Interim Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams says improving teacher retention could play a positive role in elevating low-graded schools on the state’s recently released School Letter Grades. The A through F grading system is designed to provide families with a transparent and concise picture for how well public schools are performing.Williams says the district will be taking a more holistic approach to retain teachers in the future, including preserving tutoring and small group instruction initiatives, adding more coaching for teachers, paying for education assistants to enter the profession, and giving veteran teachers longevity bonuses.

The lengthy search for a new leader of the state’s largest school district is down to three finalists.Tuesday night members of the Memphis-Shelby County School Board named three out of state educational leaders to move onto the next phase of the superintendent search process.

One of the biggest challenges the next superintendent of Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) will inherit is the aging infrastructure of the district’s schools.The average age of school buildings in the district is 64 years old. That’s 24 years older than the recommended life span of school buildings nationwide and district is currently considering options to fund $500 million school upgrades and address the district’s deferred maintenance costs.With an eye towards this challenge, school board members asked each of the five semi-finalists for the superintendent position about their experience with facilities and operations Friday.Their answers could play an important role in the board’s decision tonight to narrow those five down to three finalists. Here’s how all five responded.

ParagraphLife has been busy for Muna Olaniyi ever since the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission unanimously approved her dream of opening a career based public charter school to serve families in Orange Mound and South Memphis.Empower Memphis Career and College Prep remains on track to open in the fall 2024, but Olaniyi says there are still a lot of important decisions to make before then.

Search firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates (HYA) announced the five finalists it’s picked to lead Memphis-Shelby County Schools Friday morning.The firm picked two previous finalists, one previous candidate, and two newcomers from a pool of 22 applicants for the long-vacant post.

Dozens of faith-based leaders gathered around Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Interim Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams Wednesday to denounce a Satanic club that’s planning to rent space at a local elementary school.Non-theistic religious non-profit organization The Satanic Temple (TST) plans to begin hosting the After School Satan Club at Chimneyrock Elementary School on Jan 10.

A new report by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute found both Memphis-Shelby County Schools and Metro Nashville Public Schools are facing more competition for students than most other large school districts.The study ranked both districts 21 out of the top 125 school districts for the percentage of students in grades 1 through 8 that attend public charter, private, or home schools instead of district run schools.

Tennessee’s education system must do more to help minority and economically disadvantaged students earn postsecondary degrees in order to meet the state’s workforce needs, a report by an education policy and advocacy organization warned.The State Collaborative on Reforming Education’s 2024 report, released at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, lauded Tennessee students’ overall progress on standardized tests since the pandemic, and a rebound in the number of students attending college during that time. But the group noted that fewer students were finishing college within six years of graduating high school.

Tennessee’s education system must do more to help minority and economically disadvantaged students earn postsecondary degrees in order to meet the state’s workforce needs, a report by an education policy and advocacy organization warned.The State Collaborative on Reforming Education’s 2024 report, released at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, lauded Tennessee students’ overall progress on standardized tests since the pandemic, and a rebound in the number of students attending college during that time. But the group noted that fewer students were finishing college within six years of graduating high school.

Southwest Tennessee Community College Director of Admissions, Recruitment, and K-12 Policy Rosie Britton says last year Tennessee families left more than $2 billion in student aid unclaimed due to missed opportunities or missed information regarding the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).This year students will have less time to start the application process.The FAFSA application process has historically run from October 1 through June 30 but this year it will open no later than December 31.

Interim Memphis-Shelby County School Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams says her administration is evaluating multiple strategies to move the district forward once federal COVID relief funding dries up.The federal government plans to halt providing schools districts with Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER) funds next September.Memphis-Shelby County Schools has received a total of $776 million in ESSER funds. This money has helped support infrastructure needs along with providing advanced placement and vocational courses.

Tennessee’s first Montessori public charter school is expanding its personalized learning approach to more students in the Frayser community of Memphis.Monday the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission granted the Libertas School of Memphis’s application to add grades six through eight to its existing Pre-K-5 campus, along with 148 more seats.“We are thrilled that the TN Public Charter School Commission has unanimously approved our charter amendment to serve middle school grades beginning in 2024,” said Libertas school leaders in a letter to parents following approval. “I thank our Board of Trustees for their guidance as we have carefully developed this vision over the last several years, and applaud our teachers and staff for crafting the plan.”The school is one of 16 public charter schools state commissioners oversea, and Libertas leaders say the expansion fills a void traditional public schools in Frayser aren’t filling.

About 3,500 social studies teachers converge on Nashville this weekend for their annual national conference, but not without some pushback for meeting in a state with multiple laws aimed at classroom censorship and restrictions related to discussing race and gender.“Some of our members have worried that this could be a hostile environment for them,” said Wesley Hedgepeth, a social studies teacher in Henrico County, Virginia, and this year’s president of the National Council for the Social Studies.

The Memphis-Shelby County School Board approved an expansion request Tuesday night for one the district’s oldest public charter schools.Under the expansion plan, existing K-6 STAR Academy will grow to serve grades K-8.“I want to emphasize the profound impact this amendment could have, granting STAR Academy the opportunity to extend our reach into middle schools. Education is not merely about expanding a school. It’s about uplifting our community,” said STAR Academy Board Chair Gerald Fanion. “This proposed expansion is more than just growth. It represents a commitment to the future of our students and to the community we proudly serve.”

The Memphis-Shelby County School Board approved an expansion request Tuesday night for one the district’s oldest public charter schools.Under the expansion plan, existing K-6 STAR Academy will grow to serve grades K-8.“I want to emphasize the profound impact this amendment could have, granting STAR Academy the opportunity to extend our reach into middle schools. Education is not merely about expanding a school. It’s about uplifting our community,” said STAR Academy Board Chair Gerald Fanion. “This proposed expansion is more than just growth. It represents a commitment to the future of our students and to the community we proudly serve.”

Memphis-Shelby County Schools leaders have proposed eliminating 675 jobs along with a mix of student programs as they figure out how to cut $150 million in spending from next year’s budget.The budget gap is an expected result of the end of federal pandemic relief programs, which were meant to help school districts manage the impact on student learning. District leaders have been preparing for this day with analyses of how they spent the money, so they can try to preserve what has been most effective for students.

Twenty years ago, Chelsea Bailey was a rising seventh-grader in Memphis who had no idea what a public charter school was.That changed when the founder of the Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering (MASE) visited her church and encouraged Bailey’s mother to transfer her to the new school.  That decision not only made Bailey a part of the MASE’s inaugural class, but also the first class of students anywhere in Tennessee to attend a public charter school.

Twenty years ago, Chelsea Bailey was a rising seventh-grader in Memphis who had no idea what a public charter school was.That changed when the founder of the Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering (MASE) visited her church and encouraged Bailey’s mother to transfer her to the new school.  That decision not only made Bailey a part of the MASE’s inaugural class, but also the first class of students anywhere in Tennessee to attend a public charter school.

Nashville and Shelby County governments have pulled out of their more than 3-year-old legal dispute with the state over a 2019 private school voucher law.The paperwork to withdraw their latest appeal was filed quietly on Aug. 25 with the Tennessee Court of Appeals, according to court documents.

Memphis-Shelby County School Board member Stephanie Love took a moment during Tuesday evening’s meeting to address the recent shootings in the Frayser community.Love says those shootings claimed the lives of two kids in her district and she called for a discussion on what more can be done for students and communities.