First Lady Jill Biden and U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona will be stopping in Knoxville for the first day of the U.S. Department of Education’s newly announced Road to Success Back to School Bus Tour.
The one-week, multi-state tour kicks off in Knoxville on Monday, September 12 with a discussion on the teacher pipeline – how states and districts are preparing qualified individuals for educating in the classroom.
In May, the University of Tennessee announced the launch of the Grow Your Own Center, which provides apprenticeship and training opportunities for Tennesseans to begin their training in the education profession in Tennessee. Now, Knoxville will kick off the conversation surrounding the recruitment of teachers.
“It’s a great feeling to see yellow school buses drive around our communities with excited children who are ready to thrive in this new school year,” said Cardona. “I am thrilled to be traveling across the eastern states and highlighting innovative ways local, state, and federal efforts are helping students recover and succeed in and out of the classroom.”
Another issue that will be highlighted throughout the tour is learning loss due to the pandemic.
“This year will be one of the most important ever, as we not only work to catch students up, but put them in a position to do even better than where they were before March 2020,” said Cardona.
The specific location of the visit is yet to be announced but is expected to be a public school in Knoxville.
