The Memphis-Shelby County School Board unanimously approved an agreement Tuesday night to spend $28 million increasing teacher salaries.The historic investment will raise the average teacher with a bachelor’s degree’s salary by more than $4,800 in the 20224/2025 school year. Teachers with a master’s degree will average nearly $4,800 more, education specialists will see more than $6,300 more, and those with a doctorate will average more than a $9,900 increase.

Toni Williams spent part of her last school board meeting as the leader of Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) looking back at everything she’s accomplished since her first meeting.Board members appointed Williams as interim superintendent in 2022 following the resignation of former superintendent Joris Ray. New superintendent Dr. Marie N. Feagins will officially take over the position on April 1.

When Toni Williams took over as chief financial officer (CFO) for Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) in 2019, the district faced a $58 million deficit and had insignificant savings.Williams worked to change that while overseeing district finances as CFO and eventually interim superintendent. Tuesday night’s school board meeting brought more evidence the district is on a more solid financial ground.The district’s independent auditor Watkins Uiberall announced it anticipates the 2022/2023 district audit will have no findings indicating financial weaknesses or issues of non-compliance on financial statements. That marks the fourth year in a row with no significant financial audit findings.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Interim Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams gathered with district leaders Thursday morning to commit to putting forward long-term, proactive, and sustainable solutions to address the root cause of violence impacting youth.Community violence is an ongoing issue in the Memphis community that affects both youth and adults. According to MSCS, 22 students died from violence during the 2023-2024 school year.

Interim Memphis-Shelby County School Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams says her administration is evaluating multiple strategies to move the district forward once federal COVID relief funding dries up.The federal government plans to halt providing schools districts with Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER) funds next September.Memphis-Shelby County Schools has received a total of $776 million in ESSER funds. This money has helped support infrastructure needs along with providing advanced placement and vocational courses.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools announced Wednesday that it’s launching a new field trip program to give students free learning opportunities outside the classroom walls.The $3 million investment called Discovering Memphis will fund field trips to the National Civil Rights Museum (NCRM) for eighth and eleventh-graders and the children’s museum for first-graders.

Interim Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams told members of the Memphis-Shelby School Board that closing buildings is not the goal of the academic facilities reuse plan now under consideration by the district’s new Facilities Steering Committee.That committee held its first meeting last week to discuss multiple scenarios to fund $500 million in school upgrades and address the district’s deferred maintenance costs. One idea under consideration would be to designate 23 facilities for reuse.

A discussion on the condition of school buildings turned heated at Monday’s Memphis-Shelby County School Board work session.Board member Stephanie Love and Interim Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams spared over the timeline of improvements for a school in Love’s district. Love questioned if Grandview Heights Middle School will be first on the list for repairs and told Williams she’s not convinced anything will be done.“The reason I asked is because I visited Grandview yesterday and it is a hot mess. Teachers are complaining, students are complaining, and the parents are complaining. And I said yesterday, if my daughter was in a school the way Grandview looks, I would take her out. I want to be sure: I don’t work for the board, I work for my community,” said Love. “The school is in so much shape that I wanted to know. I shouldn’t have a parent call me. I acted like I knew. You have got to do better.”

Interim superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams is no longer a contender to lead Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) on a permanent basis.At Tuesday evening’s school board meeting members approved a contract for Williams to continue serving as interim superintendent through August 29, with the key stipulation that she devote full-time attention to her duties of interim superintendent and not seek the position permanently.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools paid a lawn care vendor more than its contract allowed, lost some lawn equipment to theft, and paid an employee for days they didn’t work.The lapses surfaced in a regular independent financial audit of the district for the 2021-22 school year and were detailed in a report shared with state officials in January.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools board members decided Monday to keep their search for a new superintendent on pause while they try to reach consensus on what they want for the district and its next leader.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools board members decided Monday to keep their search for a new superintendent on pause while they try to reach consensus on what they want for the district and its next leader.

Interim Memphis schools leader Toni Williams has applied to be the district’s superintendent, a role she once said she was not interested in assuming on a permanent basis.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools plans to whittle a growing list of applicants for its superintendent job to three finalists within the next month. For this final stage of the process, the school board isn’t planning to solicit more community feedback.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools plans to whittle a growing list of applicants for its superintendent job to three finalists within the next month. For this final stage of the process, the school board isn’t planning to solicit more community feedback.

The Memphis-Shelby County School Board agreed to buy nearly 36 acres of land north of Shelby Farms for a new high school that will accommodate 1,800 students and replace Germantown High School when it closes in 2026.It will be the first new high school operated by the district in a decade. The site, currently owned by Crews Investment Holdings LLC, is located on Herbert Road, off Raleigh Lagrange Road, in the Cordova area.