{"county":"shelby","description":"","district":"4","districtgroup":"county_school_board","id":105,"key":"county_school_board_division_4","lastchangeby":null,"name":"Tamarques Porter ","next_election":"2020-11-03","notes":"115","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":"","electiondate":"2020-08-06","name":"Kevin D. Woods","person":{"biography":"Kevin Woods is the Memphis market president for BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, which serves more than 3.4 million members in the state and across the country.\n\nIn this role, Woods builds and supports key relationships with west Tennessee businesses. He also serves as a vital link between the Memphis business community and BlueCross sales and service teams.\n\nBefore joining BlueCross, he was executive director of Memphis\u2019 Workforce Investment Network, which assists city and county organizations with recruiting new companies to Memphis and improving employment opportunities for area residents. Prior to that, he was director of career development and education services with New Horizons Computer Training Center in Memphis.\n\nHe earned a Master of Science in business administration and Bachelor of Science in computer engineering from the University of Memphis. He is a 2014 graduate of Leadership Memphis Executive Class, a New Memphis Fellow, as well as alum of the 2017-2018 class of Leadership Tennessee (Class V). He currently serves on the Leadership Tennessee Advisory Council.\n\nWoods also serves on numerous boards.\n\n* Shelby County School Board\n* Memphis River Parks\n* Shelby Farms Conservancy\n* The Salvation Army\n* United Way of the Mid-South\n* Neighborhood Preservation, Inc. (NPI)\n* TN Achieves Advisory Board","firstname":"Kevin","lastname":"Woods","middlename":"D.","token":"M3BhcDyw6y"},"term_end":"2024-09-01","term_start":"2020-09-01"},{"current":1,"description":null,"electiondate":"2024-08-01","name":"Tamarques Porter ","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nTamarques Porter is a candidate for the Memphis-Shelby County School Board, District 4 [1][2].\n\n## Background and education\nPorter is a native of Memphis, Tennessee, and a graduate of Melrose High School [2]. He attended Texas Southern University and subsequently earned a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and a Master of Science in Technology Management from the University of Phoenix [2].\n\n## Career\nPorter serves as a Cybersecurity Specialist with the U.S. Department of Treasury [2].\n\nPorter advocates for educational opportunities for incarcerated individuals through the Tennessee Higher Education Prison Initiative (THEI) [2]. He also serves as a mentor and facilitator in Dr. Clifford Black's Super Learning Literacy Class, which focuses on language and computer literacy skills [2].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/votetporter/)\n[2] [Campaign Site](https://www.votetporter.com/)\n","firstname":"Tamarques","lastname":"","middlename":"Porter","token":"LLkcfLSVd5"},"term_end":"2028-08-01","term_start":"2024-08-01"}],"title":"County School Board Division 4","type":"legislative","url":null,"whenchanged":"2026-04-25 19:49:19"}