Some wonder if money spent on superintendent saga could have been better spent
by: Jessica Gertler
SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — Many question whether the money spent on finding and firing a Memphis-Shelby County Schools superintendent could have been better spent, as the district faces serious issues of academic performance, truancy and deferred maintenance.
Some of those asking stood in a long line in January as they waited to go into the Memphis Shelby County School board meeting. They were anxious to chime in on the fate of Dr. Marie Feagins, who was terminated by the board.
“I would hope the focus would be more clearly helping the scores and standards go up, rather than worry about this,” Noel Hutchinson said.
He called it a distraction from the countless problems piling within the district and community.
“We have buildings that are in deteriorating conditions. We have issues with literacy and other things,” MSCS alumni Cameron Kuykindall said.
According to the state, there are about 105,000 students enrolled at MSCS. Nearly 74% are African-American and about 50% are economically disadvantaged.
The state grades the schools they attend. While 81 schools improved their grade last year, two dozen schools were given a C or below.
The state also reports a majority of MSCS students, especially in middle and high school, are struggling in math. English is also an issue.
Of the students who graduated from the district last year, the state says not even 37 percent were ready for postsecondary education or a career, meaning they had to get at least a 21 on their ACT, earn industry credentials or participate in advanced coursework.
“I’ve been in the meetings where the where developers and business people coming in from out of town who want to build something in Memphis and bring economic opportunity,” said Alan Crone, once Feagins’ attorney and a former council member.
He said the state’s data should matter to everyone.
“First question they ask is, tell us about the workforce that you’re training,” Crone said. “What’s the graduation rate? What are the test scores? We do not have good answers to those questions.”
For years now, WREG Investigators have reported on issues within the district that are exacerbated by the pandemic, poverty, gangs and violence.
Last year, 29 percent of MSCS students were chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 18 days of class. That number grew 10% since 2019 and is above the state average.
“This board should be doing everything that it possibly can to make sure students are retained and to reduce the amount of truancy that is happening,” said TN Rep. Justin Pearson (D-Memphis).
State lawmakers have told us time and time again, they’re paying close attention.
“We’ve got a billion dollars plus of deferred maintenance,” said TN Rep. G.A. Hardaway (D-Memphis).
Aging infrastructure has forced MSCS schools to close, sometimes for months and some permanently.
One teacher told us off camera her classroom’s heater was out in December. Her repair requests to the district and her board member went ignored until mid-January, which was after a big snow storm.
Records we found show 11 HVAC upgrades, but as of October, there were 995 work orders for heating, ventilation or air conditioning.
Another 5,400 were for other issues including mold, roofing and plumbing.
“It matters, in terms of positive academic outcomes, on what type of facility our children are sitting in,” Hardaway said.
A study was done to find out what all needs to be fixed and how much it will cost. Our requests to district for the results have gone unanswered.
We filed an open records request on January 7, but were told it will take at least until February 28 for an answer. We have nearly a dozen more requests pending that date back months as we keep digging to answer your questions.
Feagins had said she was creating a plan based on the facilities assessment results. The new interim superintendent said he’s now working on his next steps.
“I don’t have a 100-day plan. I am starting to develop it,” Interim Superintendent Dr. Roderick Richmond said at a press conference January 23.
Those who voted to oust Feagins argue the money has been spent wisely.
“It was time for us to act. We did what was best for our community and for our students,” MSCS board member Towanna Murphy said.
But many who stood in line at the January meeting feel differently. It was the longest line seen at a school board meeting in quite some time.
“Superman is not coming to save us,” Hutchinson said as he got in line. “It’s up to us. We have to fix this. We can’t be distracted by stuff like this.”
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