An effort to oust Memphis-Shelby County (Tennessee) Schools Superintendent Marie Feagins has been put on hold after a divided school board decided to push the debate to next month.
Chalkbeat Tennessee reports that the board voted 5 to 4 to defer a resolution to oust Feagins over allegations of “professional misconduct."
Feagins denied the allegations near the end of a heated board meeting Tuesday night.
The resolution to terminate Feagins’ contract — brought by board Chair Joyce Dorse-Coleman — alleges that Feagins:
- Misled the board and did not present evidence of her statement, made in a work session, that district employees were paid $1 million in overtime for time not worked.
- Accepted a more than $45,000 donation without board approval, then misrepresented what happened in violation of board policy.
- Was dishonest with the board and public about a federal grant and a missed deadline.
Board members dissatisfied with Feagins’ performance have aired those concerns previously. But the effort to oust her fell short after a meeting in which Feagins supporters voiced their anger at the prospect of her being terminated less than nine months after she took the job.
When given the microphone, Feagins said she had yet to see the resolution and heard about the effort to end her contract from the media after the meeting was announced Monday.
“I’ve said time and time again, if I’m ever the barrier I will leave,” Feagins said. “What I’ve heard is meritless and baseless. I have been transparent about it and can refute everything that’s been stated.”
She added: “My desire to be transparent has been weaponized against me.”
Board members Michelle McKissack, Amber Huett-Garcia, and Tamarques Porter spoke out against the resolution and fought efforts to push through a vote on it.
“Let’s not get distracted. This is a distraction,” McKissack said.
The drama around Feagins comes as the district faces serious academic and financial challenges — and just as it was seeking to restore community trust after previous leadership turnover and a protracted 18-month process to find a replacement.
The board hired Feagins in February and agreed to a four-year contract that paid her $325,000 a year, starting April 1. If the board fired her without cause, she’d be due a severance payment of about $500,000.
