MEMPHIS, Tenn. — On Wednesday, the charter school Memphis Merit Academy (MMA) unveil a new campus in Parkway Village with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
This new campus used to be a Kroger on American Way. According to the school, the new campus provides an expanded, modern learning environment for students which includes a a "state-of-the-art" playground facility.
"It means something greater than words to me to be able to provide to families, despite their social economic status, a hot quality option for them," said Lakenna Booker, founder of Memphis Merit Academy after the ribbon cutting ceremony.
The new campus will replace the current school nearby that opened in 2019. Right now MMA offers kindergarten through fourth grade. Leaders of the institution plan to add a fifth grade when the new school building is scheduled to open in the 2024-2025 school year.
MMA was founded by Booker with the idea of bringing new opportunities to Parkway Village, where she grew up.
"Growing up in this community, it felt like I had boundaries, so when I had the opportunity to be able to go out and learn more to bring it back its just so powerful for me," Booker said. "It is one way that I am insuring that students that look like me, students that live in the same zip code as me, have access to whatever their dreams are."
Construction on the site started on April of last year, with a groundbreaking ceremony.
MMA hopes to eventually expand the facility to educate grades K through Eighth.