Opinion: Tennessee legislators lob insults but lack ideas
“Recently, state legislators representing Shelby County, Rep. Mark White (left) and Sen. Brent Taylor (right), described their plans to pass legislation to undermine the elected school board of Memphis-Shelby County Schools,” Joseph Ryan and Laura Beth Kelly write. (George Walker IV/AP file)
Joseph Ryan Kelly
Joseph Ryan Kelly is a former public school teacher who now works in higher education at Rhodes College running a teacher licensure program and helping teacher candidates earn their teaching license.
Laura Beth Kelly
Laura Beth Kelly is a former public school teacher with National Board Certification who now works in higher education at Rhodes College, both in education research and in preparing future teachers.
“With a striking sense of amnesia, the lawmakers are eager to take over Memphis’ school board, apparently forgetting the state has already taken over many low-performing schools and been unable to do anything to help them.”
Topics
Guest Columns Memphis Shelby County Schools Behind The Headlines State Sen. Brent Taylor State Rep. Mark WhiteRelated stories
Is Tennessee about to remove its world language graduation requirement?
When Tennessee State Board of Education Chairman Bob Eby mentioned at a May board meeting that he wanted to launch a study of the state’s language graduation requirement, he kicked off a firestorm of public response.
Memphis-Shelby County Schools has a lot going on. Here are 5 things to watch.
MSCS board members start another academic year with a temporary district leader, as state takeovers loom, school closures are expected, and new policies could take hold.
Memphis-area UT Martin campus gets first approval
UT Martin passed its first hurdle to open a local campus, where it plans to expand its equestrian, veterinary and agricultural offerings.
Want to comment on our stories or respond to others? Join the conversation by subscribing now. Only paid subscribers can add their thoughts or upvote/downvote comments. Our commenting policy can be viewed here.