Laura Faith Kebede
There are 166 articles by Laura Faith Kebede :
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October 2018
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Education Memphis teachers will soon have the opportunity to change compensation, work hours, health benefits, and how they teach if they vote to negotiate a new agreement with Shelby County Schools.
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November 2018
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Education A Memphis principal was fired over flawed test scores. Should state law protect him too?
Reginald Williams was set to retire as principal of a Memphis charter school at the end of the school year. Instead, he was fired just days into the new school year, shortly after state test results showed the school’s scores had plummeted. -
Education Students walk out of Memphis school demanding to know why principal and teacher were fired
About 30 students walked out of Memphis Academy of Health Sciences High School on Tuesday, Nov. 6, three months after school administrators fired the principal, and days after firing a beloved teacher.
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December 2018
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Education Plan for Memphis schools would fold 28 old schools into 10 new ones
Shelby County Schools’ outgoing leader wants to consolidate 28 Memphis schools into 10 new buildings. -
Metro Plan for Memphis schools would fold 28 old schools into 10 new ones
Shelby County Schools’ outgoing leader wants to consolidate 28 Memphis schools into 10 new buildings. -
Education Even as suspensions fall, Memphis students being kicked out of school longer, data shows
Hidden behind what Memphis education officials have said is good news when it comes to student discipline is a disturbing trend: As short-term suspensions have decreased, expulsions have increased. -
Education Memphis and Nashville put on notice about which schools could face state takeover in 2020
In one of her final acts as Tennessee education commissioner, Candice McQueen has identified nearly 20 schools that could require the most drastic state interventions — including possibly state takeover in 2020 — if their test scores don’t increase dramatically, according to documents obtained by Chalkbeat.
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January 2019
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Education District rehired former Memphis principal accused of planning to rig tests – then fired her six months later
After quietly rehiring a former principal it had investigated for allegedly planning to rig state tests and for calling students the N-word, Shelby County Schools abruptly fired her last month, documents obtained by Chalkbeat show. -
Education Gateway is only Memphis charter school flagged as low-achieving on district scorecard
Most Memphis schools improved in academic achievement and student growth in the second edition of Shelby County Schools' “scorecard.”
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Education Shelby County Schools’ interim superintendent says he won’t ‘sit behind a podium’
Joris Ray intends to be involved in his interim role as Shelby County Schools superintendent.
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Education Memphis parents submit 1,700 school applications online in first hour
After decades of what critics called an unfair enrollment system that favored well-off families who could camp out for days to get priority admission, 1,700 parents applied online for Memphis schools during the first hour on Monday, Jan. 28. -
Education The Shelby County Schools board has an open seat. Here’s how to apply
Shelby County commissioners will select an interim school board member next month, and interested candidates can apply as of Tuesday. The appointee will fill the seat Teresa Jones vacated following her recent appointment as a municipal court judge.
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February 2019
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Education Citing appearance of ‘bias,’ Memphis board members plan to reject philanthropy offer to pay for superintendent search
A school board committee said it would vote to reject an education philanthropy’s offer to pay for the district’s superintendent search.
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Education Memphis school staff urge board to ‘stay with Ray’ as interim superintendent contract is set
As school board members approved a contract Wednesday for Shelby County Schools’ Interim Superintendent Joris Ray, a vocal contingent of principals, teachers, parents, and students told them that Ray should stay on long-term.
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Education ‘I am the least among you,’ says Ray, vowing to put Memphis student needs first
Interim Superintendent Joris Ray said Thursday that he would introduce a new organizational chart for Shelby County Schools staff to reference: students are at the top; Ray is at the bottom.
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Education As low-performing Memphis charters await vote on their fate, the district asks families to consider other schools
Shelby County Schools leaders are urging charter families to choose another school for their children, as four charter operators await the Shelby County Schools board’s vote on whether to shut them down. -
Education Memphis interim superintendent adds two cabinet-level positions in first month on the job
Less than one month after Joris Ray was named interim leader of Shelby County Schools, he has added two cabinet-level positions and replaced the district’s chief of staff.
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Education New Memphis charter school guidelines would help decide if there are too many in one neighborhood
Under new guidelines being developed, Shelby County Schools board members would be able to systematically slow growth of Memphis charter schools.
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Education TNReady scores won’t count much in Memphis student grades
State testing is the linchpin of Tennessee’s system for evaluating student achievement. But as technical failures have marred the rollout in recent years, educators have clamored for limits on how the scores are used.
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Education SCS board approves U of M middle school, teaching lab
The university aims for a third of students to be children of University of Memphis full-time faculty and staff, a third to live within two miles of the school, and a third to be from elsewhere in the district.
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Education Study coming on free bus passes for Memphis high school students
The board resolution made the case that free bus passes students would help reduce absences in a school district where most students live in poverty and are less likely to have access to a car or enough money for public transit.
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March 2019
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Education Memphis school leaders consider proposal to hold back second-graders who can’t read
A proposed policy would require Shelby County Schools' 8,700 second-graders to meet eight of 12 points the district tracks to be promoted to third grade.
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Education Teachers are ‘ready to fight,’ says Tennessee coalition inspired by strikes in other states
The coalition, called TN Teachers United, launched last week after meeting with two teachers who helped organize statewide walkouts last year in Arizona and West Virginia.
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Education Tennesseans consider Gov. Lee’s voucher plan – and wonder who benefits most
Some Tennesseans say the income threshold makes vouchers appealing to families for which private school is within reach, compared to students from low-income families who may be looking to escape low-performing schools.
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Education How Tennessee’s latest voucher proposal differs from past plans
The biggest difference – and most costly for parents – is that traditional vouchers would have covered all tuition costs. Education savings accounts would not necessarily cover all of a student’s private-school tuition.
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