The Tennessee House Education Subcommittee approved plans on Tuesday to establish a state-appointed board of directors to run schools in Memphis-Shelby County.
House Bill 662, sponsored by East Memphis Republican Rep. Mark White, places a nine-member administrative group appointed by the state responsible for running the district, empowering local school boards and administrators who serve only in advisory capabilities. The new management group will be charged with developing a comprehensive plan of improvement within 90 days.
“The problem with poor performance is decades ago,” White told the committee.
All members of the management group are Shelby County residents with curriculum, facilities, contracts, budget and finance expertise and will remain for four years, he said.
The subcommittee sent the measure to the House Education Committee 6-2 votes with full support from Republicans.
White denied that the move was a state acquisition and said he believes “intervention” is needed to enact “dramatic change” due to poor student performance. Only 17% of students in the Memphis Shelby area are “skilled” in mathematics, while 23% are “skilled” in reading, White said.
Memphis resident Ron Redwing, on behalf of students on behalf of advocacy groups, has firmly opposed the law, saying that student impact is not fully discussed with community residents.
“We agree, but there’s no doubt that the district needs a transformation, but no acquisition,” Redwing told the House Education K-12 Subcommittee.
The bill is modelled on a plan adopted in Houston, Texas, but Redwing said a recent report found managers at the Houston Independent School District spent more than $870 million without board oversight or approval.
Redwing acknowledged that Memphis leaders were not fully involved with the district, but added that opponents of the plan believe it would be “asinin” to replace locally elected school boards with administrative groups. He acknowledged that Shelby County’s education challenges stem from decades of inadequate fundraising and access to schools.
Chattanooga Democrat Yusuf Haekum raised concerns that such a move could lead to the privatization of the school district.
We agree, but there is no doubt that the district needs a transformation, but no acquisition is required.
– Ron Redwing, save your students
Similarly, Knoxville Democrat Sam McKenzie said the school district should repair it within Shelby County. He noted that the state is phased out Memphis school districts with many schools in Memphis. However, for more than a decade, only six schools in the state-owned district have benefited enough to break out of the “priority” list.
“Why are we creating a group of people who are not elected to destroy the Republican form of government in Memphis Shelby County?” Mackenzie said.
White responded by saying that while the achievement school district is a “honest attempt” to deal with poor academic achievement, the school continues to struggle and therefore requires intervention.
The bill also allows statewide lawmakers to seek similar arrangements for school districts. That led the Redwing to warn the subcommittee that the state could appoint a board of trustees for their district.
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