{"county":"shelby","description":"","district":"2","districtgroup":"county_school_board","id":103,"key":"county_school_board_division_2","lastchangeby":null,"name":"Natalie McKinney","next_election":"2020-11-03","notes":"113","officegroup":"county_school_board","partisan":0,"party":"","qualities":"- Policy judgment on a large urban district \u2014 Memphis-Shelby County Schools serves roughly 110,000 students across more than 200 schools, with a budget over a billion dollars.\n- Budget literacy for both operating and capital budgets, in coordination with the County Commission (which appropriates) and the Tennessee Department of Education.\n- Ability to hire, evaluate, and when necessary replace the superintendent \u2014 historically the highest-stakes recurring decision the board makes.\n- Constituent relations with parents, teachers, principals, and community members across an economically and racially diverse district.\n- Willingness to complete the state-required seven hours of annual training through the Tennessee School Boards Association School Board Academy.","quantity":1,"source":null,"state":"TN","term_end":"2028-08-01","term_start":"2024-08-01","term_years":4,"terms":[{"current":0,"description":"Chairperson","electiondate":"2020-08-06","name":"Althea Greene  ","person":{"biography":"Althea Greene is a former member of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools Board of Education, representing District 2. The Shelby County Commission appointed her to the seat on February 25, 2019, after 38 years as a classroom teacher at six Memphis-area schools; she retired from the district in 2018 [1][2]. She won the seat outright, unopposed, in the August 2020 general election [3].\n\n## Office history\nThe board elected Greene chair for the 2022-23 term on September 28, 2022, succeeding Michelle McKissack [3]. Board members retained her as chair for a second term on September 26, 2023, by a 7-0 vote (one member voted present) [4]. As chair, Greene oversaw the district's search for a permanent superintendent; after three finalists were presented in April 2023 she paused the search amid disagreement over the selection process, and several leading candidates subsequently withdrew. The board later restarted the search under revised requirements led by other members [4].\n\nGreene did not win re-election. In the August 1, 2024 election, challenger Natalie McKinney defeated Greene for the District 2 seat; Chalkbeat reported McKinney \"maintained a consistent lead over Greene that grew as the night went on.\" Greene said she would continue working \"for the students and families of the district\" [5]. McKinney, not Greene, is the current District 2 board member and chair.\n\n## Career\nBefore her school board service, Greene spent 38 years as an educator in Memphis-area public schools, teaching at six different schools, before retiring in 2018 [1]. She is also senior pastor of Real Life Ministries in Memphis [6].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Former Memphis teacher Althea Greene named interim school board member by county commission](https://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2019/2/25/21106889/former-memphis-teacher-althea-greene-named-interim-school-board-member-by-county-commission/) - Chalkbeat Tennessee, accessed 2026-07-06\n[2] [Althea Greene appointed to Shelby County Schools board](https://dailymemphian.com/article/3336/Althea-Greene-appointed-to-Shelby-County-Schools-board) - Daily Memphian, accessed 2026-07-06\n[3] [Althea Greene is named new MSCS board chair at pivotal time](https://tn.chalkbeat.org/2022/9/28/23377321/memphis-shelby-county-schools-board-chair-althea-greene-covid-superintendent-search) - Chalkbeat Tennessee, accessed 2026-07-06\n[4] [MSCS board again taps Althea Greene as chair](https://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2023/9/26/23891928/memphis-shelby-county-schools-board-chair-2023-althea-greene-joyce-dorse-coleman/) - Chalkbeat Tennessee, accessed 2026-07-06\n[5] [Memphis-Shelby County Schools election results: Challenger defeats board chair](https://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2024/08/01/memphis-shelby-county-schools-board-election-results-2024/) - Chalkbeat Tennessee, accessed 2026-07-06\n[6] [Real Life Ministries](http://www.reallifememphis.org/) - accessed 2026-07-06 (church site; confirms pastoral role)","firstname":"Althea","lastname":"","middlename":"Greene","token":"AVqSfurMn8"},"term_end":"2024-09-01","term_start":"2020-09-01"},{"current":1,"description":null,"electiondate":"2024-08-01","name":"Natalie McKinney","person":{"biography":"I\u2019ve lived in Memphis for 19 years, serving as the Director of Policy and Legislative Planning at Memphis Shelby County Schools and co-founder of Whole Child Strategies Inc. I am a committed mother, wife, and active community leader, married to Dr. Charles W. McKinney, Jr., with two successful sons, Ayodele and Chioke, both graduates of Memphis Shelby County Public Schools.\n\nI hold a B.A. in Political Science from Spelman College, a J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law, and an M.P.A. from Princeton University. I\u2019ve advocated for youth throughout my career, including creating and serving as the inaugural director of the Juvenile Law Clinic at NCCU School of Law, where I advocated for youth justice, an effort recognized by the American Bar Association.\n\nBetween 2007 and 2017, I directed policy and legislative planning for both Shelby County and Memphis City Schools, leading during tahe largest school district merger in U.S. history. In 2017, recognizing the impact of external barriers on education, I founded Whole Child Strategies to address these challenges directly with the community. \n\n\nWith my experiences as the policy director working directly with youth, parents/guardians, teachers, school leaders, central office staff, the superintendent and school board, where I acquired the working knowledge of every aspect of policy governing school and district operations, e.g. academics, special education, ESL, business operations, facilities, safety and behavior, student supports, board governance, etc., and leading work in neighborhoods to support community-led/driven identification of and solutions to the root causes to out-of-school barriers hindering youth from getting to school, I have gained the knowledge and understanding of how things do and should operate for the benefit of youth.\n\nI am running for School Board District 2 to bring leadership that addresses critical issues, including academic preparedness, district infrastructure, safety, and fiscal sustainability. I pledge to remain student-centered and community-focused, and support system transparency and leadership accountability. Our schools can be a catalyst for positive change, and with your support, I will represent the voices of all community members.\n\nI am Natalie McKinney, and I want to be your next School Board representative.\n\nLinks:\n\n[Linkedin](https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-mckinney-919758147/)\n[Campaign Site](https://www.votenataliemckinney.com/)\n\n","firstname":"Natalie","lastname":"McKinney","token":"WIyQS8Yysc"},"term_end":"2028-08-01","term_start":"2024-08-01"}],"title":"County School Board Division 2","type":"legislative","url":null,"whenchanged":"2026-04-25 19:49:19"}