Judge, former SCS chair Jones dies
The onetime chief city prosecutor had cancer
Former Shelby County Schools board member and chair, chief city prosecutor and Memphis Municipal Judge Teresa Jones died this weekend after a battle with cancer.
Jones served as a member of the Shelby County Schools board from 2011 to 2019, serving as chair from 2014 to 2016. She was appointed to the board in 2011 before being elected to the District 2 position in 2012 and again in 2016.
During her time as chair of the school board, she guided SCS through financial turmoil and the secession of the municipal school districts from the county district.
Althea Greene, who was appointed to the school board seat when Jones was appointed to the bench, said when she thought of Jones, she thought of the poem “Phenomenal Woman,” by Maya Angelou. Greene described Jones as a woman of faith, intelligent, kind and committed to everything she did.
“I was honored to fill her seat because she was committed to the community, she was dedicated to education and making sure on that school board that she stood for what was right,” she said. “To walk in the shoes of someone with integrity … I thank God for the opportunity.”
Greene and Jones were neighbors and Delta Sigma Theta sisters. Greene said Jones’ exceptionalism extended to every area of her life — even her beautifully maintained yard. Greene said she had seen an outpouring of
messages of love from people in their neighborhood as well as principals from schools within District 2.
Former school board member Scott Mccormick sat next to Jones for four years at meetings and described her as opinionated but always level-headed and diplomatic in disagreements with fellow board members.
Jones did not have to resign her school board seat when she became a judge. Mccormick said she chose to do so because she thought the work done by the school board was important and she didn’t want to not be able to devote sufficient attention to it.
“I really admired her dedication to the school system and educating the children,” he said. “I know that she was serious about the work that she did.”
Board member Kevin Woods said Jones was committed to students and educators and that in her time on the board she was always honest, never leaving colleagues or constituents to wonder where she stood on an issue.
“For me, Teresa was the perfect board member. She was passionate about the work, she was missiondriven, focused on improving outcomes for employees as well as students and she did her work with a great deal of excitement,” he said.
He recalled being at a community meeting about school consolidation with Jones. A few attendees made remarks about not wanting “kids from that neighborhood” in the same school as their child.
“She very matter of fact explained to those families that while she understood that change was difficult that everybody deserved an opportunity to a great education,” Woods said. “To me, that was one of those moments where...right was right wrong was wrong and she didn’t mind being honest.”
Woods said her integrity permeated every area of her life and was one of the qualities that made her a good school board member and judge.
“The common thread for everyone who knew her was always her honesty,” he said.“it extended well beyond her work on the school board.”
Current superintendent Joris Ray called Jones “a leader with passion and integrity” who pursued equity in education. Former superintendent Dorsey Hopson described Jones as a strong Black woman, a fierce community advocate and a warrior for kids. He said she was compassionate, honest and willing to stand up for unpopular opinions when she believed it was in the interest of the community.
“I have been around school districts
and superintendents and school boards for years,” he said. “She was just a special board member because she truly was driven by what she thought was right for the community.”
She resigned from the SCS board in 2019, when she was appointed as judge for Division 1 of the Memphis Municipal Court to fill the vacancy after Earnestine Hunt Dorse retired in 2018.
Jones, a former chief city prosecutor, assumed the post Jan. 15. She ran for the seat in the general election later that year, winning with 73% of the vote.
In a statement, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said he was honored to appoint Jones to the bench “before she was overwhelmingly elected in October of 2019.”
“A long time public servant, Judge Jones applied her talent as a Shelby County school board member, Chief City Prosecutor, trial attorney, public defender and adjunct professor,” he said. “She was also a competitive tennis player. Teresa Jones was a wonderful person, a skilled lawyer and a great judge who served our city well.”
A Byhalia, Mississippi native, Jones attended Byhalia High School before completing her undergraduate degree at Lane College and earning a law degree from the University of Memphis.
She was an active member of the Memphis legal community, sitting on the Memphis Area Legal Services board, serving as a member and past chair of the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program and a Memphis Bar Foundation fellow. She was a member of the Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association, the Memphis Bar Association, the National Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the Tennessee Bar Association.
She also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.
Jones’ civic engagement extended beyond the school system and the courts. She served on the Lane College Board of Trustees from 2014 until her death and was a board member for the Sickle Cell Anemia Foundation from 1991 to 1996.
In recent years, she was presented the Mothers Of The Nile Outstanding Leadership Award, the Teamsters National Black Caucus Trailblazer Award and in 2019, she was one of 12 women to receive the Most Outstanding Women award from Memphis Interfaith Denominational Fellowship, Incorporated, which that year recognized female graduates of Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Corinne Kennedy covers economic development, soccer and COVID-19’S impact on hospitals for the Commercial Appeal. She can be reached via email at Corinne.kennedy@commercialappeal .com or at 901-297-3245.