MEMPHIS, TN — A persistent talking point continues to circulate in political quarters and social media threads across Shelby County.

Defenders of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) board have offered an official justification for why taxpayer money was funneled to an outside public relations firm: “Dr. Feagins got rid of the PR team at the district, which left the board without PR representation they felt entitled to. That’s why they had to hire their own firm.”

On its surface, to anyone unfamiliar with school district policies or Tennessee law, that narrative sounds plausible.

The unsealed court records, itemized billing ledgers, and sworn hearing transcripts in Feagins v. Shelby County Board of Education et al. (Case No. CT-0453-25) show that this claim is a distraction.

The paper trail shows that hiring an outside firm was not about routine district press releases[cite: 23, 24, 36]. It was about procuring an unmonitored channel to script, film, and coordinate the ouster of a sitting superintendent weeks before the public knew a vote was happening.

Myth vs. Fact: Breaking Down the "PR Representation" Claim

Point 1: The $70,000 Loophole

If hiring a PR firm was a legitimate, necessary response to a lack of staff, why did board leadership hide it from the rest of the board?

On November 6, 2024, MSCS General Counsel Justin Bailey signed the contract engaging The Carter Malone Group[cite: 23, 30]. The contract total was set at $70,000.

Under MSCS district purchasing rules, any contract of $75,000 or more must be submitted to the full nine-member school board for a public review and vote. By capping the contract at $70,000, board leadership bypassed the full board entirely[cite: 2, 30, 31].

In her sworn deposition, veteran Board Member Michelle McKissack confirmed that rank-and-file board members were kept completely in the dark:

• They were never informed that CMG had been hired.

• They were never shown the scope of work.

• They never voted to authorize $70,000 in taxpayer spending for outside media strategy.

If the board was simply replacing lost PR services, they would have brought the contract to the floor in an open meeting. Instead, the agreement was executed quietly behind the scenes.

Point 2: What Were Taxpayers Actually Paying For?

The strongest rebuttal to the "missing PR team" excuse comes directly from the itemized invoices submitted by CMG under oath.

If CMG was hired to manage general district communications, the invoices would reflect routine tasks: writing school newsletters, answering media inquiries about facilities, or promoting student achievements.

Instead, the billing records show a focused effort to prepare for a leadership change[cite: 24, 34, 36]:

During her sworn testimony on July 22, 2025, Deidre Malone admitted that by early December, her firm was already deep into preparing for Dr. Feagins' exit[cite: 34, 36].

In a subsequent court filing, Feagins' attorney Rachel Lambert summarized Malone's actual role[cite: 36]:

"The evidence shows that Malone functioned as a de facto tenth Board member for months—participating in strategy, drafting the termination resolution, communicating with individual Board members, and developing termination messaging before the elected Board acted."

[cite: 36]

Point 3: A Legal Flaw in the "PR Representation" Argument

Even if we accept the board's argument that they felt entitled to separate PR representation[cite: 19], that desire does not override Tennessee state law.

Under the Tennessee Open Meetings Act (T.C.A. § 8-44-101 et seq.), public bodies are strictly prohibited from:

1. Deliberating or deciding public business behind closed doors.

2. Whipping votes privately through phone calls or intermediaries.

3. Pre-determining the outcome of a major public vote before holding an open meeting.

Conclusion: The Real Issue for Taxpayers

The argument that the board hired an outside PR firm because they were left "without PR representation" does not hold up when examined against the evidence.

The court record shows that the $70,000 contract was structured to bypass full board approval, executed in secret, and utilized primarily to plan, script, and film the termination of the district's superintendent weeks before the public was informed[cite: 24, 34, 36].

That is not routine PR representation. It is a documented paper trail that is now at the center of both state and federal lawsuits.

JustMyMemphis will continue to review every unsealed document, transcript, and invoice as both cases proceed in court.