STATE EDUCATION NEWS
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New data from the Tennessee Department of Education’s 2023-24 State Report Card shows that 290 schools have received an A for overall performance, on the second annual School Letter Grades.
The 9 members of the Tennessee State Board of Education unanimously approved new rules that govern expectations for future opportunity charter schools.
End-of-course exams for public high school students in Tennessee will now have less of an impact on students’ final grades, according to state education leaders.
New data from the National Council on Teacher Quality says there are nearly four percentage points fewer teachers from historically disadvantaged groups than expected when compared against working-age adults from historically disadvantaged groups with degrees, among other findings that suggest the need to diversify the educator workforce.
The Tennessee Public Charter School Commission has approved changes to a charter agreement with Empower Memphis Career and College Prep Charter Schools that would allow the operator to open a new school in a different location next school year.
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.
A new report from the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) says that only 44 percent of students pursuing postsecondary education in Tennessee actually complete a credential, with even fewer students earning credentials that “clearly lead to economic independence.”
A new report from the Tennessee Department of Education says Tennessee’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) and work-based learning (WBL) initiatives will play a critical role in building up the state’s talent pipeline in the years ahead.
Tennessee legislators have filed several bills this year that aim to tackle longstanding challenges in education, such as expanding school choice, enhancing student safety, and curbing distractions from cell phones.
National education news organization the 74 found Tennessee’s largest school districts are achieving math proficiency at lower rates than expected based on poverty.
The Federal Trade Commission has charged a company that produces AI-based weapons detection systems used by schools and other businesses with making misleading claims about its effectiveness.
New data from the Tennessee Department of Education indicates that about 40 percent of third graders in Tennessee achieved proficiency in English language arts on 2024 state tests.
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.
While statewide teaching vacancy rates haven’t seemed to change much in recent years, Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) data indicates that the number of positions filled by teachers with temporary permits and other exemptions has increased.
While the majority of K-12 facilities in Tennessee are in “good” or “excellent” condition, a new report from the Comptroller’s Office of Research and Education Accountability says that nearly 60 percent of counties have a “monetarily significant school infrastructure need.”
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee wasted no time applauding President-elect Donald Trump’s pick of a former professional wrestling mogul to serve as the United States Secretary of Education.
Despite several state initiatives in recent years to strengthen the teacher pipeline and fill K-12 classrooms with trained educators, many Tennessee districts are still struggling to meet their staffing needs, a recent report from the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) said.
Since opening its doors for the 2015-16 school year, LEAD Neely’s Bend Middle School has garnered support from many parents in the Madison area who say the charter school’s approach to education has been beneficial for their children’s academic growth.
One of the key investments in Tennessee’s 2021 special legislative session was the creation of summer learning camps designed to help children overcome pandemic learning losses. The state has continued operating them ever since, and at Wednesday’s state budget hearing, Department of Education Commissioner LIzzette Reynolds made the case for an additional $57.8 million investment.
You can add Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to the growing list of Tennessee lawmakers who support President-elect Donald Trump’s controversial proposal to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education. Lee posted a video on social media Wednesday to proclaim his support for the idea, even though the federal department is directly responsible for funneling more than $800 million to Tennessee.
The Tennessee Higher Education Commission is requesting new funding in the state’s higher-ed budget to capitalize on the progress made through other state investments geared toward boosting postsecondary enrollment and expanding workforce training.
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.
Despite the fact that the U.S. Department of Education funnels more than $800 million into Tennessee alone, some leading Republican legislators have signaled support for President-Elect Donald Trump’s promise to eliminate the department altogether.
There have been some mixed reactions to Tennessee lawmakers’ efforts to reintroduce school choice legislation for vouchers that allow public tax dollars to be used for private school enrollment.
Black students in schools and universities across Tennessee and the nation have reported a slew of racist text messages evoking slavery in the days following former President Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election this week.
Despite witnessing a decline in first-time freshmen enrollment, overall enrollment has increased across Tennessee’s public colleges and universities, according to recent data from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission.
Voters in Colorado, Kentucky, and Nebraska have decisively rejected efforts to implement school voucher programs that would allow families to use tax dollars for private school enrollment.
Testing didn’t receive a lot of headlines during the debate earlier this year over Governor Bill Lee’s plan to let families use taxpayer dollars to send their children to private school, but it played an important role in why the legislation failed. Members of the State House and Senate advanced different versions of the Governor’s Education Freedom Scholarship, sometimes called vouchers, and couldn’t come to a compromise on those differences. One of the biggest involved a provision in the House version of the legislation that would reduce the number of tests students in public school are required to take.
The Governor’s new voucher plan unveiled Wednesday includes no reduction in testing and additionally requires participants in grades 3 through 11 to either take a nationally standardized achievement test or The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program.
A record-breaking number of students applied for the Tennessee Promise program, with over 67,000 applicants from the Class of 2025, an announcement from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) said.
The State Board of Education has selected 21 educators from across the state to join its Educator Advisory Team (EAT) to review Tennessee’s current English Language Arts standards, a recent announcement said.