Most of the major contenders for Tennessee Governor – Democratic and Republican – were in Shelby County over the weekend in which early voting ended and the campaigns now adjust their last minute efforts to the gap between early voting and election day on Thursday.

2. New Academic Year Brings Changes, Familiar Issues - Friday, August 4, 2017

The school year for most students in Shelby County begins Monday, Aug. 7. But teachers and school administrators mentally remain at least a few weeks ahead, if not more – a permanent condition for educators.

3. Alabama is Media’s Overwhelming Pick To Win SEC Title - Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Twice in the previous three years, SEC media correctly predicted the SEC champion. Both times, they did it by picking Alabama (2014, 2016). They went with Alabama again this year, predicting the Crimson Tide to defeat Georgia in the SEC title game.

4. Change Defines Education Landscape in 2016 - Wednesday, December 28, 2016

By the time Rhodes College trustees made their choice in December of Marjorie Hass as the college’s new president, higher education in Memphis had been through quite a few changes.

Hass succeeds William Troutt, president of Rhodes for the last 18 years.

5. Empty Seats - Saturday, December 17, 2016

Shelby County Commissioner David Reaves can still see it clearly: “Take the whole map of the county and lay a grid on it. Then I’d like you to say, ‘Where’s the population? Where’s the projection?’ And then let’s strategically place schools all over the county based upon that and make them all of equal offerings.”

6. Public School System in Shelby County Continues Evolution - Friday, July 29, 2016

The new school year that begins Aug. 8 is four academic years since the start of the state-run Achievement School District, three academic years past the merger of public education in Shelby County and two years since the demerger into seven school systems.

7. Last Word: Delayed Reaction, UTHSC Simulates and Ali Takes On The Fords - Monday, June 6, 2016

If you like to unplug on the weekends, you probably got plugged back in sooner than expected Sunday to the violent rampage Downtown Saturday evening. It ended with a Memphis Police officer dead – run over at Beale and B.B. King – allegedly by a suspect in the shootings of three people on Downtown’s northern end – two of them in critical condition – less than a half hour earlier.

8. ‘Critical Mass’ - Saturday, June 4, 2016

Shelby County Schools superintendent Dorsey Hopson calls it “a brave new world” after four years of unprecedented changes: the merger and demerger of the county’s public schools systems, the rise of charter schools, the formation of both the state-run Achievement School District and locally run Innovation Zone model, and declining SCS enrollment.

9. Whitehaven Empowerment Zone Begins To Take Shape - Monday, May 23, 2016

Public education is a “noble profession,” Whitehaven High School principal Vincent Hunter told a group of 100 parents and teachers in the high school’s auditorium last week.

10. SCS Budget Plan Goes To School Board For Vote Monday - Monday, May 16, 2016

Shelby County Schools board members meet Monday, May 16, to vote on a budget proposal that goes to the Shelby County Commission for funding.

The budget proposal up for a vote Monday has $27 million in red ink – the gap between revenues and expenses.

11. Last Word: The Bible Veto Override Vote, Grizz Nostalgia and Kroger Goes Online - Thursday, April 21, 2016

The Tennessee Legislature hoped to end its 2016 session Wednesday at the end of an eventful day that included a failed attempt to override Gov. Bill Haslam’s veto of the bill that would have made the Bible the official state book.
But into Wednesday evening, the state House was still debating the Hall tax on dividends – specifically further roll backs of it. And the Senate had gone home for the night.
So Thursday looks like a good bet for the adjournment for the year and the formal start of the election season for incumbents.

12. Hopson Adds Empowerment Zone, Other School Moves to Closings List - Thursday, April 21, 2016

Shelby County Schools Superintendent Dorsey Hopson coupled a tentative school closings list heavy with charter schools Tuesday, April 19, with a Whitehaven “empowerment zone” and other reconfigurations for the school year that begins in August.

13. Confident Serrano Playing for Future at UT - Saturday, February 6, 2016

Tennessee baseball coach Dave Serrano wasn’t setting the bar too high when he met with the media for his 2016 preseason press conference.

Serrano made that mistake before the 2015 season with talk of reaching an NCAA regional and perhaps Omaha, Nebraska, site of the College World Series.

14. Northwestern Defense Tough, But Give Edge to UT - Saturday, December 26, 2015

There’s nothing like spending the Christmas holidays in Florida, and Tennessee’s football team will savor every minute of it for the second consecutive year.

The Vols (8-4) board a flight Saturday morning to Tampa, Fla., where they will spend almost a week before the Jan. 1 Outback Bowl against Northwestern (10-2).

15. The Haven - Saturday, November 7, 2015

It’s not hard to find remnants of Whitehaven’s past in a drive down Elvis Presley Boulevard, but none of those reminders are as vivid as the 122-year-old Whitehaven High School.

“It’s really the glue that holds the community together,” said 1990 graduate, and Shelby County Schools superintendent, Dorsey Hopson. “You have some of the poorest kids that we have in the state attend there. You also have some of the most high-performing kids in the state attend there. You truly have all segments of all kinds of communities both in the school zone and outside the zone who descend on ‘The Haven’ every single day.”

16. Jackson Joins Devcon Security as GM - Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Eric Jackson has joined Devcon Security as general manager of the company’s Memphis branch. Jackson’s primary focus will be hiring and training sales people and technicians, as well as building daily branch operations and acting as the brand ambassador to building partnerships in the community.

17. Leadership Memphis Names Sessoms Board Chair - Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Leadership Memphis has named Glenn Sessoms its board chair for 2007-2008. Sessoms is currently the vice president of the FedEx Memphis Hub Day Sort, where he manages 3,500 employees, four directors, 25 senior managers and 150 managers. He is a twice-decorated Five Star Award winner, the highest level of recognition at FedEx. Sessoms also is a 1997 graduate of the Leadership Memphis Executive Program.

18. Collierville Busts Out All Over With Layers Of Retail Growth - Tuesday, August 1, 2006

Collierville has seen a metamorphosis in the past decade, evolving from a sleepy small town to a blossoming bedroom community to a thriving, self-sustaining suburb that continues to attract new businesses in droves.