Bogus Test Based Evaluations and Charterization Put Hundreds of Memphis Teachers' Jobs on Chopping Block

This year it's called "excessing."  Just over a year ago it was call "surplussing." 

A clip from the Memphis Corporate Appeal:

. . . .The shuffle in schools happens every spring as principals draw up staffing numbers to match projected enrollment. While the teachers have not been laid off, it is their responsibility as “excessed” staff to work through system the district has set up to match teachers to openings in other schools.

....

This is the first time that people in the district still looking for placements after June 30 will be off the payroll. The Memphis-Shelby County Education Association expects some 200 tenured teachers could be affected, and it’s preparing to go to bat.

“We have filed lawsuit against the district, based on tenure. These people were told they will not have a job after June 30 if they do not have a placement,” said Keith Williams, association president.

“They have a right to a job,” Williams said. “They have done nothing wrong. They can only be dismissed for cause, and there is no cause."

Traditionally, these decisions were based on seniority and tenure. That doesn’t happen anymore as the district moves to keep its strongest performers, whether veterans or first-year teachers. . . .