Sign up for Chalkbeat Tennessee’s free newsletter to keep up with statewide education policy and Memphis-Shelby County Schools.
Memphis schools interim leader Roderick Richmond will serve as the district’s permanent superintendent after contentious debate among board members Wednesday.
The Memphis-Shelby County school board voted unanimously to appoint Richmond as the full-time superintendent after his temporary contract expires at the end of July. That came after a split board argued over whether a full superintendent search was feasible and necessary for transparency, or whether immediate stability was the most important factor.
“There’s a crisis of inconsistency here,” said board member Amber Huett-Garcia, who voted to appoint Richmond. “We have four colleagues here who had rooms full of people begging you not to make a decision last January. But the community voice didn’t matter back then.”
Last January, the MSCS board voted to suddenly fire former superintendent Marie Feagins. They immediately appointed Richmond as the temporary leader. Richmond is the fourth leader MSCS has had in four years.
Board members pushing for Richmond’s appointment Wednesday said the context of an impending state takeover puts urgency behind the decision.
“We are under attack by the state,” said chair Natalie McKinney, who voted to appoint Richmond. “Our continued kicking the can down the road in making a decision about a permanent superintendent puts us possibly in the crosshairs with the state.”
Richmond’s promotion comes as Tennessee Republicans are working to pass bills for a state takeover of MSCS. Bill sponsors Sen. Brent Taylor and Rep. Mark White, who both represent the Memphis area, are pushing to establish a state-appointed board of managers that would strip the local school board of most powers, including the hiring and firing of superintendents.
While neither will confirm whether the new board would immediately replace the district leader, Taylor said in a Friday interview that decisions made by MSCS now — including Richmond’s appointment — are “irrelevant.”
Three board members – Tamarques Porter, Sable Otey, and Towanna Murphy – originally voted against the appointment process, and to delay naming an appointee until Feb. 24.
“I do appreciate Dr. Richmond for bringing us stability,” Porter said. “I don’t see a need to rush right now.”
The terms of Richmond’s new contract are undecided. MSCS General Counsel Justin Bailey will enter immediate negotiations with Richmond to decide how long he will stay on and what his salary will be, among other details. Richmond receives $325,000 per year as interim, the same rate paid to former superintendent Feagins.
Bailey is expected to present Richmond’s contract after at least 14 days.
Richmond has said in previous interviews that he’s focused on restoring trust and stability to the district. After the meeting, Richmond told reporters that he’s excited to lead MSCS towards being the “number one urban district in the country.”
“Having retention in our district is one of the most important things we can do now,” he said. “We’ve stabilized the district. Now, what I want us to do is provide the continuity necessary for us to turn it around.”
Board members praised Richmond for delivering on the responsibilities they gave him earlier this year. In the last 11 months, Richmond helped develop a long-term facilities plan that includes closing up to 15 schools in the next three years. The MSCS board will vote on five of his recommendations this month.
He also created a new regional superintendent model for MSCS and brought back district-wide testing. Under Richmond’s leadership, teacher vacancies were cut in half to 226 in the beginning of the school year. Richmond has said he wants that number down to 50 by August.
Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.
