Arlington and Bartlett school districts have announced safety protocols for the coming year even as they watch changing federal recommendations. 

The change reflects research that shows the vaccinated can transmit the COVID-19 virus to others.

The surprise announcement last week at City Hall of a plan to truck the waste to a landfill near Memphis International Airport drew immediate criticism from City Council members. TVA isn’t pulling the plan but says will seek more public input.

We’ve got a monumental question out of Collierville, a prominent defense attorney asked to be taken off a case and a local innovator is sold. 

The commission also delayed the second of three votes on the Byhalia Connection Pipeline ordinance after it was amended.

Shelby County commissioners Monday voted down a new touch-screen voting system that includes a paper trail and moved to cut the Election Commission out of the process by taking new bids on a system that primarily uses hand-marked paper ballots.

The VA is the first federal agency to mandate vaccines. It applies to employees at the VA Hospital in Memphis. The only other Memphis hospital that mandates vaccinations is St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Shelby County commissioners chose Dr. Michelle Taylor as the new head of the county’s Health Department Monday, and they picked Judicial Commissioner Danielle Mitchell-Sims to fill a General Sessions judge vacancy. 

State education commissioner Penny Schwinn visited an SCS Summer Learning Academy at Lowrance K-8 School.

Collierville Schools is also recommending students who are sick stay home.

Juni Ganguli will represent Latoshia Daniels, a Little Rock woman charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Brodes Perry. Perry was a pastor at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church.

A Memphis police officer charged last month with vehicular homicide has resigned.

Be ready to break a sweat. Today’s hot stuff includes a new space for Sylvamo, a free program aimed at food deserts and Mickey Mouse. Oh, and the weather. 

This weekend’s events at Glenview Park and Douglass Park featured workouts, fresh produce giveaways, and health and wellness consultations. Three more gatherings are planned in August.

Monday’s commission agenda includes confirming a health director whose nomination is in trouble, possibly reopening the contentious question of a property tax hike, a long-delayed decision on a voting system for the county, and appointing a new judge.

‘The whole idea was to make it modern so when someone gets off the plane, they say Memphis is going places and Memphis is cool,’ said Scott Brockman, president and CEO of the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority.

Some criminal justice advocates say Gov. Bill Lee has not lived up to a commitment to use his clemency power.

He also blasted the disqualification of U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson from the Olympics after she smoked marijuana. “It’s only performance-enhancing if you are in the Coney Island hot dog-eating contest.”

Memphis hospitals relaxed strict visitation policies, allowing outside ministers to visit patients alongside family. But an uptick in COVID numbers could cause those policies to tighten again.

‘Jessica Ramsey could win the gold medal in shot put in Tokyo. She prepared for the challenge by (I swear) working at Insomnia Cookies on Beale Street.’

Memphis police chief goes for a walk with a city council member who says residents of her district can’t sleep at night for fear of being shot in their beds.

Memphis has been heralded in recent years for its exponential growth of women-owned businesses and women entrepreneurs.

‘In the general course of a month, Delta went from nothing to just about everything,’ said Richard Webby, an infectious disease expert who works at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Roblin Webb of Freedom Preparatory Academy, Yetta Lewis of Gestalt Community Schools and Bobby White of Frayser Community Schools joined Behind the Headlines to talk about what they’re doing to prepare for the return to classrooms.

Germantown schools provided details of its COVID safety precautions for the coming school year.