CHATTANOOGA NEWS

The Hamilton County Schools Board of Education will vote next week to finalize an updated district facilities plan to establish a new career and technical education (CTE) center and combine some schools under one facility, among other proposals.

In the coming weeks, leaders of more than a dozen public charter schools will make the case for why their school’s charter should be renewed for another ten-year term. Charter schools are free public schools operated by an independent contract or “charter” with an authorizing agency like a school district or the state.

This year, five authorizing agencies including school board members with Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS), Memphis-Shelby County Schools, Hamilton County Schools, Knox County Schools, along with members of the state-run Tennessee Public Charter School Commission will make those decisions for thirteen charter schools.

Going into Tuesday night’s general election, Tennessee Democrats had high hopes of whittling into the Republican supermajority by winning a handful of House seats that are currently held by Republicans.  On the flipside, GOP leaders targeted growing their supermajority by flipping three Middle Tennessee seats currently held by Democrats.

Neither came to fruition, but one came close.

Last year, the Tennessee General Assembly attracted headlines when members held multiple hearings on the possibility of rejecting up to a billion dollars in federal education funding. Lawmakers ultimately didn’t go forward with that idea, but that doesn’t mean it’s dead. Republican House District 27 candidate Michele Reneau said in a recent interview that she’s open to the possibility of rejecting federal education dollars.

Amy Kyriakidis, assistant director for suicide education and prevention at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s Center for Wellbeing, recently received special recognition from the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network (TSPN) for her contributions to suicide prevention in Tennessee.

Hamilton County Schools will move forward with a plan to provide transportation to early voting sites for students who are eligible to vote, despite some debate about the initiative among Republican and Democrat board members at Thursday’s school board meeting.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga will use a $3.5 million gift and research grant from the Journey Health Foundation to establish a Research Center for Health and Economic Analytics within the Gary W. Rollins College of Business. Learn more about how the new center will use those funds.

SouthEast Bank announced a three-year investment of $154,500 into Chattanooga public charter schools Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy and the Montessori Elementary at Highland Park to help hire new teaching assistants and fund a new scholarship.

Read more about how these Tennessee charter schools are serving students.

Several parents and community members spoke to Hamilton County Schools leaders about school safety concerns at Thursday’s school board meeting following a recent string of threats against schools throughout the district.

Read more about what they told the Tennessee school district.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has launched a search for a researcher and educator to join its quantum program as a Governor’s Chair scientist with a joint appointment at UTC and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), a recent university announcement said.

BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee teamed up with East Tennessee State University in 2021 to create an accelerated learning program for students to earn a bachelor’s degree in computing and job offer at BlueCross in just two years.

Hamilton County Schools recently teamed up with the healthcare provider Erlanger Health System to open a School-Based Health Center at Howard Connect Academy.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is working to support first year students settling into campus this school year to help ease the transition from high school to higher education.

The Hamilton County school board updated its policy to allow school nurses to provide emergency care to students without parental consent, in response to a new Tennessee law requiring parental permission for non-emergency treatment. The law was initially aimed at restricting gender-affirming care but has broader implications, such as needing consent for basic medical care. The board unanimously passed the update to ensure emergency situations are addressed promptly. Additionally, the board approved funding for a new staff position to manage legislative updates and advocate for school funding, despite some opposition.

The public charter school operator Prep Public Schools is looking to replicate the success of Chattanooga Preparatory School with another all-boys charter school that just opened its doors for its first school year last Thursday.

The Hamilton County Schools Board of Education voted 8-0 to approve a $663 million revised budget during Thursday’s special called meeting.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has been designated a 2024-2025 College of Distinction and a Tennessee College of Distinction, a recent announcement said.

The Tennessee Charter School Center recognized 5 middle schools and 8 high schools for having the greatest positive impact on student academic growth and achievement.

A recent report from the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) found that school districts across Tennessee began the school year with 1,000 teaching vacancies.

A new report from the Tennessee Charter School Center found public charter schools are outperforming traditional public schools on state measurements for student growth.

A heated debate over Hamilton County Schools’ proposed $674 million budget led to a failed vote to reinstate it on the agenda. The school board will revisit the issue in June.

When E’Janay Reynolds was eight years old, she, her mother, and two younger sisters found themselves living in the Chattanooga Homeless Shelter for roughly seven months.Though her mother was eventually able to get federal Section 8 assistance to move the family into housing, this drastic change gave Reynolds a push to focus on school.“Academically, it just gave me a push to be better and do better. Because, if I didn’t do it, who else would have (done) it?” said Reynolds. “I just had to push to ‘okay, go in school, be the best you can be because you’re going to need that to get somewhere in life’.”

School boards in as many as six counties could vote on applications this year for new public charter schools.A diverse group of potential charter operators sent 21 charter application letters of intent to school districts across the state, the first step in this year’s new start charter application process. Those operators include an existing charter operator, prior applicants who failed to receive approval, along with a host of new organizations with no experience in Tennessee.A diverse group of potential charter operators sent 22 charter application letters of intent to school districts across the state, the first step in this year’s new start charter application process. Those operators include existing charter operators, prior applicants who failed to receive approval, along with a host of new organizations with no experience in Tennessee.

Three of Tennessee’s largest school districts are touting their academic growth on the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS).Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS), Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) and Hamilton County Schools (HCS) all put out press releases to celebrate their status as TVAAS Level 5 school districts, the highest distinction available.

For more than two decades, Levar Brown has been proving to himself exactly what he can and cannot do.Along the way, Brown likewise has proven a consistent, persistent influence in the lives of Chattanooga-area youth.

In 2010 the future looked anything but bright for the Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy (CGLA).The new public charter school had just finished its first year of operation and the school was in danger of not making it to a second.