Memphis-Shelby County School Board Appoints Dr. Roderick Richmond as Permanent Superintendent

Dr. Rod Richmond (Memphis-Shelby County School Board photo)

The Memphis-Shelby County School Board unanimously voted to appoint Dr. Roderick Richmond as its permanent superintendent after lengthy discussion at its meeting on Wednesday night. The decision follows a wave of controversy surrounding the district’s previous superintendent, Dr. Marie Feagins, who was fired after less than a year in the position.

Richmond has served as interim superintendent since Feagin's termination.

Wednesday’s meeting began with a debate over whether appointing a permanent superintendent before Richmond’s contract ends in July was the right decision. District 8 Board Member Amber Huett-Garcia expressed her opinion that there is an urgency to begin the selection process.

“By our last search, we said the national average was about six months to do a search,” Huett-Garcia said. “We may be on different timelines. To do a search process is an extensive process.”

Other board members, such as District 7’s Towanna Murphy, District 5’s Sable Otey, and District 4’s Tamarques Porter, did not seem to believe that deciding one way or another during the meeting was paramount.

“I don't see a rush for this right now,” Porter said. “It’s a time-consuming decision, but again, I do appreciate the work that’s being done right now, and I do see great things ahead… A good decision takes time, but a great decision takes data.”

District 6’s Keith Williams vehemently opposed waiting to decide.

“My position is, if we have someone in the position who is capable and who has shown the quality of being capable, we should not be dancing around this, because if we do, we're going to be back to square one and (we’ve) got to go beyond the circle now to find somebody else,” Williams said. “And I'm not against that, but it needs to be started today. We don't have time to wait.”

Board members initially considered a motion to postpone the decision until the next business meeting, but it failed 3-6, leading to a unanimous decision to appoint Dr. Richmond as the district’s permanent superintendent.

“I’m hungry,” Murphy said. “My head hurts. Let’s call for the question, and let’s get him appointed.”

Turbulent History

Richmond takes over a district that has endured years of leadership questions since the resignation of former superintendent Joris Ray in July 2022, following allegations of abuse of power and policy violations. The board engaged in a turbulent year-and-a-half-long search for a new leader before hiring Marie Feagins in 2024.

The decision to fire her prompted a lawsuit by Feagins and a controversial move by the Shelby County Commission to put five school board seats up for re-election early.

Board members sued, and this week, won a legal challenge against the re-election change in court