Kriner Cash Reaction to School Board Vote

(Memphis) It never feels good to be rejected.

“This does not reconcile with a process, that is all I am saying tonight,” said Dr. Kriner Cash.

Tuesday, the Unified School Board in so many words told Dr. Kriner Cash he was out of a job by July of next year.

The board voted to not renew his contract as superintendent of Memphis City Schools.

It means, in all probability, Cash will not be the leader of the new merged district.

“I am disappointed for the community, not for myself, but for the community,” said Cash.

Instead, the board voted to keep John Aitken around, at least til the end of his contract with Shelby County Schools in 2015.

That means he is still in the running to lead the Unified School District when it’s created next year.

Board Member David Pickler said he believes the board made the right decision after five hours of debate.

“There is no way we could move forward with the type of two-headed leadership structure that we are dealing with two superintendents,” said Pickler. “It’s like an army going into war with two commanding generals. It just doesn`t work.”

But who that leader will be, nobody knows.

“We are not there yet,” said John Aitken of Shelby County Schools. “I feel like I am interested but there is a lot of processes we have to go through before we get there.”

Cash says he believes the process should have started with public input, before Tuesday night’s vote ever happened.

Cash says he could have been the best person for the job but now it looks like he may be looking for a job somewhere else, “Now, I will make the decision I need to make for the interest of my career and my future.”

Pickler said Cash can decide to walk away from his contract with Memphis City Schools if he finds another job.

In the meantime, the school board is going to meet next week to decide whether it will hold a national search for a new superintendent.