Five Tennessee school districts across the state received letters of intent for 17 proposed new public charter schools by last week’s deadline. Letters of intent are the first official step in next year’s new start charter application process.

Knox County Schools (KCS) Board of Education members unanimously approved proposed revisions to district guidelines on discrimination and harassment at Thursday’s board meeting.

National education news organization the 74 found Tennessee’s largest school districts are achieving math proficiency at lower rates than expected based on poverty.

Members of the Knox County Schools Board of Education continued to debate proposed revisions to district guidelines on discrimination and harassment at Monday’s work session.

The Tennessee Department of Education announced the 377 schools across the state that have received the designation as Reward Schools for the 2023/2024 school year.

Public charter schools led the way in the state’s largest school district, accounting for nearly a third of Memphis-Shelby County Schools’ 34 Reward Schools.

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.

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Fibers and Composites Manufacturing Facility and Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation now have a new home, complete with new lab spaces for testing composite materials, a recent university announcement said.  

University of Tennessee (UT) System President Randy Boyd recently visited several high schools across the state to highlight the system’s academic programming and financial aid options.

Knox County Schools (KCS) leaders continued to hear from parents about school safety concerns at Thursday’s regular Board of Education meeting, following last month’s threats against the East Tennessee school district.

The University of Tennessee at Knoxville achieved “high rankings across multiple disciplines” in the latest U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges report, a recent university announcement said.

Knox County Schools Superintendent Dr. Jon Rysewyk announced Monday that the district will provide assistance to school systems impacted by flooding from Hurricane Helene.

Learn more about how the Tennessee school district plans to help neighboring districts:

The University of Tennessee at Knoxville has appointed mathematics professor Dr. Vasileios Maroulas to serve as associate vice chancellor and director of the AI Tennessee Initiative.

Read more about how he plans to lead the Tennessee higher education initiative in the years ahead.

The Tennessee Comptroller’s Office has released two investigative reports related to Farragut High School in Knox County Schools System (KCS) after officials there reported “questionable transactions” to the office, a recent news release said.

Harpeth Middle School seventh-grader Elijah Riggs won the Tristar Reads contest by logging an average of eight hours each day reading.

University of Tennessee ecology and evolutionary biology professor Nina Fefferman was recently awarded $18 million from the U.S. National Science Foundation to study how infectious diseases can spread to cause an epidemic or pandemic rather than dying out.

The Knox County Board of Education approved new AI guidelines at Thursday's regular meeting. The board also heard comments from community members about a new state law instructing schools to "out" LGBTQ students to parents.

Knox County Schools says the district has reduced teacher vacancies to near-zero levels through a “cultural shift” in the hiring process that simplifies the process for potential candidates.

University of Tennessee President Randy Boyd told business and community leaders in Nashville that five myths are hindering the ability for institutions of higher learning to produce the workforce Tennessee needs.

Following recent discussions between board members and with parents in the community about their preferences, the board decided to do away with two “early release days” and turn the remaining four into “half days,” which officials say have less instruction time than early release days