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With Gates' Funding End in Sight, Shelby Co. Schools Could Roll Back Costly Reforms

Christopher Blank/WKNO-FM

Ruma Kumar spent six months researching how Shelby County Schools used $90 million in funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Mostly, it paid for teacher training, evaluations, a streamlined hiring process and crucial data. Results have been varied, but overall promising. A 1-year extension on the grant will preserve this expensive training model for now. But with Shelby County Schools facing a major deficit, the district may have to reconsider the costs of training a better teaching staff.

Listen to our interview with Ruma Kumar, and read her story at Chalkbeat Tennessee.

Reporting from the gates of Graceland to the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, Christopher has covered Memphis news, arts, culture and politics for more than 20 years in print and on the radio. He is currently WKNO's News Director and Senior Producer at the University of Memphis' Institute for Public Service Reporting. Join his conversations about the Memphis arts scene on the WKNO Culture Desk Facebook page.