 | Hamilton Elementary Parents to Meet on Proposed Closure
A big turn-out is expected at Hamilton Elementary School Monday night. Parents will be meeting with school officials to talk about the possibility of closing the school.
|
 | Suburbs Halt Local Municipal Schools Negotiations
Suburban mayors have pulled out of school negotiations with Memphis and Shelby County.
|
 | Mayor Luttrell Says Taxpayers Can Expect Increase
Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell is warning homeowners again: brace for an increase in Shelby County property taxes. The Unified School District's $90 million deficit is to blame.  Watch Video
|
 | Parents More Interested in Private Schools After Unified School Budget Talks
Consolidating Memphis and Shelby County Schools could drive more children into private schools. Watch Video
|
 | Teachers Given 5 Years to Move to County after Merger
Teachers for Memphis City Schools who live outside of Shelby County need to find a good real estate agent. They're soon going to have to move to Shelby County. Watch Video
|
 | Suburban Leaders Take Municipal Schools Fight to Nashville
Memphis city leaders don't like it when state lawmakers butt into their business, but Shelby County officials welcome it when it comes to the Unified School District. Officials from all six Shelby County suburbs met behind closed doors with lawmakers in Nashville this week, and they're asking parents not to lose hope. Watch Video
|
 | School Board Approves Severance for Kriner Cash
A severance package has been approved for Memphis City Schools' Superintendent Dr. Kriner Cash.
|
 | Shelby Co. Wants State to Kick In More School Funding
Commissioners will ask Tennessee legislators to give two percent more for state education mandates. Watch Video
|
 | Municipalities Seek Compromise with Unified School District
Bartlett Mayor Keith McDonald has been fighting for suburban schools for months and months. He’s aware that right now it’s a dead issue, but he still has hope. Watch Video
|
| Educational Bumbles and Stumbles for 2012
2012 was a year people tried to raise taxes for education in Shelby County, then tried to figure out how to get everything done before the August 2013 school merger. Watch Video
|
 | Commission Approves School Officer Funding for SCSO
Shelby County Commissioners approved more than $2 million in funding to the Shelby County Sheriff's Office in order to provide resource officers for the unified school system.
|
 | Many Parents, Taxpayers Upset over Dr. Cash's Buyout
Cash is out and he's getting a major cash out. Memphis City Schools Superintendent Dr. Kriner Cash resigned in a special called board meeting Thursday night, but with his resignation comes a huge paycheck. Watch Video
|
 | Mayor Luttrell to Unified School Board: Step On It!
Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell says the Unified School Board is moving at snails pace and needs to get a proposed budget to him in a few weeks. Watch Video
|
| Tentative Date Set to Officially End Memphis City Schools
No more Memphis City Schools. The Unified School Board tentatively agreed to shut down MCS on July 1st at Tuesday night's meeting. Watch Video
|
 | Unified School District Funding Re-Examined after Sales Tax Voted Down
Voters in Memphis and the unincorporated areas of Shelby County sent a message on election night. Even if the money goes to education, no sales tax increase. Watch Video
|
| Teachers Union Speaks Out Against Unified School District
The road leading toward merged city and county schools is a pot hole riddled trail filled with potential troubles. Now the head of the Memphis Teachers Association is angry the board hasn't considered their ideas about the merger. Watch Video
|
 | School Board Moves Forward with Memphis School Closures
After nearly 5 hours of heated debate, the Memphis and Shelby County Unified School Board is moving forward with plans to close six schools.
Watch Video
|
 | Shelby County Sheriff Requests $2M to Provide School Security
The Shelby County Sheriff's Office is looking to take on a new role due to the school merger.
|
| Constitutionality Ruling Anticipated on Municipal School Districts
A federal judge could rule on the legality of starting suburban school systems as early as Tuesday. Judge Samuel Mayes has been working on the case since October, and has told many he hopes to have a ruling in place before he goes on vacation. Watch Video
|
 | Parents Speak Out against Proposed School Closures
Unified School Board members are talking about several ways to save money as they face at least a $150 million deficit. The first option up for discussion is to close schools that have low student attendance, an idea that has many parents angry. Watch Video
|
 | Memphis Suburbs Explore Other Options for Own Schools
The fight for suburban schools in Shelby County is far from over, even though a federal judge just ruled they are unconstitutional. Watch Video
|
| Unified Board Votes to Support Sales Tax Increase
With less than a week until Election Day, the Unified Memphis-Shelby County School Board is taking a stand when it comes to a sales tax referendum.
|
| Support Grows for Shelby County Sales Tax Increase
Local leaders say a proposed half cent sales tax would generate $60 million for Shelby County. The plan is for half of that revenue to go to the new Shelby County unified school system. Watch Video
|
 | Federal Judge Rules Against Municipal School Districts |
| Municipal Schools Mediations Held under Gag Order
Nobody's talking about an attempt to reorganize Shelby County schools. The federal judge who will decide if municipal schools can be created ordered everyone to mediation. He put everyone involved from the city, county, state and six municipalities under a gag order. Watch Video
|
| Federal Judge Halts Shelby County Suburbs School Efforts |
 | Despite Ruling, Supporters Confident Municipal Schools Will Happen
“Municipalities are going to get their own school system,” says Shelby County Commissioner Chris Thomas. “It’s just a matter of when.” Watch Video
|
 | State Lawmakers Protest Plans to Close City Schools
A group of Shelby County state legislators is fighting mad over plans to close 21 city schools. The group, made up of all Democrats from Memphis, say the plans are flawed, and they want everything to slow down until people and students have their say. Meanwhile, the city and county school districts are scheduled to merge in a little less than nine months. Watch Video
|
| Unified School Board under Pressure to Merge Districts
Rest time is over for the Unified Memphis City and Shelby County School Board. It’s busy time. Nothing can stop time, they know it, and they know that by August of 2013 they’ve got to have a merged unified school system ready to go. Watch Video
|
 | Ritz Defends Redacted Legal Bills in Schools Battle
The Shelby County Commission showdown between Commissioners Mike Ritz and Terry Roland is heating up. Ritz is chairman of the group, and admits legal bills in the municipal schools case are being paid by taxpayer dollars while the explanations for the bill are being kept from several commission members. Roland is hot, saying as a commissioner he has a right to know, and as taxpayers you have a right to know how more than half a million of your dollars have been spent. Watch Video
|
 | August Election Shapes Newly-Structured Unified School Board
Thursday night's election brought a few shake-ups to the Unified School Board. Those seven school board seats are the only positions that will remain when Memphis City and Shelby County schools merge. Watch Video
|
| Event: Shelby County Board of Education to Host Community Meetings To Discuss School Merger Plan
Parents and community members are invited to attend the Shelby County Board of Education Community Meetings. These meetings will allow the board to receive feedback from the community regarding the Transition Planning Commission's plan for the merger of Memphis City Schools and Shelby County Schools.
|
| Testimony Concludes at Municipal Schools Hearing
Two million dollars and counting, that's how much money has been spent in legal fees in the battle over merging Memphis and Shelby County schools. Watch Video
|
 | Voting for Unified School Board Members Confusing to Some
23 will become seven. It's a game of musical chairs and your vote decides who ultimately sits on the Unified Shelby County School Board. Watch Video
|
 | TPC Suggests Tax Increase to Cover $57M Merger Shortfall
Members of the Transition Planning Commission told Shelby County commissioners that the system will be short $57 million when operations start next year. One recommendation to make that money up was a property tax increase. Watch Video
|
| Clock Ticking on Municipal Schools Ballot Ruling
A federal judge will hear arguments Thursday on whether the Memphis suburbs can hold an election on starting their own school districts. With early voting beginning Friday, one election official says its too late to remove it from the ballot, no matter what the judge decides. Watch Video
|
| Judge Set to Hear Suburban School Arguments Thursday
Will there be a school vote or not? A federal judge says he wants to hear more, as residents of six Shelby County cities prepare to vote on starting their own school districts. Watch Video
|
| Municipal Schools Still Far from Reality
Even though voters were overwhelmingly for municipal schools, that won't mean a hill of beans if Judge Samuel Hardy Mays says the law is unconstitutional.
|
| County-Wide Sales Tax Hike Gains Political Support
Nobody likes tax hikes, and face it, people voting to raise their own taxes is a rare thing indeed. But in this case the argument is, think of the kids. Watch Video
|
| Charter Schools Possible Backup for Suburbs
As six suburban Shelby County cities have referendums on starting their own school systems, local officials say a possible backup plan could be charter schools.
|
 | County Commission Seeks Legislators' Emails
Lawyers for the Shelby County Commission are asking the General Assembly for all communications related to the merger of the Memphis and Shelby County school systems and the formation of six new suburban school districts.
|
| Event: Shelby County Board of Education to Host Community Meetings
Parents and community members are invited to attend the Shelby County Board of Education Community Meetings. These meetings will allow the board to receive feedback from the community regarding the Transition Planning Commission's plan for the merger of Memphis City Schools and Shelby County Schools.
|
 | County Commissioner Proposes Another Tax Hike
Memphis voters will be asked to approve a sales tax hike this fall. Now a Shelby County commissioner is proposing a countywide bump in the sales tax rate. Watch Video
|
 | Lawsuit Filed over District 4 School Board Election Results
Kenneth T. Whalum, Jr. has filed a lawsuit challenging the results of the August 2 election recently certified by the Shelby County Election Commission.
|
| Whalum Asks for Recount of District 4 School Board Election
Election problems continue in Shelby County. Kenneth Whalum, Jr. lost out in his bid for a seat on the new Unified School Board by barely more than a hundred votes, and is calling for a recount. Watch Video
|
 | September Trial Date Set for Municipal Schools
A federal judge has set a September 4th trial date to determine if it violates the state's Constitution for Shelby County's suburban municipalities to create their own school districts. Watch Video
|
| Shelby County Suburban Schools Hearing Underway
A federal judge in Memphis is expected to rule on whether voters in six Shelby County municipalities should be allowed to decide if they want their own school districts.
|
 | County Votes to Add Sales Tax Referendum to Ballot
Shelby County has made its next move in the ongoing battle over education and money. Commissioners voted Monday afternoon to hold a public referendum asking to raise the county sales tax rate by half a percent. Watch Video
|
 | Commissioner: Potential Costs of Municipal Schools Mounting
At the polls earlier this month, suburban voters said yes to creating their own municipal school systems. Now the question is: what will it really cost? Watch Video
|
| Mayor Focused on Constitution, Not Race, with Municipal Schools
Obviously, the mayor says, the constitutionality question has to be answered. Mayor Luttrell however says the racial issue is one that has no place in the municipal schools fight because he says nobody has been able to convince him, or even show him that race has anything to do with the municipal school law. Watch Video
|
