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Memphis-Shelby County Schools, Tennessee

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Memphis-Shelby County Schools
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Shelby County, Tennessee
District details
Superintendent: Roderick Richmond (interim)
# of school board members: 9
Website: Link

Memphis-Shelby County Schools is a school district in Tennessee.

Click on the links below to learn more about the school district's...

Superintendent

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This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Please contact us with any updates.

Dr. Roderick Richmond is the interim superintendent of Memphis-Shelby County Schools. He was appointed interim superintendent in January 2025. His career experience includes working as a teacher, assistant principal, chief of school operations, and deputy superintendent of academics, operations, technology, and innovation.[1]

Past superintendents

  • Dr. Marie Feagins was the superintendent of Memphis-Shelby County Schools. She was appointed superintendent on February 9, 2024, and took office on April 1, 2024. Her contract was terminated by the school board on January 21, 2025.[2]
  • Tutonial ‘Toni’ Williams was the interim superintendent of Memphis-Shelby County Schools. She was appointed interim superintendent on August 30, 2022.[3]
  • Joris Ray was the superintendent of Memphis-Shelby County Schools from December 12, 2018, until his resignation in August 2022.[4] Ray's previous career experience includes working as the district's chief of academic operations and school support.[5][6]

School board

The Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board consists of nine members elected by district to four-year terms. The board's composition changed from seven to nine members following a redistricting ruling in 2014.[7]


Office Name Date assumed office
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 1 Michelle McKissack January 25, 2022
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 2 Natalie McKinney September 1, 2024
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 3 Stephanie Love January 25, 2022
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 4 Tamarques Porter September 1, 2024
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 5 Sable Otey September 1, 2024
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 6 Keith Williams September 1, 2022
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 7 Towanna Murphy September 1, 2024
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 8 Amber Huett-Garcia September 1, 2022
Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 9 Joyce Dorse-Coleman January 25, 2022


Elections

See also: Memphis-Shelby County Schools, Tennessee, elections

Members of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board are elected to four-year terms. Beginning in 2026, all nine seats will be up for election at the same time to align with Shelby County Commission elections. Prior to 2026, four or five seats were elected on a staggered basis every even-numbered year in August.[8]

Five seats on the board were up for general election on August 1, 2024.

Ballotpedia covered school board elections in 367 school districts in 29 states in 2024. Those school districts had a total student enrollment of 12,203,404 students. Click here to read an analysis of those elections.


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Public participation in board meetings

The Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board maintains the following policy on public testimony during board meetings:[9]

The Public Comment period is designed to gain input from the public and not for immediate responses by the Board to the public comments presented. While the Board cannot assure each speaker of a specific or individualized response, the Board will consider the public comments and any supporting materials provided by speakers.

The Public Comment period will end after 30 minutes or when all speakers signing up to speak have been heard -- whichever occurs first.

Tennessee law makes no specific provisions for the participation of the public at meetings of local boards of education. Public comment is not permitted at Board Work Sessions or Board Committee Meetings. Members of the public desiring to address the Board may do so at Regular Business and Special Called Meetings. Only those members of the public who sign up to speak on the citizen sign-in sheet, which is submitted to the Board Chairman following the approval of the board agenda, shall be permitted to address the Board. Public comments shall be taken in the order in which members of the public sign up to speak.

Public comments shall be limited to up to 3 (three) minutes per person; no recognized speaker may yield his/her time to another speaker. At the discretion of the Chairman, limitations may be placed on the following: 1) a speaker's time to comment; 2) the number of speakers commenting on the same topic; and/or 3) the number of speakers representing the same group or organization.

Speakers will be introduced by the Chairman of the Board at the appropriate time during the agenda. Speakers must state their name, home address, organization he/she is representing, if any, and subject of the presentation before they are permitted to proceed. Speakers may offer objective comments about school operations and programs that concern them. Speakers are asked to refrain from using names of personnel or names of persons connected with the school system, particularly when lodging a complaint. Speakers will not be permitted to engage in gossip, make defamatory comments, or use abusive or vulgar language. The Chairman shall have the authority to terminate the remarks of any individual who is disruptive or does not adhere to Board rules.

All Business Meetings, Special Called Meetings and Work Sessions that are subject to the Tennessee Open Meetings law shall be broadcast live or tape-delayed via radio and/or television.

Legal Reference: T.C.A. § 8-44-102

THE SIGN-UP PERIOD BEGINS THIRTY (30) MINUTES PRIOR TO EACH REGULAR BUSINESS AND/OR SPECIAL CALLED MEETING.[10]

District map

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[11]

Revenue, 2021-2022
SOURCE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Federal: $465,895,000 $4,412 28%
Local: $564,718,000 $5,348 34%
State: $606,058,000 $5,739 37%
Total: $1,636,671,000 $15,499
Expenditures, 2021-2022
TYPE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Total Expenditures: $1,614,725,000 $15,291
Total Current Expenditures: $1,441,379,000 $13,649
Instructional Expenditures: $790,851,000 $7,489 49%
Student and Staff Support: $233,226,000 $2,208 14%
Administration: $180,953,000 $1,713 11%
Operations, Food Service, Other: $236,349,000 $2,238 15%
Total Capital Outlay: $126,474,000 $1,197
Construction: $73,625,000 $697
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: $8,295,000 $78
Interest on Debt: $35,797,000 $338


Teacher salaries

The following salary information was pulled from the district's teacher salary schedule. A salary schedule is a list of expected compensations based on variables such as position, years employed, and education level. It may not reflect actual teacher salaries in the district.

Year Minimum Maximum
2024-2025[12] $50,811.28 $88,799.06
2023-2024[13] $47,000 $84,861
2020-2021[14] $40,873 $69,475

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements.[15]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 8 45 6 8 25-29 30
2018-2019 26 65 22 31 40-44 54
2017-2018 22 61 18 24 25-29 49
2016-2017 19 59 15 22 25-29 47
2015-2016 6 6-9 6 5 <50 12
2014-2015 42 76 39 46 35-39 65
2013-2014 42 78 33 43 40-44 68

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 14 51 12 14 30-34 41
2018-2019 22 58 18 23 30-34 51
2017-2018 22 56 18 21 40-44 53
2016-2017 21 58 17 21 30-34 51
2015-2016 24 65-69 21 25 <50 55
2014-2015 35 74 31 34 30-34 66
2013-2014 43 75 33 38 45-49 74

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2019-2020 78 80-84 80 67 >=50 76
2018-2019 79 90-94 80 71 >=50 79
2017-2018 79 85-89 81 71 >=50 75
2016-2017 80 90-94 81 72 >=50 78
2015-2016 79 85-89 79 70 60-79 79
2014-2015 75 85-89 75 67 >=50 75
2013-2014 75 90-94 72 68 >=50 85


Students

Year Enrollment Year-to-year change (%)
2023-2024 110,057 0.2
2022-2023 109,797 3.8
2021-2022 105,596 -4.9
2020-2021 110,780 -2.2
2019-2020 113,198 0.9
2018-2019 112,125 2.3
2017-2018 109,591 -1.7
2016-2017 111,403 -2.8
2015-2016 114,487 -1.2
2014-2015 115,810 -29.4
2013-2014 149,832 0.0
2012-2013 0 0.0
2011-2012 0 0.0
2010-2011 0 0.0
2009-2010 0 0.0
2008-2009 0 0.0
2007-2008 0 0.0
2006-2007 0 0.0
2005-2006 0 0.0
2004-2005 0 0.0
2003-2004 0 0.0
2002-2003 0 0.0
2001-2002 0 0.0
2000-2001 0 0.0
1999-2000 0 0.0
Racial Demographics, 2023-2024
RACE Memphis-Shelby County Schools (%) Tennessee K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native 0.1 0.2
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander 0.8 2.1
Black 71.9 20.5
Hispanic 18.9 14.8
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.0 0.1
Two or More Races 3.1 4.7
White 5.2 57.7

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.


Staff

As of the 2023-2024 school year, Memphis-Shelby County Schools had 6,771.52 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 16.25.

Teachers, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten: 185.50
Kindergarten: 397.00
Elementary: 4,293.21
Secondary: 1,895.81
Total: 6,771.52

Memphis-Shelby County Schools employed 26.24 district administrators and 300.69 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.

Administrators, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators: 26.24
District Administrative Support: 725.00
School Administrators: 300.69
School Administrative Support: 578.67
Other staff, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides: 1,028.00
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: 331.27
Total Guidance Counselors: 188.50
Elementary Guidance Counselors: 0.00
Secondary Guidance Counselors: 0.00
Librarians/Media Specialists: 84.54
Library/Media Support: 2.00
Student Support Services: 251.12
Other Support Services: 1,880.50


Schools

Memphis-Shelby County Schools operates 222 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
List of schools
SCHOOL NAMENUMBER OF STUDENTSGRADES
A. B. Hill Elementary544PK-5
Alcy Elementary732PK-5
A. Maceo Walker Middle6376-8
American Way Middle6716-8
Arrow Academy Of Excellence83KG-5
Aurora Collegiate Academy330KG-5
Avon School171KG-12
Balmoral/Ridgeway Elementary271KG-5
Barret'S Chapel Elementary/Middle311PK-8
Beacon College Preparatory263KG-4
Believe Memphis Academy Charter School387KG-8
Belle Forest Community School1,035PK-5
Bellevue Middle6066-8
Berclair Elementary627PK-5
Bethel Grove Elementary299PK-5
Bluebird Learning Center0PK-PK
Bolton High6789-12
Brownsville Road Elementary506PK-5
Bruce Elementary481PK-5
B. T. Washington High4546-12
Campus Kids Corner0PK-PK
Campus School407KG-5
Carver College And Career Academy711KG-12
Central High1,3009-12
Cherokee Elementary368PK-5
Chickasaw Middle3626-8
Chimneyrock Elementary School931PK-5
Circles Of Success Learning Academy217KG-5
City University School Girls Preparatory1006-8
City University School Of Independence149-12
City University School Of Liberal Arts2019-12
Colonial Middle1,0886-8
Compass Community School Berclair Campus229KG-8
Compass Community School Binghampton Campus215KG-8
Compass Community School Frayser Campus204KG-8
Compass Community School Hickory Hill Campus254KG-8
Compass Community School Midtown Campus3569-12
Compass Community School Orange Mound Campus188KG-8
Cordova Elementary783PK-5
Cordova High School2,1949-12
Cordova Middle6666-8
Craigmont High8679-12
Craigmont Middle4846-8
Cromwell Elementary460PK-5
Crosstown High School4999-12
Crump Elementary544PK-5
Cummings Elementary/Middle267PK-8
Delano Elementary315PK-5
Dexter School1,490PK-8
Double Tree Elementary352PK-5
Douglass Elementary/Middle484PK-8
Douglass High6719-12
Downtown Elementary762PK-5
Dunbar Elementary198PK-5
Early Childhood Education0PK-PK
Early Childhood Programs782PK-PK
East High6159-12
E.E. Jeter Elementary/Middle369PK-8
Egypt Elementary501PK-5
Ernestine Rivers Child Care Center0PK-PK
Evans Elementary448PK-5
Exceptional Children Special Placements461PK-12
Ford Road Elementary539PK-5
Fox Meadows Elementary536PK-5
Frayser-Corning Elementary358PK-5
Freedom Preparatory Academy Flagship7236-12
Freedom Prep Elementary - Millbranch515KG-5
Freedom Prep Elementary - Parkrose422PK-5
Freedom Prep Middle - Brownlee3176-12
Gardenview Elementary259PK-5
Geeter School610PK-8
Georgian Hills Elementary269PK-5
Georgian Hills Middle2716-8
Germanshire Elementary751PK-5
Germantown Elementary558PK-5
Germantown High1,7659-12
Germantown Middle6376-8
Getwell Elementary551PK-5
Grahamwood Elementary887PK-5
Grandview Heights Middle School4156-8
Granville T. Woods Academy Of Innovation Charter School366KG-8
Hamilton High6479-12
Hamilton School654PK-8
Hanley K-8572PK-8
Havenview Middle7546-8
Hawkins Mill Elementary308PK-5
Hickory Ridge Elementary616PK-5
Hickory Ridge Middle8656-8
Highland Oaks Elementary774PK-5
Highland Oaks Middle5866-8
Hollis F. Price Middle College1059-12
Holmes Road Elementary793PK-5
Hooks Dimmick Child Care Center0PK-PK
Horn Lake Road Learning Center0PK-PK
Ida B. Wells Academy Es/Ms98KG-8
Idlewild Elementary588KG-5
Invictus Academy At Airways1838-12
Jackson Elementary303PK-5
Jessie Mahan Day Care Center0PK-PK
Journey East Academy329KG-5
J. P. Freeman Elementary/Middle493KG-8
Kate Bond Elementary School787PK-5
Kate Bond Middle School1,0136-8
Keystone Elementary458PK-5
Kids School Early Childhood Development Center0PK-PK
Kingsbury Career Technology Center09-12
Kingsbury Elementary513PK-5
Kingsbury High1,3279-12
Kingsbury Middle5026-8
Kipp Memphis Collegiate Elementary444KG-5
Kipp Memphis Collegiate High School3619-12
Kipp Memphis Collegiate Middle3006-8
Kirby High6979-12
Larose Elementary316PK-5
Leadership Preparatory Charter School437KG-8
Levi Elementary436PK-5
Lowrance Elementary/Middle914PK-8
Lucie E. Campbell Elementary629PK-5
Lucy Elementary301PK-5
Macon-Hall Elementary1,166PK-5
Manassas High3629-12
Maxine Smith Steam Academy3976-8
Medical District High School1119-12
Melrose High7109-12
Memphis Academy Of Science Engineering Middle/High6966-12
Memphis Business Academy Elementary School307PK-5
Memphis Business Academy Hickory Hill Elementary School174PK-5
Memphis Business Academy Hickory Hill Middle School566-8
Memphis Business Academy High School5119-12
Memphis Business Academy Middle4266-8
Memphis College Preparatory239KG-5
Memphis Delta Preparatory381KG-5
Memphis Grizzlies Preparatory Charter School3495-8
Memphis Learning Academy0PK-PK
Memphis Merit Academy355KG-5
Memphis Rise Academy7556-12
Memphis School Of Excellence5626-12
Memphis School Of Excellence Cordova3626-12
Memphis School Of Excellence Elementary402KG-5
Memphis School Of Excellence Elementary Cordova317KG-5
Memphis Stem Academy243PK-5
Memphis Virtual Adult High School1199-12
Memphis Virtual School3334-12
Middle College High3339-12
Mitchell High3589-12
Mt. Pisgah Middle/High5226-9
Nat Burning Orange Mound Day Nursery Learning Inc.0PK-PK
Newberry Elementary378PK-5
Northaven Elementary338PK-8
Oak Forest Elementary418PK-5
Oakhaven Elementary523PK-5
Oakhaven High3739-12
Oakhaven Middle2706-8
Oakshire Elementary394PK-5
Overton High1,4919-12
Parkway Village Elementary828PK-5
Peabody Elementary324PK-5
Perea Elementary School399PK-5
Power Center Academy Elementary School712KG-5
Power Center Academy Elementary - Southeast433KG-5
Power Center Academy High School6739-12
Power Center Academy Middle4496-8
Power Center Academy Middle - Southeast3156-8
Primary Prepatory0PK-PK
Promise Academy266PK-5
Raleigh-Bartlett Meadows Elementary433PK-5
Raleigh-Egypt High7336-12
Raleigh Egypt Middle School4886-8
Richland Elementary911PK-5
Ridgeway Early Learning Center141PK-PK
Ridgeway High8059-12
Ridgeway Middle5576-8
Riverview Elementary/Middle471PK-8
Riverwood Elementary School1,018PK-5
Robert R. Church Elementary549PK-5
Ross Elementary593PK-5
Rozelle Elementary227PK-5
Scenic Hills Elementary335PK-5
Sea Isle Elementary499PK-5
Sharpe Elementary304PK-5
Sheffield Career Technology Center09-12
Sheffield Elementary499PK-5
Sheffield High5439-12
Shelby Oaks Elementary764PK-5
Sherwood Elementary548PK-5
Sherwood Middle6706-8
Shrine School136PK-12
Snowden Elementary/Middle1,272PK-8
Soulsville Charter School6566-12
Southern Avenue Charter School Of Academic Excellence Creati330KG-5
South Park Elementary494PK-5
Southwest Career Technology Center09-12
Southwind Elementary661PK-5
Southwind High1,6229-12
Springdale Elementary226PK-5
Star Academy331KG-6
The Excel Center4139-12
Treadwell Elementary874PK-5
Treadwell Middle School6626-8
Trezevant Career And Technology Center09-12
Trezevant High5499-12
University High School1799-12
University Middle2686-8
Veritas College Preparatory1356-8
Vision Preparatory Charter School415PK-5
Vollentine Elementary341PK-5
Wells Station Elementary633PK-5
Westhaven Elementary746PK-5
Westside Elementary325PK-5
Westwood High3299-12
Whitehaven Elementary425PK-5
Whitehaven High1,5499-12
White Station Elementary795PK-5
White Station High1,9359-12
White Station Middle1,0916-8
Whitney Elementary359PK-5
William Herbert Brewster Elementary School501PK-5
Willow Oaks Elementary607PK-5
Winchester Elementary413PK-5
Winridge Elementary415PK-5
Wooddale High6189-12
Woodstock Middle School2396-8

Noteworthy events

2025: Election schedule change and term limits

In August 2025, the Shelby County Commission unanimously voted to impose term limits on Memphis-Shelby County Schools board members, beginning with the 2026 election. Members will be limited to serving two four-year terms. The commission also aligned school board elections with its own schedule, meaning all nine seats will be up for election in 2026 and every four years thereafter. Previously, board seats were elected on a staggered basis.[8]

2022: School district name change

On January 25, 2022, the Shelby County Board of Education approved a recommendation to change the school district's doing business as (DBA) name from Shelby County Schools to Memphis-Shelby County Schools.[16]

2016: Federal investigation of the district over migrant students

The U.S. Department of Education announced on July 20, 2016, that Shelby County Schools was being investigated by the department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR). The investigation involved "issues affecting English learners and limited English proficiency parental communication, under Title VI,” according to OCR spokeswoman Dorie Nolt. Title VI prohibits any organization or program that receives federal funding from discriminating based on race or national origin, according to Chalkbeat Tennessee.[17]

An Associated Press report in May 2016 found that a number of migrant children who lived in the Shelby County school district had been kept from enrolling in school by district officials due to lack of transcripts or the age of the students.[18][17]

The OCR saw 51% more complaints related to Title VI from 2009 to 2015. Overall, Title VI complaints represented 21% of complaints brought to the OCR in 2015, according to Education Dive.[19]

Memphis City Schools, now part of Shelby County Schools, underwent an OCR probe in 2012. The OCR investigated allegations of discrimination against students with disabilities, and the district agreed to resolve the issue by better communicating about the rights of students with district parents.[17]

2016: State response to district's lawsuit

See also: Education reform: State funding battles and local responses (2016)

Shelby County Schools filed a lawsuit against the state of Tennessee in 2015. The lawsuit said that the state's lack of funding had disproportionately hurt the district's poorer students and that the state's funding model failed "to take into account the actual costs of funding an education."[20][21]

The state did not respond to Shelby County's lawsuit until July 2016, when officials submitted a 25-page response that denied that the state's funding model was the cause of the school district's financial problems. The response also detailed that the funding model meets the state's responsibilities to maintain a public school system “that affords substantially equal educational opportunities to all students in Tennessee."[21]

Shelby County Schools was not alone in suing the state over education funding. The Metropolitan Nashville school district voted to join its lawsuit in October 2017. Metropolitan Nashville also sued the state over funding for teaching English as a second language in 2016, but it lost that case. The Hamilton County School District, along with six surrounding county school districts, also filed a lawsuit against the state that stated it had not provided sufficient funding for schools. Hamilton County's lawsuit was denied class-action status in 2016, but a judge also ruled against the state's motion to dismiss it.[22][23]

At issue in the three lawsuits was the state's funding formula, known as the Basic Education Program (BEP). Shelby County, Metro Nashville, and Hamilton County said they did not receive the funding due to them under BEP. The 2016 budget that was signed into law by Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam (R) marked the second year for "substantial increases" to the state's public education funding, according to The Tennesseean. It added $261 million to the Basic Education Program, $104.6 million of which was dedicated to raising teacher salaries.[22] What the budget did not do, however, was set up BEP 2.0, a program that changed the funding formula to help larger school districts.[20]

In September 2018, Davidson County Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman, appointed by Gov. Phil Bredesen (D) in 2003, upheld a previous decision denying the state's motion to dismiss the lawsuit.[24] In January 2019, the Tennessee Court of Appeals refused a motion to dismiss the case, which had since been reassigned to Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle.[25] The trial began on October 18, 2021.[26]

2016: State's Achievement School District halts school takeovers for one year

Tennessee Achievement School District.jpg

Following the cancellation of the state's TNReady tests, officials of the state's Achievement School District (ASD) announced they would not seek to take over any additional schools for the 2017-2018 school year. Education Commissioner Candice McQueen announced in a statement on April 15, 2016, that, “Extending flexibility to priority schools during this transition mirrors the flexibility we have offered to teachers and students."[27]

The ASD is a statewide school district designed to take control of struggling schools. The schools are assigned to charter school networks and taken out of the control of the county school district. According to its website, the ASD "was created to catapult the bottom 5% of schools in Tennessee straight to the top 25% in the state."[27][28]

State Rep. Antonio Parkinson (D-98)

The ASD opened its first school in 2012. As of the 2015-2016 school year, the ASD operated 29 schools. Though the ASD's goals were to turn around its schools within five years, five of the six schools that were opened in 2012 were still in the state's bottom 5% in performance in 2016. ASD Superintendent Malika Anderson admitted that the goals had been "overly ambitious," according to Chalkbeat Tennessee.[27]

The move to suspend ASD takeovers was approved by both critics and supporters of the district. An open critic of the ASD, State Rep. Antonio Parkinson (D-98) said, “The fact that the ASD/DOE is listening and holding their 17-18 school year as a ‘hold harmless’ year is a positive step in the right direction.”[27]

Mendell Grinter, the state director of the Black Alliance for Educational Options, a group that has advocated for the ASD, said, "Students need adequate time to prepare for and adjust to the new TNReady assessment, and this decision will allow for that."[27]

2016: Testing suspended in wake of state terminating TNReady contract

After the Tennessee Department of Education terminated the contract with the provider of the state's new TNReady test assessments on April 27, 2016, Shelby County Schools halted its assessments for students in grades three through eight. Education Commissioner Candice McQueen said the contract was terminated with North Carolina-based Measurement Inc. after it failed to deliver all of the testing materials.[29][30][31]

Education Commissioner Candice McQueen

McQueen called Measurement Inc.'s performance "deeply disappointing" after months of delivery delays and a failure to roll out the assessment online in February 2016. "We’ve exhausted every option in problem solving with this vendor to assist them in getting these tests delivered. Districts have exceeded their responsibility and obligation to wait for grade 3-8 materials, and we will not ask districts to continue waiting on a vendor that has repeatedly failed us," said McQueen.[32]

Measurement Inc. President Henry Scherich said the contract termination was a disappointment. "It has been a very difficult job, and we were within a couple days or so of having all the tests in the state," said Scherich.[30]

Scherich said that the company had been put in a "difficult, and even impossible, situation" after they were required to switch to a paper test in response to the failed online assessment, according to Chalkbeat Tennessee. McQueen said the state's contract had included provisions for paper tests in the case of technical difficulties.[32] As of the termination, the state had paid $1.6 million toward the $108 million contract.[30]

The state decided to continue testing high school students, as those materials had been received, but it suspended the tests for younger students. School districts that received the needed materials for testing younger grades were allowed to choose between continuing the assessments or suspending them.[29][32] When district officials announced they would be suspending tests, Shelby County Schools released the following statement:

The constant changes with regard to this year's TNReady testing have been challenging, but we applaud the Tennessee Department of Education for keeping us updated along the way.

SCS has elected, per the State's option, to suspend testing for all students in Grades 3-8 due to Measurement Inc.'s failed delivery of testing materials. Although this testing period has been tumultuous, we are pleased that the State is providing districts, teachers and students with flexibility in performance and evaluation as they continue to work to provide us with a quality annual assessment.[10]

—Shelby County Schools (2016)[31]

Due to the suspension, accountability measures related to test scores, such as teacher evaluations, were also delayed for one year. Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam (R) said that despite the delay, the state was still moving forward.[32]

The failure of the testing vendor to deliver the tests and meet its own obligations does not take away from the fact that Tennessee has created our own, higher standards, we have an improved assessment fully aligned with those standards, and we remain committed going forward to measuring student performance fairly and ensuring accountability for those results.[10]
—Gov. Bill Haslam (R)[32]

Contact information

Shelby County School District logo.png

Memphis-Shelby County Schools
160 S. Hollywood St.
Memphis, TN 38112
Phone: 901-416-5300


About school boards

Education legislation in Tennessee

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

Tennessee School Board Elections News and Analysis
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External links

Footnotes

  1. Commerical Appeal, "Roderick Richmond is now the interim superintendent of MSCS. Who is the long-time staffer?" January 23, 2025
  2. Fox 13, "Dr. Marie Feagins fired as MSCS superintendent, interim named," January 22, 2025
  3. Action News 5, "MSCS school board selects Chief Financial Officer Toni Williams as interim superintendent," August 30, 2022
  4. Chalkbeat Tennessee, "Joris Ray agrees to resign as Memphis-Shelby County Schools chief under deal with board," August 23, 2022
  5. Commercial Appeal, "Joris Ray, cabinet member and educator, chosen as interim Shelby County Schools superintendent," December 12, 2018
  6. Shelby County Schools, "Superintendent," accessed November 1, 2019
  7. Shelby County Schools, "Shelby County Board of Education," accessed July 28, 2015
  8. 8.0 8.1 ABC 24, "Shelby County Commission votes to put all MSCS board seats up for election in 2026," September 22, 2025
  9. Shelby County Schools, "Addressing the Board," accessed May 4, 2021
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  11. National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
  12. Shelby County Schools, "Salary Schedules 2024-2025," accessed April 21, 2025
  13. Shelby County Schools, "Salary Schedules 2023-2024," accessed February 6, 2024
  14. Shelby County Schools, "Salary Schedules 2020-2021," accessed May 4, 2021
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  16. Memphis Shelby County Schools, "District Rebrand," accessed September 8, 2023
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 Chalkbeat Tennessee, "Shelby County Schools subject of federal civil rights probe over migrant students," July 20, 2016
  18. Commercial Appeal, "Migrant children kept from enrolling in school," May 1, 2016
  19. Education Dive, "OCR probes Tennessee's Shelby County over immigrant ed," July 22, 2016
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  21. 21.0 21.1 Chalkbeat Tennessee, "Tennessee affirms its school funding formula in response to lawsuit over Memphis schools," July 11, 2016
  22. 22.0 22.1 The Tennessean, "Nashville schools to sue state for education funding," June 15, 2016
  23. The Tennessean, "Nashville schools board votes to join Shelby County Schools in lawsuit against state," October 17, 2017
  24. Chalkbeat Tennessee, "After three years, the fight to spend more money on Tennessee schools inches toward trial," September 25, 2018
  25. Chalkbeat Tennessee, "Haslam’s last-ditch effort to kill school funding lawsuit falls short in Tennessee," January 3, 2019
  26. Commercial Appeal, "Judge sets trial date for Tennessee's 5-year-old school funding lawsuit," July 16, 2020
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  30. 30.0 30.1 30.2 The Tennesseean, "Tennessee terminates contract with TNReady test company," April 27, 2016
  31. 31.0 31.1 WREG, "State suspends some TNReady testing after vendor fails to deliver materials," April 27, 2016
  32. 32.0 32.1 32.2 32.3 32.4 Chalkbeat Tennessee, "Tennessee fires TNReady testmaker, suspends tests for grades 3-8," April 27, 2016