Education
Stockard on the Stump: Schwinn denies piloting materials in book adoption, but LIFT did
Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn told lawmakers this week the state didn’t pilot any materials during the English Language Arts adoption two years ago, nor is it in the upcoming math adoption process. She made the statement just two weeks after state textbook commission members made it clear the 18-month book and material selection lies […]
Tennessee sees student improvement from summer programs
Tennessee students who took part in summer camps improved in English and math, regaining some of their pandemic learning loss, after the Legislature pumped $160 million into new programs, according to new data the state released Wednesday. Test scores from 120,000 students who participated in the classes showed an improvement of 5.97 percentage points overall […]
“I feel like the public schools have let us down.”
Last school year wasn’t easy, but with the help of his mother, Joey Doherty kept up with Zoom classes taught by the special education teachers he has known for years. This year, Joey – a high school senior who is 19 years old, blind in one eye, has Down Syndrome and a host of resulting […]
House Education panels won’t hear Hakeem’s Black history bill
A joint meeting of House Education committees isn’t likely to consider Rep. Yusuf Hakeem’s Black history education bill this week even though he was told it would be made “perfect” in summer study. The Chattanooga Democrat sought to increase Black history curriculum in grades 5-8 earlier this year, but the House Education Instruction Committee voted […]
Education committee drops discussion of Black history education
Chattanooga Democratic Rep. Yusef Hakeem says he is “surprised and disappointed” the Joint Legislative Education Committee won’t be discussing a bill he introduced during legislative session to provide the study of Black history to public school students. In April, HB1460 was deferred to summer study, which typically means a bill has little traction. Hakeem wrote […]
At least 14 Tennessee public school employees lost to COVID since academic year began
At least 14 employees of Tennessee public schools have died since the academic year began after contracting COVID-19 — a toll that no single public or private agency tracks. The deaths, confirmed by the Tennessee Lookout, include a 42-year-old Metro Nashville Public Schools bus driver who “devoted himself to making sure every child on his […]
8 Tennessee public school employees dead from COVID in first month of school
Just before she went to bed on Tuesday, Tennessee Education Association president Beth Brown got word of yet another public school teacher who died this week as a result of COVID-19. Brown returned to what has now become a painful but familiar ritual since the pandemic first began. “One of the very last things I […]
Republican lawmaker questions effectiveness of governor’s mask opt-out order
As Shelby County tries to overturn Gov. Bill Lee’s order allowing parents to opt children out of a school mask mandate, state Rep. Tom Leatherwood contends the governor’s directive is limited already because of health department rules. Leatherwood, an Arlington Republican, said Wednesday he supports parents’ rights to send their children to school without masks. […]
Feds open civil rights probe of Lee mask order
The federal government opened a civil rights probe Monday of Gov. Bill Lee’s executive order on masks, threatening to take action against Tennessee if it finds a violation of U.S. law. The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights informed Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn it opened a “directed investigation” into whether the state is […]
Biden administration launches civil rights investigations of GOP-led states banning school masks
WASHINGTON — Federal education officials have launched civil rights investigations in five Republican-led states that have prohibited school districts from mandating mask-wearing, saying those policies could amount to illegal discrimination against students with disabilities. The Biden administration notified the education chiefs in Iowa, Tennessee, South Carolina, Utah and Oklahoma of the investigations through formal letters Monday. […]
Tennessee’s colleges and universities prepare for COVID among students
William Braeden Clark, a sophomore at Middle Tennessee State University, has a backup plan in case he gets infected with COVID-19. Most Tennessee colleges have started fall semester at full capacity with COVID-19 policies, but policies change depending on the pandemic. Clark lives on campus but will have to quarantine off campus at his parent’s […]
School administrators squeezed by Tennessee’s flip-flops on COVID
Jeff Luttrell’s voice cracked at times as he laid bare the dire situation he is facing as director of Wilson County Schools just three weeks into the academic year: 209 teachers absent. 38 bus routes down for the day. 562 active COVID cases among students and staff. Secretaries supervising classes. And 60- to 80- hour […]