Growing up in Illinois, Ms. Bills wasn’t familiar with school choice. “Options just weren’t part of it for me in my experience—it was zoned school and that was it.” She knew she wanted a place for Sienna, her eldest, that would take academics seriously yet joyfully, and give her daughter the opportunity to learn to advocate for herself. While Sienna was attending Ross Early Learning Center, Ms. Bills attended the School Choice Fair. “We saw lots of schools that presented themselves well. I wanted to tour them. At that point, Nashville Classical was actually our second choice.”

Ms. Bills was disappointed by her first tour. She didn’t see the values she heard about at the fair coming to life in classrooms.  She kept looking. When she toured Nashville Classical, she was greeted by Mr. Friedman. She remembers the warmth of the interactions she had with the staff and the joy and positivity she felt in the classrooms. After the tour, she picked up her phone, called her children’s father, and said, “This is where they’re going to go.” Later that year, they entered the lottery, placed Nashville Classical as their first choice, and Sienna was accepted.

“This is where they’re going to go.”

“It was a no-brainer,” for Ms. Bills when it came time for Sienna’s younger sister, Ericka, to enroll. It was the  teachers’ investment and love of reading…. “There was a time when we weren’t sure about a middle school opening, and we had to consider our options before the NCCS charter was approved for middle school. When the middle school was approved, we were so relieved. We wanted consistency for our children, and they had experienced so much success. Knowing parents from other communities and comparing what our girls knew to what other kids knew, we just knew we were in the right place. It was clear the teaching there was so much better.”

Ms. Bills recalled moments that stood out to her, particularly the teachers’ interest in what the girls did outside of school. “They came to dance recitals, soccer games—just genuinely taking time out of their own schedules to see what the kids were doing. I really loved that. It was more than just having a teacher.” She continued, “A lot of things I never expected—our family is full of readers, so that part wasn’t surprising, but in today’s world, I never thought they’d have such a deep love of literature. It made learning so fun for them—they really loved it. When they’d come home and talk about what they enjoyed, especially during COVID, you could see how much they missed the daily interaction and routine of school.”

Now, Sienna has graduated and moved on to Harpeth Hall as a freshman, and Ericka is in our 8th-grade class, preparing to graduate in May. As their time with Classical comes to a close, Ms. Bills reflects fondly on what her daughters learned at our school: to love learning, to love reading, to celebrate their successes, and to know that you can do the right thing and still be cool. She remembers the moments when her kids won our FIRST values awards, Scholar of the Week, and learned to advocate for their academic and social-emotional needs.

Nashville Classical is free, public, and open to all. Families in our community are your friends, your neighbors, people who look like you, and people who don’t. Each family has its own diverse reasons for attending our schools. Without our families, we wouldn’t exist. In Ms. Bill’s words: without our school, her girls would not be who they are today: smart, kind, and willing to advocate. We are so grateful for the investment and trust we receive from our families, and we’re honored to have been a part of the journey for both of the Gordon sisters.

In Ms. Bill’s words: without our school, her girls would not be who they are today: smart, kind, and willing to advocate.