This year marks Riley Earnest’s third at Desoto Central Elementary School in Southaven, where she teaches fifth-grade science and social studies. 

Memphis-Shelby County Schools hosted a press conference Wednesday, Dec. 13, to address parent and community concerns about a new after-school club that will rent space at a Cordova elementary school.

To address the problem, SCORE recommends strengthening existing policies such as the Tennessee Promise program, which provides tuition assistance for students to attend community or technical colleges.

One board member wants to ensure bonuses are in the budget next year. The board also took an opportunity to honor Superintendent Gary Lilly with a parting gift of $5,000.

Revenue will be used to make repairs, fund security-access upgrades. 

On Monday, Dec. 11, the suburb’s school board unanimously approved delaying construction by at least one year, pushing the timeline into at least fiscal year 2025.

The list of government entities opposing a school voucher program continues to grow as the Lakeland School Board passes a resolution against Gov. Bill Lee’s plan.

Germantown Municipal School District is poised to require tuition for students living outside the suburb’s limits. The board will vote on the matter Thursday.

Until a new program is approved, students in the major cannot take the state licensure exam. 

Collierville Schools has expanded its pool beyond three applicants presented last week.

“Our plans call for a small group of sixth-graders in the first year. We expect an inaugural cohort of around 12-16 students in 2024-2025,” said Peter Sanders, MUS headmaster.

Suburban school districts have come out swiftly and strongly against Gov. Lee’s expansion of the state’s education voucher program.

Rhodes College’s Health Professions Advising program students have acceptance rates to schools after graduating that outpace national averages.

Closed programs will end immediately, and the university said it will help the 15 students who are affected by the closures to get the classes they need. Faculty terminations will be final at end of the school year.

After a day of fretting Collierville Schools may not get holiday bonuses, the school board will consider the change on Tuesday.

Collierville Schools is not planning on giving its employees a bonus this holiday season, but other suburban school districts are.

Through TigerLIFE (Learning Independence Fostering Education and Employment), students receive a postsecondary education, gain employment and live independently in their communities.

Russell Dyer, Jeff Jones and Jerry “Brett” Lemley are vying to be the next leader of the suburb’s district.

The U of M’s Center for Disaster Recovery and Resiliency will be tasked with securing funding for infrastructure improvements to help the area better weather future disasters. 

Roughly 30 faculty positions are expected to be cut. The largest number are likely in the Rosa Deal School of Arts. 

A previous finalist for Collierville Schools superintendent and four internal candidates are among 19 hopefuls seeking to lead the suburban district after the resignation of Gary Lilly.

The General Assembly approved private school vouchers by a one-vote margin in 2019, with some supporting the program because it applied only to Memphis and Nashville. Now, Lee wants anyone, regardless of income, to have access to discounted private school tuition.

As a Rhodes College student, Mariam Khayata explored questions central to her identity and her experience living in Syria. Last month, she got the opportunity to continue those studies at the University of Oxford in England.

In a first-of-its-kind deal for the university, the U of M will provide the land but Indianapolis’ The Annex Group will own the facility until it is paid off or the school chooses to buy it. 

A first public meeting was held two weeks ago, where Superintendent Gary Lilly shared a presentation about the elementary school rezoning process. While questions were answered, some parents weren’t satisfied.