Grizzlies Prep cut the ribbon on its new South Memphis campus this week, moving out of Downtown Memphis and into a building that gives the boys' program more classroom and lab space while opening a dedicated STEAM school for girls for the first time. The Memphis Grizzlies Foundation-backed charter school now occupies the former Corry Middle School and Believe Academy site, a shift that marks the next step in a years-long push to extend the school's model to girls.
The campus move and the girls' school launch were confirmed at a ribbon-cutting ceremony, according to Action News 5, which reported that Grizzlies Prep relocated from Downtown into what used to be Corry Middle School and Believe Academy. Along with the added classroom and lab space for the boys' program, the station reported, the campus now includes a dedicated Science, Technology, Engineering, and Arts school built specifically for girls, with boys' and girls' learning spaces kept separate.
A Long Road to a Girls' STEAM School
The girls' program did not come together overnight. The Memphis-Shelby County School Board denied an earlier application for the all-girls school in 2023, and the proposal returned with changes before it was reconsidered, according to Tennessee Firefly. The Memphis-Shelby County Schools board ultimately approved Grizzlies Prep's application for the all-girls charter school in 2024, per Chalkbeat Tennessee, which at the time described the existing Downtown boys' charter school as serving 300 students in grades six through eight.
By the time the girls' school was approved, Grizzlies Prep had already built a track record with boys. Tennessee Firefly reported that the boys' school had provided a STEAM-focused education for more than a decade. The sister school for girls was new this year. That history gave school leaders a model to build on as they worked to stand up a comparable program for girls on the new South Memphis site.
Expansion Plans and Enrollment Still Taking Shape
Right now, sixth through eighth grade is offered only for boys, Action News 5 reported, though Grizzlies Prep hopes to expand the girls' program to include grades beyond sixth. An initial-round application document filed with Memphis-Shelby County Schools projected enrollment growth for the girls' program, estimating 200 students in the 2024-2025 school year, 375 by 2025-2026 and 525 by 2026-2027, according to the Memphis-Shelby County Schools BoardDocs filing. Those figures were projections submitted as part of the school's application and are not confirmed enrollment totals.
Other enrollment figures reported this year point to different measures at different times. Tennessee Firefly reported in June that the boys' school served about 350 students each year from 28 different Memphis ZIP codes. A separate report from Yahoo in August attributed figures of 310 enrolled boys and 70 enrolled girls to Grizzlies Prep Executive Director Tim Ware, who said the boys and girls are kept completely separate. Those numbers describe earlier points in the school's development rather than enrollment on the day the new campus opened.
Leaders Frame the Move as Opening Doors
Ware, who leads Grizzlies Prep Schools, told Action News 5 that the ribbon cutting was about more than a new building. “This is about opening opportunities and pathways for the students,” he said. He added that Grizzlies Prep is proud to be part of a solution to challenges many Memphians face, and said many people turned out to celebrate the work of transforming children's lives.
WREG also covered the milestone, reporting that Grizzlies Prep Schools celebrated the official launch of its STEAM school for girls, which moved into the former site of Believe Memphis Academy on Corry Road. Together, the two campuses now sit side by side in South Memphis, with separate learning spaces for boys and girls but a shared mission the school's leaders say they hope will reach more students in the years ahead.
