Commissioners vote to expand the Shelby school board from 7 to 9 members

Shelby County’s commissioners recommended Monday to redraw the local school board’s district map to include nine members instead of the current seven.

That’s four fewer members than the board was anticipated to grow to this fall after Memphis City merged with legacy Shelby County Schools. But because six municipalities are now splitting from the district to form their own school systems, the commissioners decided instead to adopt a map that divvies up the city of Memphis and large swaths of unincorporated Shelby County into nine areas.

The commissioners debated for almost an hour Monday whether to provide a board member to represent several hundred families who live in Germantown but could potentially send their children to Shelby County Schools.  The commissioners ultimately decided not to provide representation to those families.  

Several commissioners said the municipalities wouldn’t provide the same representation to Memphis and unincorporated residents if the roles were reversed.

The commission’s recommendation will go to a judge who will evaluate the map’s legality. If the judge approves the map, he will send it to the Shelby County election commission which will use it for the next round of elections scheduled for this August.

View the recommended map here.