Author

Kathy Carlson
Kathy Carlson is a veteran newspaper reporter and copy editor, with stints at the Nashville Banner and Tennessean. At the Tennessean, she worked on the police and business beats. She later wrote about employment law for M. Lee Smith Publishers. 1 For the past several years, she has been a freelance journalist. As a contributor to the Nashville Ledger, she has written about COVID-19, public health, education, voting during the pandemic, and a variety of governmental, legal and policy issues. Several ofher Ledger articles have received first-prize recognition 2 in Tennessee Press Association annual competitions. She will be working as a volunteer poll watcher with Organize Tennessee on Thursday.
Tennessee K-12 Mental Health Trust Fund board okays first dispersal of funds
By: Kathy Carlson - November 22, 2023
Money from a $250 million state investment in mental health services for children can begin to be spent in this fiscal year, the board of trustees overseeing the investment decided in a meeting on Monday. The four-person board of trustees for the K-12 Mental Health Trust Fund voted to authorize $6 million to be spent […]
In Montgomery County, district attorney prosecutes ten people for voter fraud
By: Kathy Carlson - November 3, 2023
Ten people have been indicted, arrested and are being prosecuted in Clarksville on charges of voter fraud. The charges allege the people knew they weren’t entitled to vote or to register to vote because of a past felony conviction, but did so anyway. That’s also a felony, and if convicted, they could be sentenced to […]
Alive Hospice founders going to nonprofit’s board of directors
By: Kathy Carlson - September 25, 2023
Alive Hospice co-founders David Barton, M.D. and his wife, Lynn Barton, along with Denise Alper and Susan Simons, have been appointed to Alive’s board of directors, the nonprofit hospice announced today in a news release. The Bartons and the late Dr. John Flexner founded Alive in 1975; it was only the third hospice in the […]
Months after uproar over potential sale, Nashville’s Alive Hospice CEO talks about the future
By: Kathy Carlson - September 5, 2023
Nearly three months ago, Nashville’s Alive Hospice board announced it would remain a nonprofit, independent organization that for nearly 48 years has cared for people at the end of their lives, a move that capped months of controversy after news broke that Alive might sell to a for-profit entity. A group called Keep Alive Alive […]
Tennessee raises bar to restore voting rights for those with felony convictions
By: Kathy Carlson - July 27, 2023
Tennessee residents who have felony convictions and want to vote must comply with two state laws rather than one or the other, according to guidance from the state coordinator of elections. Beginning last Friday, they now must obtain a pardon or have all citizenship rights restored, and show they have paid all restitution and court […]
Tennessee Supreme Court rules in felony voting rights case
By: Kathy Carlson - July 13, 2023
The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled that a person whose voting rights are restored in another state after being convicted of a felony there must also prove payment of court costs and other fees in order to vote here. Ernest Falls, convicted of a felony in Virginia, served his sentence there and later moved to […]
Alive Hospice CEO steps down after pushback over rumored sale to for-profit health provider
By: Kathy Carlson - June 16, 2023
Kimberly Goessele, chief executive officer of Alive Hospice, has stepped down from her role in leading the nonprofit, the organization said in a news release issued Thursday evening. Alive Chief Operating Officer Joe Hampe has been named interim CEO, the release said. “Goessele will continue to support the organization for several weeks to ensure a […]
Nashville’s Alive Hospice to remain nonprofit
By: Kathy Carlson - June 6, 2023
Alive Hospice will remain a nonprofit, the Nashville hospice organization announced through its board of directors on Tuesday. Following is the announcement, sent in an email from its director of communications and marketing, Liz Haas: “The Alive Board of Directors has determined that Alive will remain a not-for-profit, independent organization providing hospice, palliative care and […]
Murfreesboro nonprofit to pull funds from Alive Hospice if board sells to for-profit company
By: Kathy Carlson - May 24, 2023
A Murfreesboro charitable foundation that gave more than $3 million to help Alive Hospice build a facility in Rutherford County has told Alive it wants its money back if the nonprofit is sold to a for-profit company. The Christy-Houston Foundation also made its concerns known to the Tennessee Attorney General in a letter and attachments […]
Supporters of nonprofit Alive Hospice file complaint with Tennessee Attorney General
By: Kathy Carlson - May 9, 2023
Community members supporting Nashville’s Alive Hospice remaining a nonprofit have filed a complaint with the Tennessee attorney general, saying any sale of Alive’s assets would thwart the purpose of the Tennessee Nonprofit Corporation law. A group of about 20 people, including former members of the hospice board and a founder, held a news conference Tuesday […]
Earnings from Tennessee’s mental health trust fund for kids slow to roll out
By: Kathy Carlson - May 9, 2023
Two years after Tennessee passed a law to make a one-time $250 million investment in mental health services for school-age children, plans on how to spend earnings from the trust fund are still being made. Any mental health expenditures won’t take place until the 2024-25 fiscal year. Work continues on an assessment of mental health […]
Tennesseans seek to move on from COVID, even as a new variant appears
By: Kathy Carlson - January 19, 2023
Get used to it, but not over it. That may be the best advice for living with COVID-19 as 2023 starts and as the recent XBB.1.5 variant debuts in Tennessee. More than three years since COVID first arrived, the virus that causes it – SARS-CoV-2 – continues to mutate. XBB.1.5 is more contagious than the […]