Our Mission

The founders of Capstone Education Group believe that every child in Memphis deserves access to a high-quality, college preparation neighborhood school. Therefore, the founders created Capstone Education Group, Inc. (CEG), a Memphis-based 501c3 incorporated organization, to bring social and academic justice to every child in Memphis.

CEG currently runs three neighborhood public charter schools that have historically been ranked in the bottom 5% of schools in Tennessee and are in two areas of high poverty in Memphis: Cornerstone Prep Lester Campus and Lester Prep, located at 320 Carpenter in Binghampton, and Cornerstone Prep Denver Campus, located at 1940 Frayser Blvd in Frayser. CEG began serving students in these neighborhoods as part of a transformation strategy for the lowest performing schools in Memphis authorized by the Achievement School District.

CEG exists to provide a quality, college preparatory education to low-income families in Memphis to prepare them for a life of leadership in their community. The mission statement outlines this desire: CEG equips all students with the Wisdom and Knowledge necessary to succeed in college and to become leaders in their community.

CEG invests heavily in supporting the students and their families, both inside and outside of the classroom. CEG believes that the city of Memphis becomes stronger when its individual communities become healthier and therefore works hard to make its schools the center of a community redevelopment strategy that improves both the lives of the students and the community in which they live.  

CEG develops significant relationships with organizations that can provide wrap around or supports services in addition to the education provided in the classroom. For example, in Binghampton, CEG partners with the Binghampton Development Corporation, Service Over Self, Communities in Schools, Christ Community Health Services, Agape North, Le Bonheur and various local churches to meet housing, job training, neighborhood watch, counseling and parenting support. This approach makes CEG a unique organization in the city.

CEG has experienced significant academic success as a turnaround school organization as part of the Achievement School District (ASD), including taking the lowest performing school in the entire state of Tennessee and generating the following results:

• In 2018, Cornerstone Prep Lester Campus outperformed every other school in the ASD, earning the highest proficiency rates in both math and science on the 2017-2018 TN Ready assessment. 

• Lester Prep was the only ASD school to earn TVAAS 5 in every subject in 2016-2017 and earned another TVAAS 5 composite score in 2017-2018

Recognized by former US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan for outstanding academic achievement and called the “showplace for what is possible” in The Commercial Appeal, CEG seeks to prove that there is a successful, replicable model for children who have historically been unsuccessful in traditional classroom settings in underserved neighborhoods.