DeVonté Payton

DeVonté Payton

2019 NACSA Leader

Advisor, School Development Shelby County Schools

DeVonté Payton is the School Development Advisor for Shelby County School’s Office of Charter Schools. He leads the charter authorization, interim, and renewal evaluation processes for the district’s portfolio of 57 charter schools. Previously, he served as the Director of External Affairs for KIPP Memphis, managing external partnerships, brand management support, and student enrollment.

DeVonté earned his B.B.A in Marketing Management from the University of Memphis and has over ten years of experience working in education. As an education advocate, he has worked closely with schools to develop and implement strategic plans for community engagement, recruitment & retention of talent and students, and high school/college placement.

His wife, Alyssa, is an assistant principal. They have three children – Dylan, Alyson, and Alaina.


Most Recent Posts
Applying Charter Authorizing Principles in the Early Childhood Field
This blog was written by Abby McCartney, Director, Early Care and Education, Afton Partners and Carrie Stewart, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Afton Partners Introduction: Early Care and Education at a...
2023 State of Charter Authorizing Report
Authorizing is the most consequential public school governance reform of the past two decades. For the last 20+ years, authorizers have been creating a new landscape, where school autonomy—balanced by...
The Way to More Community-Responsive Schools
Authorizers don’t develop or design new schools. But they are the gateways that help bring these schools to life, providing the conditions and expectations for what extraordinary schools and equitable...