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This week, greater than 100,000 college students in Memphis-Shelby County Faculties, the state’s largest college district, are placing summer time break behind them and marching into a brand new educational 12 months.
And lots of new awaits them.
There’s new management for the district, together with the superintendent, Marie Feagins, starting her first full college 12 months, and a college board that can have 4 new members, following final week’s elections.
New finances priorities — and realities — will create adjustments within the district’s workforce and within the classroom, reflecting the tip of federal pandemic reduction funds.
And anticipate extra stress from state officers to alter the best way schooling is delivered to youngsters in Memphis, together with the creation of a university-led college district and a renewed push for common college vouchers.
Listed here are 5 issues to observe for in 2024-25.
Superintendent Marie Feagins begins her first full 12 months
Marie Feagins, who took over as superintendent in April after an almost two-year search course of, has made sweeping adjustments already to direct extra of the district’s assets into the classroom. Considered one of them was reducing greater than 1,100 non-classroom positions and creating alternatives for these workers to use for school-based jobs to assist alleviate a instructor scarcity. The purpose, she stated, is to get extra scholar help housed straight in faculties, not dropping in often from the central workplace.
Search for extra shakeups as Feagins leads MSCS in adapting to the expiration of federal pandemic reduction funds and implementing extra educational accountability measures. Her staff is engaged on a strategic plan that comes with efforts to enhance the district’s educational efficiency and college students’ studying environments.
Feagins has laid out plans to revamp college turnaround work and employed a longtime administrator to supervise the district’s lowest performing faculties.
In the meantime, she has tried to deal with value inefficiencies that siphon cash out of the classroom, together with an “abuse” of extra time that she stated has value the district $1 million.
Feagins informed the varsity board final week to anticipate air-conditioning points in faculties as college students return. “As we all know, we now have extremely aged buildings,” she stated.
As for instructor shortages, the district has held 10 hiring blitzes attended by greater than a thousand individuals in latest months. As of final week, its 250 educational vacancies had been “considerably decrease than we had been as a district final 12 months,” Feagins stated. Most are for particular schooling and English language learners.
Memphis-Shelby County Faculties board will get new members
4 new members will quickly be part of the nine-member MSCS board after elections for 5 seats on Aug. 1.
Leaving quickly is Chairperson Althea Greene, who misplaced her bid for reelection to Natalie McKinney. Selecting a brand new chairperson would be the new board’s first order of enterprise.
The board shall be charged with navigating adjustments beneath the management of the brand new superintendent, and holding her accountable. Already, members have pushed Feagins for higher communication about her initiatives, together with the job cuts.
The board is within the strategy of rebuilding relationships and public belief after a protracted superintendent search uncovered divisions and ignited conflicts amongst board members.
Cash in place to enhance amenities and scholar outcomes
Feagins’ $1.8 billion finances, authorized by the board in June, prioritized assuaging the instructor scarcity. But it surely additionally included key gadgets geared toward enhancing educational efficiency in a district the place many college students wrestle with financial challenges and are compelled to be taught in growing older, dilapidated buildings. The potential affect of that spending will grow to be clearer this 12 months.
The finances consists of $96 million to enhance amenities to create safer studying areas for college students, and $14.6 million to develop after-school applications and actions. Bus routes for afterschool actions are additionally included — an essential step in a metropolis the place the general public bus system often faces cutbacks. Round 8,000 college students are anticipated to take part.
The spending plan additionally consists of $21.8 million for focused teaching and tutoring providers to assist college students enhance on the Tennessee Complete Evaluation Program, often known as TCAP, and end-of-course checks.
MSCS college students’ TCAP efficiency improved in 2024, with 22.4% of scholars assembly or exceeding expectations on the studying check, in contrast with 20.7% in 2023. In 2021, the determine was simply 13%.
The proportion of third, fourth, and fifth graders who scored proficient in studying elevated from 23.3% in 2023 to 26% in 2024. The development in these ranges is essential, as a result of third grade is when college students face the prospect of being held again or despatched to summer time college in the event that they don’t meet or present vital progress towards assembly TCAP studying requirements.
State forces extra adjustments in Memphis schooling
In March, state Rep. Mark White, a Memphis Republican who chairs the Home Training Administration Committee, stated he would file laws to permit Gov. Invoice Lee to nominate as much as six members to the MSCS board. That plan was shelved within the face of neighborhood opposition.
However lawmakers and state officers proceed to pursue insurance policies that reach the state’s affect over Memphis faculties.
A brand new legislation allowed the College of Memphis, which enrolls round 1,050 college students in its College Faculties, to carve out its personal Ok-12 college district from the general public faculties that it has operated beneath a long-running contract with MSCS.
That change will have an effect on MSCS, as a result of the scholars who attend the College Faculties have often posted a few of the district’s highest check scores.
The state additionally modified the factors for its first-ever A-F grades for faculties, emphasizing educational proficiency over progress, dismissing opposition from many native public college leaders. In December 2023, of the 5% of Tennessee faculties that acquired F’s, half had been in MSCS — the place a lot of the college students are low-income and struggling academically. We’re watching to see how the colleges fare in 2024.
Expanded college voucher proposal shall be again
This 12 months, Gov. Invoice Lee’s efforts to move a common college voucher legislation failed within the legislature as a result of opposition from rural lawmakers in his personal social gathering. He has vowed to revive the battle subsequent 12 months, and the latest major elections delivered a mixture of wins and losses for voucher supporters.
Some Memphis households have already got entry to vouchers beneath the state’s present Training Financial savings Account voucher program, which is obtainable in three city areas. Lee desires to develop voucher entry statewide, no matter household revenue.
However the advantages of personal college vouchers are nonetheless unclear. Outcomes from the Training Financial savings Account program confirmed that almost all college students who participated in 2022-23 posted decrease scores on state checks than their counterparts in public faculties. This 12 months, recipients in three counties made modest features, however their efficiency nonetheless trailed their friends in public faculties.
Tonyaa Weathersbee is the previous bureau chief for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Attain her at tonyaaweathersbee@yahoo.com.
