Empowering Students to Live Inspired & Purposeful Lives
Valor Collegiate Academies is a network of three top-performing, tuition-free public charter schools located in Nashville, TN, serving 1900 students in grades 5-12.
Using our own Compass model as our north star for whole-child development and student success, we have redefined the goal of education and built three successful schools that empower scholars, from all walks of life, to step into the world with a sharp mind, big heart, and a clear sense of their noble purpose.
Our Four Pillars
Our approach to building excellent schools is powered by four pillars:
Top-Tier
Academics
We believe that providing an academic experience that is as strong as any in the country is critical to meeting our mission. At Valor, we have consistently been in the 95th percentile in the state of Tennessee for both student achievement and student growth every year, which is an accomplishment achieved by fewer than 1% of schools in the state.
Intentional
Diversity
We believe a richly diverse community across socioeconomic, racial, and cultural lines provides the best learning experience for our scholars. We also believe it is not enough to simply be diverse – it is our responsibility to create an environment where everyone feels safe to show up as their authentic selves and we learn to build appreciation for and friendships with those who are different than us.
Built
to Last
We believe that in order for us to fulfill our mission, we need to have strong long-term systems in place. We also believe that being built-to-last is driven by having talented educators, and keeping that talent at Valor. We believe in making the work we do fulfilling, by providing our faculty high quality coaching, development, and individualized support, ensuring that Valor is a place where educators can plant roots and make long lasting impact.
Whole-Child
Development
We believe that it is our responsibility to help scholars search for and understand their noble purpose, and they must learn to align their actions to this purpose. We help scholars do this by using our nationally recognized Compass model – a social-emotional learning model that pushes our scholars to grow as whole-hearted human beings.
An Established History, An Even Brighter Future
The roots of Valor’s journey stretch back over a decade when Todd Dickson, a highly successful educator and school leader, was recruited by Mayor Karl Dean to establish a new network of charter schools in Nashville. Simultaneously, Todd’s twin brother, Daren Dickson, was engaged in transformative work in the youth counseling and social-emotional learning space at the Seneca Center in California. The invitation from Mayor Karl Dean brought the Dickson brothers together, leading to the creation of a network of diverse-by-design schools that seamlessly integrated college-ready academics with comprehensive human development.
In 2014, Valor opened its first school, Valor Flagship. A decade later, our growth has been remarkable, expanding to three schools in Nashville with enrollment surpassing 1,900 students. Nationally, we have certified 60+ schools to use our social-emotional learning model, playing a pivotal role in reimagining what education can do for students in Nashville and beyond.
Our Impact
Our schools have been in the top 5% in the state* in both overall achievement and student growth every year since we opened, making us the top-performing charter network in the state. At Valor, we attribute our academic success to the unwavering commitment of our educators, who nurture students holistically, fostering not only their academic prowess but also placing equal emphasis on scholars’ social and emotional growth.
*Only about 1% of schools statewide accomplish this feat
Valor is the only charter school network in the state of Tennessee to earn an A+ rating on the Tennessee Department of Education’s School Letter Grades, with a perfect score on all four key indicators of Academic Achievement, Academic Growth, Growth of Highest Need Students, and College & Career Readiness.
Our Composite ACT score is in the 99th percentile in the state among open-enrollment high schools.
Over the past five years, our middle schools have performed in the 99th percentile in student growth in the state, as measured by data from the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS).
THE COMPASS MODEL
Valor’s Compass model, a nationally recognized framework for comprehensive human development, is the foundation of our schools. It has been adopted by 60+ partner schools, reaching the lives of more than 30,000 students outside of Valor. We train, support, and coach educators to become expert Compass facilitators, and our collective reach has had a huge impact on the education landscape across the country.
Accolades & Awards
