Nashville PROPEL Calls for Superintendent Dr. Adrienne Battle to Step Down
Dr. Adrienne Battle (Photo by MNPS)
Nashville PROPEL released a statement Wednesday calling for the resignation of Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) Superintendent Dr. Adrienne Battle.
The parent advocacy organization is upset that Battle’s administration is paying a reported $6.5 million in a legal settlement with five former school administrators who sued the district for alleged discrimination. MNPS Board of Education members unanimously approved the settlement on the consent agenda last week without discussion.
“Dr. Adrienne Battle’s decision-making is compromised. And it’s clear she no longer believes the board will hold her accountable. Why else would she continue to make decisions that cost taxpayers millions while keeping families in the dark,” asked Nashville PROPEL. “This $6.5 million settlement didn’t come out of nowhere. It follows previous litigation—and there is still pending litigation for similar issues under her leadership. When patterns emerge, we can no longer call them isolated incidents. We must call them what they are: failures in leadership.”
Case Against Metro Nashville Public Schools
According to a December 2023 court filing, MNPS removed each of the five former administrators during a district reorganization following Dr. Battle’s appointment in 2020. The suit outlines three of the allegations in detail:
James Bailey, Former High School Principal: Bailey claims he was removed from his position as retaliation for recommending discipline for Dr. Battle’s brother, following allegations of assaulting a parent and mishandling program funds while serving as a basketball coach.
Dr. Jenai Hayes, Director of School Choice: Dr. Hayes claims her position was eliminated for retaliation after she filed a Title VI complain because her son, who’s African American, was asked to read part of a speech titled, “Let’s Make a Slave” and instructed to climb under his desk and “pretend he was a slave.”
Dr. Lilly Leffler, MNPS Executive Director: Dr. Leffler claims her position was eliminated in retaliation after her cousin-in-law sued the district for sex discrimination.
MNPS released a statement to the Tennessee Firefly defending the staffing decisions and the move to settle the suit.
“We maintain that decisions regarding leadership structure, hiring, and retention were made in good faith and with the best interests of MNPS students and staff in mind. The positive results we’ve seen across the district affirm that these were the right decisions,” said the district in a statement. “This was a mutual settlement agreement which does not indicate fault on behalf of the district or Dr. Battle but was determined to be in the best interest of all parties involved to avoid further legal fees and the uncertainty of a jury trial, while allowing the district to focus on building upon our success in growing student achievement and outcomes.”
Payout Much Higher than Prior Settlements
Though individual school board members did not discuss the settlement publicly before voting on it last week, District 12 Metro Council member Erin Evans did address the issue directly during the meeting’s public comment phase.
Evans pointed out that the settlement “far exceeds the previous five years of settlements in aggregate” and amounts to almost a full percent of the staff cost-of-living adjustment.
“Because this feels like an unforced error on our part, one of the things that I would really encourage you all to think about as you come before us over the next budget next year, is to really think about the root causes kind of around, how did we get to this point where these outcomes were something that were only solvable related to a lawsuit and then the subsequent settlement,” said Evans. “What are the actions that we can take improvements on as a city related to how we’re handling things like challenging authority, having difficult conversations?”
