MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Superintendent Dr. Joris Ray, who has held the position since 2019, resigned from the position during a specially-called meeting of the Memphis-Shelby County School Board Tuesday, ending an investigation into his alleged personal misconduct.
Eight school board members voted to accept the resignation, while one did not vote.
The school board is expected to extend him an 18-month severance package, equal to about a year and a half's worth of his salary, or around $480,000.
Deputy Superintendents Dr. John Barker and Dr. Angela Whitelaw will continue to lead the district while MSCS starts a search for their next superintendent. The district said the search may expand nationwide.
Ray was placed on administrative leave in July after allegations of extramarital affairs with MSCS employees surfaced.
The results of the investigation, which will not be released to the public, cost the district approximately $19,000.
A superintendent for a school district of its size (MSCS enrolls more than 110,000 students and is among the top-25 public school districts in the country) stepping down amidst an investigation is very rare - the only other instance being Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Dr. Earnest Winston in North Carolina in April, 2022, who got fired for low district-wide testing performance.
Ray's predecessor, Dr. Dorsey Hopson, resigned in 2018 to take a position with insurance giant Cigna.
ABC24 has yet to find another example of a superintendent at a school district of such size resigning amidst an investigation in the past five years nationwide.
The decision comes about a month and a half after allegations of Ray's impropriety surfaced.
Here's a timeline of what led up to the resignation
July 6 - MSCS launches external investigation into Ray
The MSCS school board called for a Court documents obtained by ABC24 show Dr. Ray's wife Tiffany accusing him of extramarital affairs with three women, whose names match those of either current or former MSCS employees. Court records also claim Dr. Ray admitted to engaging in extramarital relationships.
According to MSCS policy, staff are required to "maintain a professional relationship" with all students, parents and staff at all times, and supervisors are highly discouraged from pursuing romantic or sexual relationships with their staff.
The Board held an emergency session July 6, where members met with legal counsel Herman Morris and determined a review was the next step. The board sought an independent counsel to conduct the review.
The board said at the time Ray would continue in his role as Superintendent while the review is conducted, and once that is finished, board members will determine the next steps.
"We are focusing on making sure that our community understands that we are taking these allegations very seriously and we are going to review and have our legal counsel ask all the questions, look through all the documents to make sure this is fair for all parties involved," MSCS Board Chair Michelle McKissack said.
"I respect the Board’s oversight responsibility to conduct due diligence as it relates to allegations of violations of policies and welcome a fair investigation of my adherence to the policies of Memphis-Shelby County Schools," Ray said in a statement. "I will cooperate with the investigation in every way possible. I apologize that my private life has become a public distraction from the serious educational work that remains to be done. I will refrain from further public comment on the matter."
July 13 - Ray placed on administrative leave
Another specially-called meeting by the MSCS school board saw the board vote 7-2 to place Ray on administrative leave "indefinitely" while they conducted their investigation.
“I'm disappointed by the board's action tonight,” said Dr. Ray, during the meeting. “However, I want to make it very clear that I will respect the board's oversight."
"We want to be focused on the families,” said Board Chair Michelle Robinson McKissack. “We do not want any distractions. That's why as we get closer to the upcoming school year, we hope to get this wrapped up as quickly as possible."
According to McKissack, at the time, there was no timeline on how long the investigation could last.
Deputy Superintendents Dr. John Barker and Dr. Angela Whitelaw were announced as co-leaders of the district in Ray's stead.
August 23 - Specially-called board meeting to end in Ray's resignation
A special meeting was called Tuesday by MSCS to discuss Ray's employment.
In a nearly unanimous vote, Ray's tenure as Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent ended over allegations of his misconduct leading to an investigation.
The terms of the separation were as a result of talks through the District's and Board's attorneys.