One week into this year’s legislative session, winter weather put the Tennessee General Assembly on hold. That delay prevented lawmakers from beginning discussion on key education related bills, but things will change when members return to Nashville next week.Bills filed before the weather break will bring debate on topics previously discussed last session such as the state’s struggling math scores, continued attempts to make higher education more accessible, along with proposals to create new rules for school districts.

Memphis-Shelby County School (MSCS) leaders say proactive efforts to winterize schools and increase facility staff is paying dividends during this week’s cold winter weather.For the first time since the merger of Memphis City Schools and Shelby County Schools, the district has a plant manager stationed at each school to provide expertise and additional resources to facilities teams.District leaders say that change played a valuable role supporting the aging buildings that are less energy efficient and require more money and personnel to maintain.

The Rutherford County School Board is considering upping the ante for how much the district pays its special education teachers and faculty.During budget preparation in last week’s meeting, board members discussed the pay hike to maintain competition with other school districts.Board member Frances Rosales also suggested giving an incentive to education assistants (EA) for students learning English as a second language.

Tennessee students in a pilot educational savings account program in three counties are receiving $9,800 – the average statewide funding per public school student – this year.That’s higher than the $7,075 first-year number in a proposed statewide ESA program and higher than what the funding was estimated to be heading into the approval of the pilot, which is currently taking place in Davidson, Shelby and Hamilton counties.

With a busy classroom schedule and school operations consuming each day, it’s rarely easy for public school teachers to stay on top of every education bill that’s making its way through the Tennessee General Assembly.Educator voices can be important though to the lawmakers who vote on those bills and that’s one reason why organization Tennesseans for Student Success created Teachers for Student Success two years ago.

Knox County School Board members voted to hold off implementing a proposed change to school harassment language some fear would remove protections for LGBTQ+ students and faculty.That change would have replaced “actual or perceived gender” and “sexual orientation” in district harassment policy with “sex.”Knox County Deputy Law Director Gary Dupler told board members the recommended language change was for legal purposes only and not with the intention of making a sociopolitical statement, but opponents urged board members at last week’s meeting to keep the language as it is.

Small, regular interactions with a reading tutor — about 5 to 7 minutes — are making a big impact on young students’ reading skills, new Stanford University research shows.First graders in Florida’s Broward County schools who participated in the program, called Chapter One, saw more substantial gains in reading fluency than those who didn’t receive the support, according to the study. They were also 9 percentage points less likely to be considered at risk on a district literacy test.

The snow that’s blanketed Tennessee this week is forcing Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) to push back the final phase of its superintendent search.The district had planned to host community engagement and school board interviews with three finalists this week but those meetings will now take place on February 1 and 2.The district is considering Atlanta Public Schools Chief Academic Officer Yolanda C. Brown, Portland Public Schools Deputy Superintendent of Instruction and School Communities Cheryl Proctor, and Detroit Public Schools Chief of Leadership and High Schools Marie N. Feagins for the position.

When Tennessee lawmakers return to Nashville from this week’s snow delay, fourth-grade retention may very well succeed last year’s heated debate over third-grade retention.Last Wednesday’s discussion in the Senate Education Committee with new Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Lizette Reynolds brought a preview of what that debate may look like.

Most states have revised their strategies for teaching children to read over the last half-decade, a reflection of both long-held frustration with slow academic progress and newer concerns around COVID-related learning loss. An attempt to incorporate evidence-based insights into everyday school practice, the nationwide campaign has been touted as a promising development for student achievement.But many states don’t adequately train or help teachers to carry out those ambitious plans, according to a new analysis.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Interim Superintendent Tutonial “Toni” Williams gathered with district leaders Thursday morning to commit to putting forward long-term, proactive, and sustainable solutions to address the root cause of violence impacting youth.Community violence is an ongoing issue in the Memphis community that affects both youth and adults. According to MSCS, 22 students died from violence during the 2023-2024 school year.

Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, announced Thursday that he’s moving Representative Justin Jones, D-Nashville, off a key education committee. Sexton appointed Jones to the Education Administration Committee during last summer's special session on public safety but Jones will not serve on that committee during this year’s session.

Faculty from Martin Luther King Jr. Magnet School pleaded with the Metro Nashville School Board Tuesday night to oppose a proposal to remove two middle school grades as part of the MNPS ReimaginED equity roadmap.That proposal would remove seventh and eighth-grade students from the school. One faculty member requested the district instead expand MLK to include sixth-grade.MLK school counselor Sarah Laos told school board told board members the building still has room to enroll more students and she worries phasing out the two grades means losing part of the faculty.

The majority of Nashville’s public charter schools received a better report card from the state than their traditional school counterparts in the Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) district.A Tennessee Firefly analysis of the recently released School Letter Grades found 62 percent of MNPS public charter schools scored a higher grade than similar traditional public schools averaged.

The Tennessee House of Representatives formally adopted new rules for this year’s legislative session Wednesday that limit debate time and silence members for speaking out of order.Representative William Lamberth, R-Portland, brought forward the change involving the amount of time members are able to speak on a topic. Under the new rule, both the Democratic and Republican caucuses each get 30 minutes total to speak on bills.Caucus leaders are responsible for dolling out how much time each individual member can speak during those 30 minutes.

Five Tennessee State Senators who served on last year’s panel that looked into the possibility of rejecting federal education funding are breaking with their House colleagues and submitting a separate recommendation.

Five Tennessee State Senators who served on last year’s panel that looked into the possibility of rejecting federal education funding are breaking with their House colleagues and submitting a separate recommendation.

When K-12 schools closed their doors for in-person instruction in spring 2020, it had a variety of negative effects on students and teachers. It also shut off the training opportunities for future educators.In response, states instituted a variety of short-term waivers allowing candidates to teach without fulfilling their normal requirements. Those policies helped candidates who would have otherwise been prevented from teaching, while aiding school leaders in filling open positions.

Tennessee State House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, unveiled a new policy on the first day of the new legislative session that cuts public access to the gallery above the House floor.Sexton’s new policy requires the use of a ticket to sit in the gallery. The House distributed 99 tickets, with each lawmaker getting tickets to issue. The House’s rules provide its speaker with the ability to set guidelines, including the new ticketing policy.