Hamilton County race pits former teacher against candidate who’s open to rejecting federal education funding

House District 27 candidates Kathy Lennon (left) and Michele Reneau (right) (Photos by 

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. Republican leaders in the State House largely led the effort out of concerns about federal requirements that come with those dollars.

Ultimately Senate members of the Joint Working Group that looked into the possibility rejected the idea out of financial concerns and questions whether rejecting federal funds actually would remove federal requirements, but that doesn’t mean the concept has disappeared from political discussion.

In a recent interview with Talk Radio 102.3, House District 27 candidate Michele Reneau said she’s open to the possibility of rejecting federal education dollars.

“I know that’s not an easy thing to just completely do away with, but I do think there are probably different things that we can be specific and intentional at reviewing what those strings attached are and making a decision that is fiscally responsible by looking at the entire picture and then seeing how the money could be rejected if those requirements don’t match Tennessee values,” said Reneau.

The GOP nominee beat out Representative Patsy Hazlewood, R-Signal Mountain, in the Republican primary last August. Reneau is facing former teacher and Hamilton County School Board member Kathy Lennon in tonight’s election.

During the campaign, Lennon has charted a different path on education funding, stressing the importance of increasing it.

“Our kids deserve a future where quality education is available to every student, in every neighborhood. Kathy Lennon is committed to investing in our public schools, not diverting funds to private corporations. As a former School Board member, she knows the importance of fully equipping classrooms and paying teachers fairly. Together, we can ensure Tennessee’s public schools—and the students they serve—thrive,” wrote Lennon’s campaign on a recent social media post.

The Hamilton County race has been among the most watched by political insiders, with both candidates reporting strong campaign contribution numbers.

Reneau is a mother of five and says her children have attended every kind of school but public charter and magnet. The Republican candidate says that experience has made her a big supporter of providing parents with school choice, but she’s not ready to commit to supporting Governor Lee’s universal school choice plan next year that would let parents use taxpayer dollars to send their children to private school.

Reneau says she needs to read it first.

“I absolutely support a parent’s right to choose what kind of education, what’s best for their child,” said Renau to Talk Radio 102.3. “I’m concerned that we’re not putting more focus on, how do we fix public schools, instead of trying to just find a way to extract children out of public school and put them in a private school.”

Lennon has more directly campaigned against the Governor’s universal school choice proposal, echoing the concerns from other Democratic party lawmakers who worry it will take needed funding away from public schools.

“Tennessee consistently ranks in the bottom ten nationwide for education funding per student and teacher pay, which is even more reason to keep public dollars in public schools” wrote Lennon, laying out her priorities on her campaign website. “Insist on Tennessean's hard-earned tax dollars stay in our public schools - not private corporations.”