Two Memphis Republicans now agree on a plan to install a state-appointed governing board to oversee Memphis schools.
Tennessee legislature revives Memphis schools takeover bill
By: Melissa Brown
A proposed takeover of Memphis-Shelby County Schools is inching forward in the Tennessee General Assembly, though it’s still unclear how much control a proposed oversight board might have over the state’s largest school district.
The House and Senate sponsors of the legislation, both Republicans from Memphis, want the same thing: a state-appointed oversight board of Shelby County residents authorized to make the final call on all major MSCS governing decisions, including its budget and its superintendent’s contract.
House leadership is also on board, while top Senate Republicans appear more hesitant to install an oversight board without local political leaders’ input.
Democrats have resisted the measure altogether, pointing to the failure of previous state interventions.
A state takeover would hit Shelby County amid an already tense period in local-state relations and significant upheaval at MSCS, after the abrupt firing of its superintendent a year ago. All nine school board seats are up for election this year, and the interim superintendent’s contract expires this summer.
Some Republicans divided over scope of oversight board’s powers
The House on Wednesday chose not to accept a 2025 Senate proposal on the issue. The Senate is expected to do the same to the 2025 House proposal, setting up an opportunity for lawmakers to hash out a compromise bill in a conference committee.
Republicans last year failed to find a compromise on their versions of the takeover legislation, in part after Senate Republicans balked at installing an interventionist board without input from local political leaders like the Shelby County mayor.
But Senate sponsor Brent Taylor said Tuesday he “no longer trusts” the mayor’s judgment, nor that of the Shelby County Commission, after months of local-state tensions over Tennessee’s deployment of the National Guard in Memphis and a federal law enforcement surge. The Shelby County mayor and other elected officials have sued Gov. Bill Lee over the issue.
“That’s why I think we need the House version, where the speakers and the governor appoint local people, people from Memphis and Shelby County that will go in and actually run the school system, turn it around and then hand it back to the elected board,” Taylor said.
Though the bill sponsors agree on a path forward, there isn’t full support for the bill yet among legislative Republicans.
House Speaker Cameron Sexton has voiced full support for Rep. Mark White’s House plan, but Taylor acknowledged that discussions with Lt. Gov. Randy McNally are “still a work in progress.” McNally last year pushed for more local input.
“While Lt. Gov. McNally still prefers to have some level of local involvement, he remains in active discussions with sponsors and other stakeholders on the best way to encourage a turnaround in outcomes in the Memphis-Shelby County school system,” McNally spokesperson Adam Kleinheider said.
Democrats cite state’s track record with takeovers
Democrats have resisted the effort, pointing to previous state intervention efforts like the Achievement School District, which tried and failed to turn around low-performing Memphis schools.
“What I don’t think they do is take into account every single thing that the state has done to our district, and then wonder why we’re not performing to the level that they want us to perform,” said House Minority Leader Karen Camper last week.
Both Taylor and White maintain their proposal would not be a state takeover like the ASD, because local leaders would be appointed to the oversight board rather than having the state explicitly run the schools.
However, the Republican-dominated state government would still have the power to appoint the board, effectively giving the GOP broad governing authority over local schools in a majority Democratic county.
Memphis schools have made some improvements in recent years. This year, MSCS students outpaced the state average for academic growth in reading and math. More Memphis schools also earned top marks in Tennessee’s report card system for the 2024-25 school year.
Yet the district continues to lag significantly in academic achievement, with less than 25% of MSCS students meeting grade-level benchmarks on state reading and math tests.
After the House action on Wednesday, the Senate can now accept or reject the 2025 House bill. The Senate is widely expected to reject it, which would then allow McNally and Sexton to appoint members of a conference committee.
Lawmakers on the conference committee could make substantial changes to proposed legislation relatively quickly.
And while any changes would require a full vote from the House and Senate, the legislation would not have to return to committees for votes, meaning it could pass into law quickly once it exits the conference.
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