‘NutRemix’ dancers pirouette from the wings to center stage
This twist on a classic is the tradition two performers have known for their entire lives. They’ve danced nearly every role in the show, from mice to toy soldiers.
Laura Testino
Laura Testino is an enterprise reporter who writes about how public policy shapes Memphis. She is currently reporting from Frayser about education and housing. Please write her with your suggestions and story tips.
There are 81 articles by Laura Testino :
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November 2024
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Performing Arts -
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EducationMSCS could add $11M to new Frayser high school
District officials said the money is needed to keep the project on track as it recalculates next steps for the stalled Cordova high school.
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EducationWith Council’s Cordova high ‘death blow’ vote, Frayser high could be built first
“We’ve got to face the reality,” Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said. “The (Cordova) project may not be dead permanently, but it’s suffered a pretty big death blow.”
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City of MemphisMemphis-area workforce board boots director, appoints interim
Sondra Howell of the Greater Memphis Chamber will be the interim director of a regional workforce development board as the program seeks to smooth out a rocky year of transition.
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Education More for Memphis wants to create united front against childhood poverty
Organizers of the More for Memphis plan are pitching elected officials on a new board to assign more than $1 billion in funding to efforts they say would solve the city’s economic mobility problem.
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Metro Tomeka Hart Wigginton to become new United Way of the Mid-South president
Hart Wigginton kickstarted a career in education, public policy and philanthropy management by serving on the Memphis City Schools board.
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EducationLawsuit: Removing student’s service dog from Germantown school unlawful
The Dietz family is requesting a judge allow their son, who has multiple disabilities, to return to school with the dog.
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BusinessMemphis workforce development leader refuses resignation requests
The Greater Memphis Workforce Development Board is set to vote on Executive Director Amber Covington’s future in the role after she declined requests to resign from the board and Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris.
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BusinessMemphis workforce development center set for relocation to Crosstown Concourse
The American Job Center on Angelus Street, which provides free services to the Greater Memphis area, is expected to relocate to the sixth floor of Crosstown Concourse.
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Elections Whitehaven voters turn out despite rain
On the eve of the presidential election, one voter in Whitehaven returned to watching the televised debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump to help her decide who to vote for.
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Elections Here’s how Shelby County voted for statehouse seats
Incumbents kept 14 of 15 Shelby County statehouse seats Tuesday, Nov. 5, according to election results.
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October 2024
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Education What makes a first-year superintendent successful? MSCS board, Feagins now agree.
Creating the superintendent evaluation rubric was a contentious process that revealed rifts among school board members and Marie Feagins, who has led the district for the last seven months.
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Education MSCS graduation rate rises for third year in a row
More than 80% of Memphis-Shelby County Schools’ eligible seniors earned their diplomas for the 2023-24 school year.
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Behind The Headlines How Memphis charter-school leaders tackle chronic absenteeism
Schools across the U.S. and in Memphis experienced skyrocketing rates of students missing a significant portion of the school year.
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Education Top MSCS staffer departs, to join Greater Memphis Chamber
Julian Cross is the second Memphis-Shelby County Schools staffer to depart the Office of the Superintendent this month.
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Public SafetyGuns haunted two friends’ childhoods. Now they navigate a world awash in them.
Gun violence shaped their lives as kids, and gun-related charges sent them to prison. Here’s where they land on gun restrictions.
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Education Top MSCS official resigns
The special assistant to Superintendent Marie Feagins had been in the newly created role for four months.
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City of Memphis Memphis City Council rejects expansion of Frayser construction landfill
“You cannot say that you are cleaning up the blight in your district if you are dumping it in mine,” said Councilwoman Michalyn Easter-Thomas.
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Education ‘All options are on the table’ for Memphis schools’ 200 buildings, superintendent says
School officials will use information from new district building assessments to determine potential closures and consolidations, including whether Memphis-Shelby County Schools moves its headquarters.
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EducationMSCS board awaits Feagins’ feedback on evaluation plan
The superintendent must approve the process used to measure her job performance. Once an agreement is reached, Memphis-Shelby County School Board members will complete the evaluation by spring.
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EducationThreats of school violence soar across Tennessee, but most aren’t credible
Three people, including a teenager in Nashville, were arrested for the threats that prompted MSCS-wide lockdowns last month.
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September 2024
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EducationFormer MSCS board chair calls Feagins’ hire a ‘mistake’
Two outgoing school board members sent letters outlining their concerns with Feagins’ leadership style and communication with the board.
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Education New MSCS board leader opposed school closures
As leaders of the board, the new chair and vice chair will help steer a district that’s in transition, and on the precipice of major decisions about its long-term goals and plans.
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EducationPorter-Leath is adding 200 Head Start seats. It wants to compete for even more.
Porter-Leath is bringing Head Start preschool programming back to Millington, and it appears poised to compete for the 3,200 Head Start seats currently with MSCS this fall.
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Public Safety School safety threats continued Thursday
Other schools closed and shifted to remote learning for students.
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