, so we want to make
sure that parents have an opportunity to come see what
it is that we do and how we do it,
and then if they want to apply, they can go
ahead and do that.
Speaker 2 (40:53):
Then I like that that's good information. Doctor Arthur Rosenthal.
Last words you like to say to our listeners today.
Speaker 6 (41:02):
Well, I just like to say again, thank you so
much for having us again. And I would just tell
any parent, if you're interested in freedom PRIP, please just
come and visit the campus. Just come in and see
what we're doing on a daily basis.
Speaker 4 (41:14):
And if you're.
Speaker 6 (41:15):
Interested, I just have to say, please hop on the
a roament quickly because there are limited spots and those
spots feel and unfortunately we had some of our parents
that had to learn that the hard way, okay, and
it's always disappointing. But again it's only so many teachers,
so many, so many classes, and they feel it pretty quickly.
Speaker 2 (41:32):
Is that with all the schools, yes, yes.
Speaker 5 (41:35):
Okay, okay, yes, ma'am okay. Even our returning families. If
you are listening, it is very important you are received
your part one link this morning at eight am. It
takes you twenty seconds to do part one. Once you
finish part one, you're gonna receive the second link to
do part two. Once you complete part two and you
(41:59):
have everything uploaded and the campus says all your information,
you secure your seat if you miss your deadline as
a returning family, we don't want you to miss it.
If you miss your deadline, that opens it up to
a new family to take your spot, so we don't
want them to miss theirs as well.
Speaker 2 (42:18):
I like that. I like that. Any other last words, lady,
your gentlemen.
Speaker 5 (42:23):
No, I'm looking forward to meet those new families coming
Freedom Prep.
Speaker 2 (42:28):
And Miss Webber again, give that website and your phone
number absolutely.
Speaker 5 (42:33):
The website is www dot freedomprep dot org. My phone
number is nine oh one four nine eight one eight
four nine, And once again, my name is Miss Webber.
Speaker 2 (42:47):
I love it. I love it, and you're doctor Arthur Rosenthal.
Speaker 4 (42:50):
Yes, ma'am, thank you all.
Speaker 2 (42:53):
For being here and educating, educating us about Freedom Prep
because I'm glad to know about it, and I'll let
my listeners know well.
Speaker 5 (43:02):
We appreciate you all asking us and having us come
out and share for the opportunity.
Speaker 2 (43:07):
Yes, I want to say Merry Christmas to you. You have
a happy new year, and I know y'all gonna keep booming. Yes, ma'am,
I thank to you and your family. Well, thank you
so much. I appreciate you.
Speaker 10 (43:19):
The views and opinions discussed on the BEV Johnson Show
are that of the hosts and callers and not those
of the staff and sponsors of wd I A.
Speaker 2 (43:32):
I want to thank you callers, I want to thank
you listeners for joining us this day on the Bev
Johnson Show. We do, we really do appreciate you. So
until tomorrow, please be saved, keep a cool head, y'all,
and don't let anyone steal your joy. Until tomorrow, I'm
(43:53):
Bev Johnson and y'all keep the faith, the
Be justn't show bell tup tie with this talking and
home away, help you go, you go son't getting ready.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
In time?
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Be just say show bet Joe, let's go bell just
then we you'll make youry Hey.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Right here, wrong to d I listen to want to say, you.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Know it's talpa Bet, just show tap of the belt
of show like let's go.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Good afternoon, and welcome back to WDIA, the hardened soul
of Memphis. It's Monday, December A, twenty twenty five. We're
rocking and rolling on this day. As I said earlier,
put your ears on as we share the good news,
the good news about Freedom Prep Academy charter school, and
(01:42):
I want to know more about that. And in the
house with me this afternoon, we want to say welcome, Welcome,
welcome to doctor Arthur Rosenthal, who is head of Freedom
Prep the Westwood Elementary Campus, and Miss Melody Webber enrollment
service says manager. Good afternoon, lady and gentlemen. How y'all doing,
(02:05):
We're doing great? Thank you for all for having us here.
Speaker 4 (02:08):
You are welcome, good afternoon, an honor to be here. Man.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
Thanks So I'm telling my listeners, I got I got
to talk you about about your doctor, doctor Rosenthal. He said,
I grew up listening to you. I'm going like, I
want to say, how old were you growing up listening
to me. He's trying to make me sound old, Doc Rose.
(02:33):
I'm not old. I'm just a cougar. Thank you, thank you,
thank you, thank you, thank you. You were listening to
me on the radio with your mama, your grandmother, your
Oh you were just listening.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
With the mother and father.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Oh wow, ma'am.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
And they told me they've actually met you a few times.
Speaker 5 (02:52):
Okay, probably your old family cleaning up the house of
the morning.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Right right, listening to the absolutely well, well, welcome into
the show. I love y'all smiling face. And it's the holidays.
I love that.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
I love that.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
I love that when guests come in and they're smiling,
that means you're happy. That's the only way to be.
So I will start with doctor Arthur Rosenthal, head of
Freedom Prep. What is Freedom PEP Prep or Freedom Prep.
Speaker 6 (03:23):
We are a network of five schools here locally. We
actually have a school in Birmingham and another school that
will be opening in the Montgomery area. And we're a
charter network, a charter network that's really focused on getting
our babies, our students prepared for college. Our mission is
actually to have them excel in college and in life.
And so we pride ourselves on preparing our students not
(03:44):
just to go to college, but to be college graduates
and productive members of society.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
So is Freedom Prep K through twelve.
Speaker 6 (03:53):
Yes, ma'am, over the five local schools here in Memphis,
from kinder into the twelfth grade, Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
So you have five schools in Memphis, Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
I didn't know that.
Speaker 6 (04:02):
Oh, yes, ma'am. We have two elementary schools, two middle schools. Yes,
since two thousand years. Yes, ma'am, sixteen years.
Speaker 5 (04:10):
There's two campuses in Westwood, two in white Haven, and
the high school is also in white Haven.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
I didn't know that.
Speaker 7 (04:18):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
See, that's why I like folks come and I learned
new information myself. I didn't know that, yes, ma'am. I'm
trying to think I heard of Freedom Prep. I think
I heard the name, but I'm thinking that it is
under the Memphis Shelby County Schools.
Speaker 6 (04:37):
Well, we're a charter network and Miffy Shelby County Schools
is our authorizer, and so they definitely support us and
to make sure that we're complying with certain certain things
that we have to be responsible for. But we do
have autonomy as our own independent charter network.
Speaker 5 (04:52):
Okay, okay, so y'all been here, Yes, ma'am. I founder
Roblin Webb had a vision and she started the school
with sixth grade one sixth grade class, ninety students and
it has grown into an organization that serves over two
thousand students in two states now two state, two states,
(05:15):
Alabama and Tennessee. So with that vision, we are able
to do what we do and the proof is in
the pudding. Doctor Rosenthal can speak to the accolades from
his campus. As a network, we've accomplished a lot in
that sixteen year period.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Wow. So doctor rose Fall, tell us about what goes
on your campus. So you're in the Westwood.
Speaker 6 (05:41):
Era, yes, ma'am. My school is the west Woods is
one of the elementary schools. Okay, so from kender to
fifth grade. Okay, he actually has pre K. Yeah, we
do have pre K in.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
The okay, Okay, So tell me a little bit about
the school over there.
Speaker 6 (05:55):
Oh, at our school, it's a loving school, the nurturing school.
Of about just not my school, but all the schools.
It's a commitment to the overall student. And so we
have core values where we talk to the kids about character, education,
being respectful, being responsible, having integrity, excellence in community. In
terms of community, we have weekly grade level meetings where
(06:16):
they meet in a circle. We call them community circles,
and it's a chance for them to connect. It's on
a deeper level, like as a school of family. We
have field trips. You know, a lot of schools field
trips are kind of frowned upon, but we have we
call them freedom lessons because again the big thing is
exposure for our students. At my campus in particular, we
(06:37):
have a game room, we have a toy store. We
have a system where eagle books because again it goes
beyond just the books. We're going up trying to have
them be productive member of society. And so they get
rewarded Eagle books kind of a school based money where
they can exchange for the toys of once nine weeks
(06:57):
and they get those ego books for a teen for
test performance, for exhibiting the core values. And again it's
about making sure or promoting them to be consistent in
their excellence, and in the ego store, I'm able to
push even more in terms of delayed gratification, saving a
financial peace. At my school, again an elementary school, we
(07:19):
actually incorporated a stock market element where we have cohorts
track in the stock market and how much money that's
stocked that they chose makes they get paid in ego books.
So I'm just able to implement. All of our schools,
We're able to implement a lot of life lessons through
our school offering.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
You know, doctor Rosenthal. We hear a lot about students
and their learning and not learning and students not able
to read. Yes, ma'am, how successful has your school been?
Speaker 8 (07:47):
Oh?
Speaker 6 (07:47):
Our school, our network. Let me just brag on a
network all of our schools. I'm not sure how the
listeners are. They're familiar with school accountability in Tennessee, but
they measure student growth right, students grown from year to
year and tv OS levels the highest levels of five.
All five of our schools were Level five schools two
years in a row. Our other elementary school was a
(08:10):
reward school and that's recognized one of the top performing
schools in Tennessee. Our other elementary school was a reward school.
Three years in a row, since I took over my
school in November of twenty twenty three. Prior to my
coming to the school, we were what was called a
priority school. But since I've been there, I took events,
(08:30):
some opportunities, things that I saw, and now we've increased
our student proficiency, meaning our students performing on grade level
over one hundred percent, almost two hundred percent, so we're
two hundred percent increase and so our kids are really
really growing. But again beyond that, we're able to push
them in terms of their life exposures, being able to
(08:53):
experience things that frankly, for some of my students would
not be able to otherwise. So I'm very proud of
the work that we've done.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Students do they primarily come out of the Westwood community
for the most part, A good deal of them do.
Speaker 5 (09:08):
But we are not a zone school, where a choice school,
so parents choose to send their students to us. So
we do have students that cross the city that come
everywhere Cordova, Kryvil, Raleigh, Yes, ma'am, So we're not just
a Westwood white Haven school. Any family that is interested
(09:30):
in Freedom Prep can attempt to apply and get into
the school, so it's not you have to live in
that zoned area.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Okay. So also Ms Webber. So we have the Westwood School, Yes, ma'am,
tell me where the other schools are located.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
So I have two elementary schools. One is white Haven
and one is in Westwood.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
Okay. We have one on Bill Branch.
Speaker 5 (09:56):
We have one on Park Roads, which doctor Rosenthals a
head a school of We have two middle school campuses,
one off Shelby Drive on Joonetta in Westwood. The other
middle school is off of Elvis Presley on Brownlee. The
high school is also on the Brownlee campus as well.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
Okay, So again, and I love what you said. It
was a choice school, and I was gonna ask you,
so parents make the choice to send there. They could
send their child to that school.
Speaker 5 (10:28):
Yes, ma'am. We're very proud of our families. Like I say,
it's a choice, so they could choose to send their
student to another organization or another school, and they choose
every single year to send their students back every single year.
We're like a family. It's not everybody knows everybody. I
(10:53):
have people that walk up to me in the grocery
stores and say, hey, me's Whateber.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
I know you don't remember me, but you help me
get my students. Okay.
Speaker 5 (11:01):
So it's like a family more so as a just
the school to send your students to.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
And so miss Webber, being the enrollment manager, you you
help to get students into these schools. Absolutely. So I'm
thinking is it hard to do? It is not hard
at all. What happens.
Speaker 5 (11:21):
So if you are a brand new family, you can
go to www dot freedomprep dot org. The twenty six
twenty seven application opened up at eight o'clock this morning.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Okay, give that website again, slow because with our listeners listening,
surely they'll be emailing me. What was that?
Speaker 5 (11:40):
It is www dot freedom prep dot org. Now they
can actually call me if they would like to.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (11:50):
My phone number is nine oh one for nine eight
eighteen forty nine and my name is Ms Webber.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
So enrollment is going on now for next year, yes, ma'am,
the twenty six twenty seven school year. Okay, and usually
you all start when in August, in August, start in August,
start in August.
Speaker 4 (12:12):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
Now, I was going to ask you what these schools
and you say it is a choice school. Do you
have bussing. Oh yeah, there is.
Speaker 5 (12:24):
It is first come, first served, Okay, so it's part
of the application process. Does address do you need transportation needs?
So once they complete that, there's also meetings that happened
between the parents actually being seated as a Freedom Prep
student up until their first day of school. So there
(12:47):
are parent meetings, There are back to school meetings, meet
your principal meetings, and at each one of those stages
they get more and more information because we have to
determine where the families are coming from.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
So it is a process. But yes, we do have buses.
Oh good, good, good, because if a parent is listening
a guardian doctor Rosenthal, they need to know, well, maybe
what is the transportation how would my child get to
that school? Right right?
Speaker 4 (13:17):
Yeah, yes, ma'am.
Speaker 6 (13:18):
And I would just add that we really pride ourselves
on the fact that we like to coin it. We're
offering a private school experience.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
But it's free. It's a public school school.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (13:29):
And with that, you know, our children wear uniforms Freedom
Prep specific uniforms and but again and we're giving the
freedom of their time just to give them so many
more experiences.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
And we're very proud of what we offer good. What
I'm sitting here thinking every time I hear this name,
were you all in the white even Christmas Parade? We
have been, but I have I don't know. I need
to connect with all.
Speaker 5 (13:51):
This year because I think and I've heard that, and
now we have had our cheerleaders. Yes, ma'am, they've been
in the Christmas Parade before, but I'm not quite sure
if they did it this year.
Speaker 8 (14:00):
This year?
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Okay, okay, So being a choice school, well let me
say that question. I'll take a break, okay, and we're
gonna come back, and then I'll give our listeners an
opportunity to ask you questions. If you have questions, we
are talking about Freedom Prep charter schools. If you've never
heard about Freedom Prep and you want to know more
(14:22):
about it, this is your opportunity. My guest is doctor
Arthur Rosenthal. He is the head of Freedom Prep Westwood
Elementary Campus. And Miss Melanie Weber is here, the enrollment
services manager, is here to answer your questions. Five three
nine three four to two is our number. Eight hundred
(14:45):
five zero three nine three four to two eight three
three five three five nine three four to two will
get you in to us you're listening to the heart
and soul of Memphis. W d I A wishing you
(15:10):
and yours a merry Christmas and happy Holidays from the
Bev Johnson Show.
Speaker 8 (15:15):
And w d I A.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
You're listening to the Bev Johnson Show. Here's Bev Johnson
and we're talking about Freedom Prep. It's a charter school
here in Memphis. My guest doctor Arthur Rosenthal. He is
the head of Freedom Prep up at the Westwood Elementary Campus.
Miss Melanie Weber is here enrollment services manager. Lady and gentlemen.
(16:08):
I'm going to the phone lines to talk to our listeners.
W d I A high caller.
Speaker 9 (16:16):
Hey, Miss Johnson, how you doing. That's a great show
that you got going on right now.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Well, thank you, well, well, well, thank you. Unforgetful you
have a question for my guests.
Speaker 9 (16:27):
Yes, I'm listening, Yes now. I was just letting you
know that was a great show that you had going
on early and right now.
Speaker 7 (16:35):
Oh, thank you.
Speaker 9 (16:37):
I just want to congratulate miss miss Webb Webber because
y'all are doing it. Y'all are doing a great job
with the future of the kids that's coming up right now.
Because I'm saying some things I don't like me Johnson. Okay,
the children today they not really being educated, miss Johnson
(16:58):
and rows and thoughts you do your school has this
mind set a teaching kid about technology and still to
teach them the basic I want to ask you that question.
Speaker 6 (17:11):
Well, it's a great question, and thank you for your
kind of words, sir. What well you know in this
day and age, we absolutely have to have them comfortable
with technology. So we do technology, but nothing beats just
that good old thinking and deep processing and basically common sense.
And so again, what I love about our particular network
is that we're able to have the autonomy to we.
(17:32):
Of course, we have to teach certain standards that are
kind of preset by the statement, so we definitely do that,
but we can go above and beyond by incorporating like
real life again common sense values that we do each
and every day. So yes, sir, but again we would
be doing our tuner of disservice if we did not
have them using technology, because that's frankly their world.
Speaker 2 (17:52):
And doctor Ross, you still have to teach the basics,
don't you. Oh?
Speaker 6 (17:57):
Absolutely, you got to think first. The computer cannot think
for you.
Speaker 9 (18:00):
Right, Yes, I want to throw this out to you,
and I hope you uh go research and sign out
what I'm talking about. You ever hear the s Q
three R theory?
Speaker 2 (18:13):
The what.
Speaker 9 (18:16):
The what? I forget the letter the letter S letter
two three, I mean the number three and then the
r okay two three R theory? Have you ever heard
of that?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
No, we've never heard of that? What is that?
Speaker 9 (18:35):
Miss? I want you to one day and miss, well,
go on now and just check out that stuff. You're
you're basically signing in a psychologis or books or whatever.
You know, you're just learning about that because it's a
great two about the nine of people.
Speaker 7 (18:51):
You know.
Speaker 9 (18:52):
It helps because most people today it depends on so
much technology to do their work, you know, but they
don't want to use their Oh God, give the thing
which is a brain.
Speaker 2 (19:02):
It might well, you know what, unforgetful, let me tell
you this. We have humans who have a brain who
made the technology. Think about that. Thank you, unforgetful. W
D I a high caller.
Speaker 8 (19:18):
Good afternoon of the Sister and the Queen of But
you had some good luck this past weekend, did you not?
Speaker 2 (19:26):
I didn't have any good luck this past week in
Moley see y'all want to rub it in to me? See,
let me tell, Let me tell doctor Rosenthal and miss Webbers.
See they you know I just told you d I
love Jackson State. We didn't win the swat. Come on, Moley,
you had to rub it in.
Speaker 8 (19:41):
Did you?
Speaker 2 (19:43):
No?
Speaker 8 (19:43):
I didn't, you know, you know what, Moly?
Speaker 2 (19:47):
And then I have and I have two nieces that
go to Prairie View, so you know they rubbed it in.
Speaker 8 (19:55):
Well, sister, good afternoon to you, and good afternoon too,
Doctor Rosenfield and miss miss Rosenthal. I'm sorry. My question
to your guest is, this is the second time I've
heard the phrase used with respect to a charter school
(20:16):
on your program thev What is the private school experience
in terms of their interpretation and what they believe that
it is and that they are presenting. To be up front,
my daughter attended a private school, predominantly white private school,
(20:39):
from junior kindergarten through the seventh grade, and then it
was time we felt, you know, even though we go
to a black church, she needed a more black experience
in terms of the school relationships. I also sat on
the board of trustees of that school and spent six
(21:01):
years in education before I went to law school. So
my question again is what do you consider to be
the private school experience?
Speaker 4 (21:14):
Yes, excellent question, Yes, sir.
Speaker 6 (21:17):
Well, as I said earlier, it's really a commitment to excellence.
It's really pushing kids to think above where they are.
In all of our offering, again, as I alluded to earlier,
in our basic offering, we're able to incorporate things to
deal with whole life experiences again like the Eagle Books,
(21:38):
the Store of Freedom lessons, and then our high expectation. Frankly,
when we talk about these core values of being excellent
of community, we hold the children to that.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (21:48):
And it starts and kinder. You know, we have kindergarten
students that talk about they go to the cohorts are
named after colleges. So again that's how early we're pushing
college graduation, being a co as graduate. And so you
have a kinder baby talking about, you know, they're a
part of Harvard or they're a part of Tennessee State University,
which is an awesome university. I must have added that
in and we push that across the board. Again, there
(22:11):
are expectations of behavior in terms of conflict resolution. We
have social emotional learning. In our buildings, we have a
social worker actually as opposed to traditional guidance counselor, and
so we're just exposing kids and pushing high academics. I'm
a frankly able as a building leader, I can make
(22:32):
some educational decisions based on the students reading and math
ability that Frankly and other situations I would not be
able to because.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Our bar is hot higher.
Speaker 6 (22:44):
Our bar is just not the student came to school
and did their best. Our bar really is are you
learning to read at grade level? Past grade level?
Speaker 4 (22:53):
Am I? Are you?
Speaker 6 (22:54):
Am I really preparing you to be successful again, not
just to graduate high school, but to be successful in college,
to be successful in life and a field lessons. Again,
we're committed four times out of the year. Every nine
weeks they take a freedom lesson to go and learn
about some of the cultural aspects of the city. And
this happens from kinder all the way up to twelfth grade.
(23:14):
And so again it's very heightened service that we give
our children, expecting them excellent, expecting to be the best
that they can be, despite wherever they're coming from or
whatever whatever situations they're dealing with. Because we know as
the other college said, we have a lot of our
children are dealing with issues in our city. But we're
really preaching resilience, right, We're really preaching no excuse making,
(23:38):
you know, let's push yourself to be the best version
of you that you can be. And it's reinforced throughout
our different offerings.
Speaker 8 (23:47):
It sounds absolutely excellent. Of course, I commend anyone who
has dedicated themselves to that world of education. And what
people really don't is that you have a hard job.
Being a able educator is a lot of hard work,
(24:08):
and because of the impact that you have on lots
of children and how they turn out. I like your
reference to the conflict resolution because for me, that ties
into the possibility of character education. And I consulted with
(24:29):
a cousin of mine who is a high school principal
in New Jersey, and they turned that curriculum around, so
they included music education, chess, financial lit. You mentioned that
very important, and then of course character education. So best
of luck to you, and I hope you do well,
(24:49):
and I hope your children your students. When I was
in education, I used to call my students the ragamuffins
that they do well. Take care.
Speaker 5 (25:02):
Now I do want to add that we cannot talk
about the excellence of our students without talking about the
excellence of our parents. Okay, First of all, our parents
trust us with their babies. For me, that's like the
highest respect I can have or receive from a person,
(25:23):
is you trusting me with your children. And for our
parents to choose freedom prep Every single year, we have
families who their students have started with us in kindergarten
and their seniors this year. So those families, we cannot
talk about the student's excellence without talking about the parents' excellence,
(25:47):
their dedication to making sure that the students show up
their present, they're actively engaged when they are present.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
I have parents.
Speaker 5 (25:57):
My unique situation is I've been with the organization ten years,
and out of ten of those years, I taught seven
of them. Okay, And for parents to say, no, don't
let something happen the first time and you not call me,
you call me immediately. I need to make sure that
my student understands that this is a connection between me
(26:17):
and you, and you and I are on the same page,
and they must comply. So I cannot speak about all
the accolades.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Of the school.
Speaker 5 (26:27):
The students are doing the work, but we have amazing
parents that support these students in order for the students
to actually achieve all the rewards and awards that they
have received.
Speaker 6 (26:40):
I absolutely have to jump in with that as well,
because I've been doing this work twenty years and I've
never had parent culture what I have in my building.
It's made me, It's pushed my growth because I've been
in some situations where frankly, you want to keep parents
separated from kids because you don't want your children to
expose certain things. But since I've been a freedom for
which Wood, I've had to totally or recalculate that because
(27:03):
I've had such supportive parents. Any anything we do, they're supportive,
They're there. It's an awesome culture. So definitely.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
So a small story.
Speaker 5 (27:10):
I came to doctor Robinsall's campus the week before Halloween
and I walked in the office and I asked the
Dean of operations.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
I said, oh, I see the wagon with the candy
in it.
Speaker 5 (27:21):
And she turned around and looked at me and said,
Miss Weber, my parents showed out. She said, you don't
see the five boxes that's in the operations office that's
boxed up because they have been. We sent out the
message and they have been showing up. So we appreciate
every single parent that we have in our organization.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
Because before we went to break, I was gonna ask
about a parent being a part of a Freedom Prep
because a lot of times, you know, other schools, you know,
you can't get the parents trying to call the parents,
and but your parents are engaged.
Speaker 6 (27:59):
There's so much, so, ma'am that I had to have
a I had to incorporate a hospitality room this year
because I had so many parents wanted to come and
eat lunch with their babies having birthday, had so and I,
frankly again in my twenty years, I hadn't had that.
So I had to take a room and dedicate it
as a hospitality room so they could come in, they
reserve it and have like a little VIP kind of
(28:21):
a stylen.
Speaker 4 (28:22):
So absolutely great, great great.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
So So when coming Ms. Webber and Doctor Rosenthal, when
putting their child into a Freedom Prep, parents have to
be engaged, have.
Speaker 5 (28:34):
To be yes, this is a team effort. We can't
do it without them, Okay, we cannot. Our kids. They
love their parents right, and to see a student whole
demeanor change. When we're having a program and they look
up and see somebody from their family as a representation,
(28:57):
this child's whole spirit changes.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
So it is a team effort.
Speaker 5 (29:04):
We cannot do it without the famili's support.
Speaker 6 (29:08):
We speak to our parents about you know, let's use
the same language again. We have these core values. We're
talking to your students or our students, your babies about
being respectful, about excellence, about community and U. And our
parents go home and they say those same messages at home,
UH and again. And I always tell my parents we're
all on the same team. And I've been in situations
(29:28):
where uh, it's in previous experiences at previous schools I've
been at where parents kind of felt like it was
parents against the schools or parents against the teachers.
Speaker 4 (29:37):
And it can't be that for our community.
Speaker 6 (29:38):
It has to be we're in this together because we
all want I call them our babies, we all want
our babies to be successful. And so uh, you have
to trust us to make the decisions while while whether
with us, and then we're entrusting you to reinforce we're
teaching them.
Speaker 7 (29:52):
UH.
Speaker 6 (29:52):
And it's worked out very well at Westwood and a
free our freedom prep school.
Speaker 5 (29:55):
Sometimes it's the small things, Okay. In my years of teaching,
I one of my parents called me and say, Miss Webber,
did you fuss at the kids about getting these stuff
together at night and being prepared in the morning.
Speaker 2 (30:08):
I said, yes, ma'am. I said, what happened?
Speaker 5 (30:10):
She said, well, we're getting out of the house sooner
now than we had been because my baby told me.
Miss Webber said, I was supposed to lay my stuff
out the night before so I can be prepared in
the morning.
Speaker 2 (30:22):
That's right.
Speaker 5 (30:23):
I said, well, yeah, I do, I said, and let
me tell you what your baby did to me.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
In the classroom. She came in. She said, Miss Webber,
did you lay your stuff out last night? I said
I did. She said, were you late? I said no,
I said why, she said, Miss Webber, she said, we've
been watching you.
Speaker 5 (30:42):
She said, we ain't never seen you come to school
with something like this, so so I started laughing. I
got offended at first for a minute because my middle
schools are so honest, and.
Speaker 2 (30:51):
Then I asked her. I said why you say that?
She said, because you always come to school looking so pretty.
She said, but this the outfit don't look.
Speaker 5 (30:57):
Like you I said, I need you to have this
dedication that you watch me every day and my lesson,
and we both had a moment. So when I told
her mom about it, she said, you know what, she
do me like that at home now. So it's a
team effort. So the things that I learned from my students.
Every single day, I have students that I go back
into the buildings to do work and they approach me.
Speaker 2 (31:20):
Hey, mi's whatever. Let me show you my grades. Good.
Speaker 5 (31:23):
And some of these are students I've been out of
classroom almost four years, okay. And some of these are
siblings of the students that I've taught okay. And some
of my students now are college graduates. Good, I've been
there long enough. They're college graduates. They're I saw r
ours now they are inviting me to. Two weeks ago,
one of my students messaged me and said this whereber
(31:44):
I want you to come to the police officer's graduation.
I'm graduating. Oh wow, And I taught her three years ago.
That's fabulous. So it's a family. Yeah, you don't just
because your students also graduate. And a lot of people
think when students graduate, I'm done. On We're not done.
We also have an alumni association.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
Oh good, But.
Speaker 5 (32:05):
We asked the students to come back share your experience.
It's okay to tell them you came into fifth grade
and you were not reading on grade level, but you
graduated with the GPA of this. It took hard work, yes,
but they will hear it from the heart of you
as a student that did it. So come back and
(32:25):
share your experience and share with your community your accomplishments. Now,
be honest with them. Tell them I couldn't see it
when I was in the seventh or eighth grade, but
I see it now.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
Yeah. So that's another layer to who we are and
what we do. I was gonna ask another layer, another layer.
If you all have it at Freedom Prep? Do you
have Miss Webber, doctor Roseo. The art? Yes, we do,
because I worry about that now. You know, they've taken
(32:58):
a lot of the arts of the schools. You know,
it's the music, it's the it's the theater, it's you know,
it's it's painting, I mean the arts.
Speaker 4 (33:08):
Yes.
Speaker 6 (33:08):
Man, there's so much pressure on any school leaders that
are listening. It's just so much pressure with accountability and testing. Okay,
and yes, testing has its place, but again, there's nothing
that replaces just developing the whole child. So short answer, yes,
and all of our campus we had was called Liberation Arts.
But there's a little instrument playing good. Uh, they're creating uh.
(33:30):
And I just love the fact at our campus were
able to incorporate African American history. So they're not just
learning African American history in February and that's it, they're
learning me throughout the year. I've got first graders learning
about the Middle Passage, but let me say, prior to
the Middle Passage, how they were African kingdoms, Yes, before enslavement.
Speaker 4 (33:49):
Before we were free.
Speaker 6 (33:49):
So and we're able to incorporate that in with the
dance with the instrument playing with library so yes, wet.
Speaker 4 (33:56):
At our school we have school clubs.
Speaker 6 (33:58):
So that was once a month and that's again we
have teachers that just share a hobby, a hobby or
passion with a group of students to push relationship and
exposure to the students. We have sports at the high
school and the middle school level.
Speaker 5 (34:12):
Middle school and high school has choired Oh good, we
have an AMA shout out to Mss Gray at the
high school, we have an amazing an amazing art teacher.
Speaker 2 (34:22):
She teaches I think intro to arts. She also teaches
ap art.
Speaker 5 (34:27):
Yeah, and the amazing art work that comes from these
young people. Several of them have done artwork. I think
it was displayed, correct me if I'm wrong in the airport.
We had a piece that one of our students did
and they reached out. Somebody wanted to commission the piece
that the young lady had designed. So Mss Gray does
(34:52):
amazing things, and she thinks outside the box, and she
has our students thinking outside the box where they were
using outside elements to create art rocks, leaves, and it
was beautiful. She does these displays in our front of
our high school building has a display case, so every
time I go in, I have to swing by to
(35:12):
see exactly what the students are doing and what they're
up to.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Okay, take this last phone call, w D I a
high caller. Hey chaplain coming.
Speaker 7 (35:24):
Hey listen, I've been born in here some some representative
school system, I mean for for for years. I really
I really enjoyed, which is what they're doing. I'm glad
to fit the five at Mannouncer's huh. Probably one of
the first black engineers in there. And when they had
on and I was just thinking, I saw the just
(35:49):
falling away. And when I would receive people sometime and
I would be wondered, what did they learn how to say?
We had to speak well coming up through the second
third grade and so but I know that was another time.
The other thing happened in our social order that they
called out for people to stumble or be put back,
(36:10):
not evenything of their own doing so. But I just
wanted to appreciate them so much and everything like that.
And you know, if we military retire, we we push
education and we do a lot of things, and we
help a lot of people do a lot of things.
But I just like the way they laid it out,
so I can understand a little bit more so if
you if you, if you think about it, I just
(36:30):
said it very quickly to your guess that that uh
I think I had. It was about eight steam engineers
that whole United States maybe when I went in for
twenty years, and so I had a part of man crew,
So you know, I had a problem. But at the
same time, due to the very vary loving care that
I had with my teachers, that Manasa and another places
(36:52):
in my inn schools. You know, I was able to
not only surviving go ahead, but the teacher, other young
men and young ladies who able to make a good
living when they retired. So I just wanted to tell you,
tell them to thank you again for just lay it
out for those of us who are not really involved
that we want to know. And so just thank you,
thank you, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (37:12):
Chaplain coming. Yeah, yeah, you need to know before you
all get out here. I want to ask that I'm
glad you have the arts because I'm a person out
music and I'm glad you all have that. Someone's listening
this weapon. And you said, now it's the enrollment time, yes, ma'am.
(37:32):
Tell them again how they can enroll or maybe not
even enroll yet, find more more about Freedom Prep.
Speaker 5 (37:40):
Absolutely, if they want to find out more information, if
they have access to a device, they can go to
www dot freedomprep dot org. They can go to our website.
The application is on the website. Uh, information about all
five schools is on the website. The locations is on
the website. They can hit the frequently asked questions that
(38:02):
a lot of our parents have asked.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
Us over the years. Is there a deadline, yes, yes,
and no. Okay.
Speaker 5 (38:09):
So we're always taking applications because things change in every
day life. Someone may have to move and a space
will come available. So we're always taking applications. But in
order for a parent. Two, if I don't have space
(38:30):
in a grade level that you have a student for,
you will be possibly placed on a wait list. I
tell every single parent they hear wait lists, and what
they hear is I'm not getting in. So what I
want to tell you is weight list does not mean
you're not going to get in. That just means you're
next in line. Once you're on that wait list. If
(38:54):
a space becomes available, we will notify you immediately. Once
that space comes up available, you have three days to
accept the offer. We will send you an offer. You
have three days to accept the offer. Once you receive
the registration linked to actually register, you have seven days
(39:14):
to complete the registration. If you miss either one of
those deadline, it rolls to the next available parent. So
it is very crucial that parents understand you have three
days to accept the offer and then seven days to
actually finish the registration. If you are having any issues
with the registration, please please please reach out to me
(39:38):
Monday through Friday eight to four.
Speaker 2 (39:40):
If you don't mind, can I give them my phone number,
Miss Bank, Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 5 (39:43):
My phone number is nine oh one four to nine,
eight one, eight four nine, and my name is Miss Webber.
Monday through Friday eight to four. I'm gonna answer the phone. Okay,
any question, any question, any question, any questions.
Speaker 2 (40:01):
We actually do tours as well. Oh good, So.
Speaker 5 (40:03):
If parents want to do a tour, they'd have to
go to enrollment at freedomprep dot org and send an ink,
fill out the inquiry or send an email to that
email address, and we'll send them the link where they
can sign up for a tour for the campuses. Because
we want to make sure that we're not overstepping testing
(40:28):
or anything that we have to do as far as
regulations guidelines are being compliant, we want to make sure
that we hold that space sacred.
Speaker 2 (40:39):
But we do have space available to.
Speaker 5 (40:41):
Do tours in the building, so we want to make
sure that parents have an opportunity to come see what
it is that we do and how we do it,
and then if they want to apply, they can go
ahead and do that.
Speaker 2 (40:53):
Then I like that that's good information. Doctor Arthur Rosenthal.
Last words you like to say to our listeners today.
Speaker 6 (41:02):
Well, I just like to say again, thank you so
much for having us again. And I would just tell
any parent, if you're interested in freedom PRIP, please just
come and visit the campus. Just come in and see
what we're doing on a daily basis.
Speaker 4 (41:14):
And if you're.
Speaker 6 (41:15):
Interested, I just have to say, please hop on the
a roament quickly because there are limited spots and those
spots feel and unfortunately we had some of our parents
that had to learn that the hard way, okay, and
it's always disappointing. But again it's only so many teachers,
so many, so many classes, and they feel it pretty quickly.
Speaker 2 (41:32):
Is that with all the schools, yes, yes.
Speaker 5 (41:35):
Okay, okay, yes, ma'am okay. Even our returning families. If
you are listening, it is very important you are received
your part one link this morning at eight am. It
takes you twenty seconds to do part one. Once you
finish part one, you're gonna receive the second link to
do part two. Once you complete part two and you
(41:59):
have everything uploaded and the campus says all your information,
you secure your seat if you miss your deadline as
a returning family, we don't want you to miss it.
If you miss your deadline, that opens it up to
a new family to take your spot, so we don't
want them to miss theirs as well.
Speaker 2 (42:18):
I like that. I like that. Any other last words, lady,
your gentlemen.
Speaker 5 (42:23):
No, I'm looking forward to meet those new families coming
Freedom Prep.
Speaker 2 (42:28):
And Miss Webber again, give that website and your phone
number absolutely.
Speaker 5 (42:33):
The website is www dot freedomprep dot org. My phone
number is nine oh one four nine eight one eight
four nine, And once again, my name is Miss Webber.
Speaker 2 (42:47):
I love it. I love it, and you're doctor Arthur Rosenthal.
Speaker 4 (42:50):
Yes, ma'am, thank you all.
Speaker 2 (42:53):
For being here and educating, educating us about Freedom Prep
because I'm glad to know about it, and I'll let
my listeners know well.
Speaker 5 (43:02):
We appreciate you all asking us and having us come
out and share for the opportunity.
Speaker 2 (43:07):
Yes, I want to say Merry Christmas to you. You have
a happy new year, and I know y'all gonna keep booming. Yes, ma'am,
I thank to you and your family. Well, thank you
so much. I appreciate you.
Speaker 10 (43:19):
The views and opinions discussed on the BEV Johnson Show
are that of the hosts and callers and not those
of the staff and sponsors of wd I A.
Speaker 2 (43:32):
I want to thank you callers, I want to thank
you listeners for joining us this day on the Bev
Johnson Show. We do, we really do appreciate you. So
until tomorrow, please be saved, keep a cool head, y'all,
and don't let anyone steal your joy. Until tomorrow, I'm
(43:53):
Bev Johnson and y'all keep the faith, the
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