The Memphis-Shelby County Schools board wouldn’t select the next leader of Tennessee’s largest school district until July — a month before the 2023-24 school year begins — under a proposed superintendent search timeline.The timeline, presented to the MSCS board during committee meetings Monday afternoon, calls for the board to spend several months gathering community feedback through four public input sessions, a student input session, and a survey of stakeholders including parents, educators, and business and nonprofit leaders across Shelby County.

Althea Greene understands the assignment.Memphis-Shelby County Schools is in a moment of major transitions. The school board is preparing to embark on its first nationwide superintendent search in a decade — over two months after the school board cut ties with former Superintendent Joris Ray, who had been under investigation over claims he abused his power and violated district policies.

Michelle McKissack, the recently reelected chairwoman of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools board, announced Monday she is mulling a run to become the city’s next mayor.McKissack, who has represented District 1 since 2018 and was elected chair of the board in 2021, will on Tuesday announce an exploratory committee for a campaign to succeed Mayor Jim Strickland, whose term expires at the end of 2023.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools more than doubled its number of schools on Tennessee’s list of bottom-performing schools, while schools from several rural districts made the list for the first time.The state education department on Monday flagged 101 schools in 12 districts as so-called priority schools, meaning they were deemed academically in the bottom 5% in the 2021-22 school year.