As Tennessee lawmakers prepare to begin the new legislative session, there is expected to be a renewed focus on intervening in Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS).
This week on WKNO/Channel 10's program "Behind the Headlines," host Eric Barnes led a roundtable discussion with Daily Memphian reporters Laura Testino and Bill Dries. They discussed the upcoming state legislative session, where renewed legislation for school oversight may become a reality.
Testino said last year's attempted takeover followed a turbulent period that began with the ouster of former superintendent Marie Feagins and escalating frustration with school board governance. "You really saw some community push back over what the board was doing that really drove a lot of support for some kind of intervention from the state," she said.
Although the House and Senate versions of the legislation did not align before lawmakers adjourned, Testino said both sponsors plan to reintroduce the proposals in the second year of the two-year session. "It's probably going to be a pretty speedy session," she said, adding that once a compromise is reached, "it won't have to go through all of those committee processes again."
One significant uncertainty is timing. A state-funded forensic audit of the district is currently underway, but preliminary findings are not expected before lawmakers can act. “It stands to reason that…lawmakers are voting on it for passage [or rejection] without the information,” Testino said. As a result, lawmakers may be asked to decide the district’s future before the audit clarifies the scope of any underlying issues.
The discussion also addressed changes to school board elections. Dries explained that a new state law, which applies only to Shelby and Knox counties, has moved all nine seats on the MSCS Board of Education to the 2026 ballot. "The school board is suing over that, claiming that that state law is unconstitutional," he said. If the lawsuit is successful, four seats will appear on the ballot; if it is not, all nine seats will be contested.
Partisan primaries will start in May, followed by the county general election in August, adding complexity to an already crowded election year.
Beyond schools, the panel discussed how jail conditions are likely to shape countywide races, particularly the sheriff's race. "The jail is really the central issue in the race for sheriff," Barnes said, pointing to operational challenges, legal exposure, and the long timelines required for any major facility changes.
At the same time, the county faces competing demands for capital projects, including a proposed rebuild of Regional One Health and long-deferred decisions on school facilities. Testino said a newly released facilities plan projects 15 school closures over the next three years, underscoring the scale of decisions ahead as the county's borrowing authority remains constrained.
As Dries noted, those decisions intersect across multiple levels of government. "The process of a new jail and a reformed jail involves the sheriff, the mayor, the county commission, probably the state at some degree," he said.
Together, those overlapping responsibilities set the stage for a consequential year, as lawmakers and local officials weigh decisions on schools, public safety, and major capital projects amid tight fiscal constraints and a crowded election cycle.