MEMPHIS, Tenn. — New Memphis Shelby County Schools Superintendent Marie Feagins has had a busy first month on the job.
Feagins has achieved in getting a higher salary for new teachers and raises for those with more experience - but there's still more on her list as she begins in the district.
The district is shifting to a decentralized office, with more than 300 vacant positions - which are able to be cut without laying off employees. Most of those personnel shifts will be from the central office to the classroom.
"We are trying to move some folks inside the schools to meet the needs of our students as we think about each time a student moves into a classroom ever day and they don't have a certified instructor before them," Feagins said. "I think we can understand the types of performance results we are seeing, so we want to do a better job about placing those personnel into the classroom."
The district is early in the design phase of two new schools and Feagins is committed to staying on the proposed timeline of their construction.
Then there is the budget proposal, which Feagins said more details will be available on May 16th and specific requests are set to be made to city council on May 20th.
Feagins has asked from $25 million, while Mayor Paul Young has proposed $15 million over the next few years. The ask from Feagins is predominately on infrastructure.
"We are working just to strengthen the understanding about how significant this particular investment is about student achievement, so, looking forward to continuing to around the city and have the types of conversations that are necessary," Feagins said.