This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.
Former Tennessee Teacher of the Year Karen Vogelsang was appointed Tuesday to the final seat on the incoming Memphis schools oversight board, which will soon wield sweeping authority over the state’s largest school district for the next four years.
House Speaker Cameron Sexton selected Vogelsang, a former mortgage banker turned educator, two days before the board is scheduled to hold its first meeting Thursday.
Vogelsang received the state’s top teacher honor in 2014, when she was teaching at Keystone Elementary School. She taught in Memphis-Shelby County elementary schools for 15 years, ending her tenure in 2018.
“The first time I had the opportunity to teach it was electrifying; I knew then I had made the right decision to become a teacher,” Vogelsang told Chalkbeat in 2015.