By JR Robinson, CEO & Founder of JustMyMemphis

MEMPHIS, TN — Let’s stop playing games and talk real Memphis talk.

For the past year, everybody across the 901 has been watching the circus at the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) board headquarters. We heard the rumors. We saw the shouting matches on YouTube. We saw the late-night votes. The board wanted the streets to believe one clean story: “Dr. Marie Feagins came in, broke policy, wouldn’t listen to us, and messed with the money, so we had to cut her loose.”

That was the story they sold to the cameras. But what happens in the dark always comes to the light.

JustMyMemphis just pulled the exclusive receipts from newly unsealed court depositions, secret billing ledgers, text threads, and internal emails. When you peel back the layers, it looks like an orchestrated political hit.

They weren't reacting in real-time. They were executing a pre-planned script.

Here is the breakdown of what really went down behind closed doors, why Dr. Feagins is now taking this fight to federal court, and why every parent, teacher, and taxpayer in Shelby County needs to pay attention.

First Things First: Why Are There Two Lawsuits?

Before we get to the dirty details, let’s clear up the biggest rumor floating around the barbershops and beauty salons: “Why is she filing so many lawsuits? Did she just lose in state court and get mad?”

No. That is not how the law works.

If you get fired unfairly on the job because of dirty politics and broken rules, the law splits your fight into two entirely different rings:

Dr. Feagins didn't just wake up and file another case. She had to follow the federal playbook step-by-step to bring charges of gender discrimination and constitutional violations directly before a federal judge.

The October "Leak": Testing the Waters

Let’s rewind the tape to October 16, 2024.

Dr. Feagins had only been on the job for six months. Out of nowhere, local TV news reporters started blowing up school board members' phones.

WMC reporter Richard Ransom sent a text screenshot directly to School Board Member Michelle McKissack. The screenshot was a drafted document claiming Dr. Feagins was being placed on immediate suspension over a $45,635 check from the SchoolSeed Foundation.

Ransom asked McKissack straight up: “Is this just a fabrication?”

McKissack texted back immediately:

“Who is on suspension??? Surely you aren't speaking of Dr. Feagins?! If so, that's a big fat LIE!”

At the exact same time, Action News 5 anchor Joyce Peterson texted McKissack asking if Dr. Feagins had suddenly resigned. McKissack squashed that too: “There is NO truth to the rumor. She has not resigned.”

Where did local news anchors get drafted suspension paperwork and resignation rumors in October?

Somebody was floating trial balloons to see if the city would buy it. When the public didn't bite, the opposition regrouped and brought in the heavy machinery.

The $70,000 Secret Weapon: Scripting the Exit

Three weeks after those October leaks failed, the board leadership brought in professional muscle.

On November 6, 2024, MSCS Board General Counsel Justin Bailey signed a public relations contract with The Carter Malone Group (CMG), led by Deidre Malone.

Here is the kicker: The contract was capped at $70,000.

Why does that number matter? Because MSCS board rules state that any contract of $75,000 or more must be voted on publicly by the full nine-member board. By keeping the contract at $70,000, leadership slipped it under the radar without taking a single public vote. Board Member Michelle McKissack testified under oath that rank-and-file board members were never told the firm had been hired to manage board matters.

And what was that PR firm hired to do? The itemized billing invoices submitted in court blow the whole operation wide open:

• December 9, 2024: CMG billed hours for: "Review/edit MSCS Board Communications Plan DMF [Dr. Marie Feagins]." (They were building the communications strategy to handle her exit eight days before anyone knew a vote was coming.)

• December 15, 2024: CMG billed to write "Special Call Meeting Scripts" for Board Chair Joyce Dorse-Coleman and Vice Chair Stephanie Love.

• December 16, 2024 (Morning): CMG's videographer recorded Board Chair Joyce Dorse-Coleman filming a video addressed to parents and the community announcing the ouster of Dr. Feagins.

• December 16, 2024 (Afternoon): CMG staff drafted an internal script for an employee video regarding "Dr. Feagins' termination."

Read that again: On December 16th, they were already filming and editing videos announcing her termination and resignation.

The public hadn't even been told a meeting was happening. Dr. Feagins hadn't been served with formal charges. The board hadn't cast a single legal vote.

The December 16 "Ambush" & The Sunshine Law

Tennessee has a strict law called the Tennessee Open Meetings Act (The Sunshine Law). The rule is simple: politicians cannot hold secret meetings, make deals through private backchannels, or count their votes in the shadows. The public has a legal right to witness government business being conducted out in the open.

On the afternoon of December 16, 2024, talk show host Thaddeus Matthews broke the news online that the board was preparing to move against Feagins.

Dr. Feagins texted McKissack at 2:12 PM to ask what was going on. McKissack replied: “I'm on the phone. But that's a LIE! I know nothing about this.”

Two hours later, at 4:24 PM, McKissack texted Feagins back after receiving a direct phone call from Board Chair Joyce Dorse-Coleman:

“Just heard from the Chair. This is outrageous!!!”

In her sworn deposition, McKissack revealed what happened on that private call: Chair Dorse-Coleman called her directly, told her a special meeting was being called to fire Dr. Feagins, and asked McKissack for her vote.

McKissack refused: “I was shocked. And I said, I will not support it. And the phone call ended.”

By the next day, December 17 at 3:40 PM—two hours before the public walked into board chambers—McKissack texted Feagins again with the harsh reality:

“Hopeful but if they stick to their guns they likely have their 5 votes.”

She was naming the five-member voting bloc: Joyce Dorse-Coleman, Stephanie Love, Natalie McKinney, Towanna Murphy, and Sable Otey.

Five votes makes a majority on a nine-member board. The votes were already counted before the gavel ever hit the desk.

The Double Standard: Dr. Joris Ray vs. Dr. Marie Feagins

This brings us to the core of Dr. Feagins’ federal Title VII gender discrimination claim. When you compare how the MSCS board treated its former male superintendent, Dr. Joris Ray, versus its first permanent Black female superintendent, the contrast is night and day.

Under Tennessee School Board Association (TSBA) guidelines, firing a superintendent mid-contract "For Cause" requires clear due process and a live evidentiary hearing. The board denied Dr. Feagins a hearing and gave her only written submissions, attempting to throw her out the door with nothing.

The Claims vs. The Receipts

So what was the official excuse the board gave on that December 17 resolution to fire her "for cause"? They listed three main accusations. Dr. Feagins' formal legal responses and internal district emails dismantled every single one:

1. The "$1 Million Unworked Overtime" Accusation

• The Board's Story: Feagins lied to the public when she said the district paid employees $1 million in unworked overtime.

• The Paper Trail: Feagins discovered the district had zero tight controls over overtime spending. She immediately created a strict three-tier authorization policy requiring signatures from the immediate supervisor, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), and the Superintendent. The result? District overtime expenses dropped by $1 million between December 2023 and December 2024. She didn't waste money; she plugged a financial leak.

2. The "$45,000 SchoolSeed Check" Accusation

• The Board's Story: Feagins took an unapproved $45,635.33 donation check from the SchoolSeed Foundation and had it deposited without board permission.

• The Paper Trail: Under Tennessee state law (T.C.A. § 5-8-207), whenever a public official receives funds, the finance department is legally required to deposit the check into an official bank account within three business days. Dr. Feagins never touched the check. The finance department deposited the check to follow the law, and then brought it to the board for formal programming acceptance. McKissack was so disgusted by the board weaponizing this routine deposit that she texted Feagins: “I would send back that $45,000 check to SchoolSeed. It's not worth the headache and it would send a strong message.”

3. The "Killing Peer Power" Accusation

• The Board's Story: Feagins unilaterally cancelled the beloved Peer Power tutoring contract and hurt the kids.

• The Paper Trail: CFO Tito Langston confirmed in writing to the entire board that Peer Power was paid using federal COVID relief (ESSER) dollars—and those federal emergency relief funds legally expired. Furthermore, academic data showed that despite spending nearly $4 million on tutoring contracts over four years, high school ACT scores had flatlined, forcing the administration to transition the money to specialized in-house staff.

The Hostile Work Environment & The Slander

Beyond the closed-door maneuvering, sworn testimony reveals an aggressive, toxic workplace culture.

In her deposition, McKissack testified under oath that the working environment was openly hostile. Board members attacked Dr. Feagins' appearance online, comparing her to a poodle and Snoop Dogg. McKissack testified that when she tried to defend Dr. Feagins, Board Member Towanna Murphy told her to "shut up."

Then came January 5, 2025.

At 9:52 AM, Board Member Towanna Murphy dropped a bombshell message into a 9-person group text thread that included board members:

“These folks came to my house and stole my car. Now the police are here. TBI is being alerted. Dr. Feagins and her crew playing a dangerous game.”

Without offering a single shred of evidence or an arrest report, a sitting board member openly accused the district's superintendent of organizing car theft.

What’s Next: The Federal Reckoning

The school board thought they could pass a resolution, bring in an interim superintendent, and close the chapter.

They miscalculated.

By forcing Dr. Feagins out through Section 14(C) without independent evidence or a fair hearing, they opened the door to federal discovery.

Now, under Federal Case No. 2:26-cv-02292 (Feagins v. Shelby County Schools Board of Education et al.), the federal courts are taking the reins.

Federal judges do not play politics. In federal discovery, cell phone carriers get subpoenaed. Deleted text threads get recovered. PR firms have to turn over every email, draft, and invoice. And board members will have to answer under oath why a male superintendent accused of misconduct was handed a buyout, while a Black female superintendent who cut overtime waste was subjected to pre-scripted firing videos and targeted social media attacks.

Memphis taxpayers, parents, and teachers deserve an education system focused on children—not backroom deals and political retaliation.

JustMyMemphis will be in the room for every hearing, tracking every deposition, and bringing the real facts directly to the community. Stay tuned.