Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent to be evaluated on reducing absenteeism and the number of students off-track

Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent Dr. Marie Feagins, left, and school board member Stephanie Love discussing Feagins’ evaluation criteria at Thursday’s special called meeting. (Screenshot) 

After several tense discussions and debate in recent weeks about how to evaluate Superintendent Dr. Marie Feagins’ tenure, the Memphis-Shelby County Schools Board of Education managed to come to an agreement on evaluation metrics at Thursday’s special called meeting.

Among those key metrics are decreasing off-track freshmen and sophomores by 1.8 percent, decreasing absenteeism by 2 percent, and decreasing the number of students in grades 3-8 who are three or more grade levels behind by 4 percent. District leaders noted that Feagins’ informal evaluation, which will involve discussions behind closed doors, must be completed by Nov. 30, while their formal evaluation will be completed by May 1, 2025 following a comprehensive review in April 2025.

The move comes after a handful of contentious board meetings, stemming from disagreements between some board members and Feagins about evaluation criteria. Feagins wanted to place more focus on student achievement metrics, while other board members pushed for more focus on staff relations – which have been a major challenge for Feagins since she first took the role in April.

In recent months, Feagins has also faced backlash about personnel changes in the district. District employees and other board members have also previously criticized Feagins’ leadership for a lack of clear communication about personnel planning, and communication about threats against schools this school year that led to district-wide lockdowns and several arrests. Camalyn Turner, Feagin’s recently-hired assistant, also suddenly resigned last month.

During Thursday’s discussion, board member Stephanie Love said she’s been asking for the district to change up the district’s superintendent evaluation metrics for “many many years,” with Feagins nodding in agreement.

“I've been asking for the evaluation tool to be changed many many years. I think that the superintendent evaluation tool should marry that of the Central Office and everybody that has an input on teachers. They do what they're told to do not what they request to do or vice versa. They do what they're told to do regardless of if it has a lasting impact on the kids,” she said.

“I think the superintendent evaluation should marry that of the Central Office staff, and that should be included in the teachers’ evaluation because let’s just keep it real, if you were a good principal in South Memphis and you are elevated to the Central Office, South Memphis and North Memphis are totally different and they have some unique characteristics but they're totally different,” she continued. “But that is how I view it.”

Board members noted Thursday that the district had put out a survey this week asking for public input on Feagins’ performance as superintendent. The survey asked, “How is the superintendent doing so far?”  The results of the poll were still yet to be determined as of Friday afternoon, when the survey was closed.

“For me feedback is important, and so I seek it daily and I seek it often, and I seek it from everyone,” Feagins said of the survey at Thursday’s meeting.

In other business, the board also approved emergency contracts with two janitorial companies after its contract with the company Fresh Start was recently terminated due to a breach of contract.

To watch the full meeting, visit Memphis Shelby County Schools’ YouTube channel.