Members of the Tennessee General Assembly adjourned the legislative session Thursday following more than three months of sometimes contentious and challenging educational debate. Headlining the list of challenges was Governor Bill Lee’s Education Freedom Scholarship Act that failed to reach either the House or Senate Floor. The post School “vouchers” attracted headlines this legislative session, but charter support could have the lasting impact first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more

Two State Representatives who’ve played a big role in education legislation this session were among the nine Republicans who declined to vote on a bill Thursday that would ban marriage between first cousins.  State Representatives Scott Cepicky, R-Culleoka, and John Ragan, R-Oak Ridge, didn’t speak for or against the bill but joined Representatives Tandy Darby, R-Greenfield; Bud Hulsey, R-Kingsport; Chris Hurt, R-Halls; Brock Martin, R-Huntingdon; Jay Reedy, R-Erin; Tim Rudd, R-Murfreesboro; and Iris Rudder, R-Winchester in opting against voting on it. The post House education leaders dec ..read more

A controversial bill that would ban pride flags in Tennessee classrooms failed to receive the necessary 17 votes needed to reach a constitutional majority for passage in the Senate Tuesday. The vote included a rare show of bipartisanship with Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, joining the five Democrats in voting against the bill. Eight other Republicans skipped the vote altogether, ensuring that it’s done for the legislative session. The post Senate fails to pass bill to ban pride flags in the classroom first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more

The Tennessee House chamber once again turned into chaos Tuesday following debate on legislation involving guns. House members voted 68-28 vote to pass a bill allowing teachers and school staff to carry firearms on school grounds and in classrooms. Immediately after the vote, spectators above began shouting, “Blood on your hands,” prompting House Republican leaders to call on state troopers to escort demonstrators out. The post Tennessee General Assembly passes legislation to allow teachers to carry guns in school first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more

Governor Bill Lee conceded that there’s no pathway for his signature education bill to pass this session and vowed to bring back the Education Freedom Scholarship plan next year. On social media Monday morning the Governor expressed his gratitude to supporters of the plan to allow parents to utilize taxpayer dollars to send their children to private school and his disappointment in pulling the plug on it. The post Governor pulls plug on Education Freedom Scholarships and vows to revisit the plan next year first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more

West Nashville Representative Bo Mitchell, D-Nashville, provided Metro Nashville Public Schools with some eyebrow raising advice on the House floor Thursday. Mitchell suggested the district bulldoze buildings, like the former Hillwood High School campus, before letting public charter schools use them. The district stopped utilizing the Hillwood property as a school when the new James Lawson High School opened last August. The post Representative Bo Mitchell suggests Metro Schools bulldoze buildings before allowing organizations serving high numbers of students of color use them first appeared ..read more

In an rare move of bipartisanship, the State Senate sent legislation to Governor Lee’s desk Wednesday that should ease some of the concerns parents have about their children repeating the fourth grade. The state estimates roughly 6 to 10 thousand fourth-graders are at risk for retention under a provision of the state’s Third-Grade Retention law. The post Bipartisan vote leads to passage of legislation to reduce the number of fourth-graders held back under new reading requirements first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more

House Democrats continued their push for the removal of Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds Tuesday during a discussion about a temporary teaching license bill. Representative Kirk Haston, R-Lobelville, sponsored the bill to allow Tennessee’s Education Commissioner to issue temporary teaching permits for courses that require end-of-course testing. The permits would only be applied for and granted as a last resort for filling vacancies. The post Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds’ qualifications come under fire again during debate on the House floor first appeared on Th ..read more

Governor Lee’s signature education proposal this year appears to be on life support. Tuesday afternoon both the Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee and the House Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee passed the state’s budget without taking up legislation to create the Education Freedom Scholarship plan. It would allow parents across the state to use public tax dollars to send their children to private school. The post Governor’s Education Freedom Scholarship Plan faces uphill battle for passage first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more

Missy Testerman has enjoyed a teaching career that is decades longer than most, spending more than 30 years in first- and second-grade classrooms. But when she saw that her K-8 school district in rural Appalachia was quietly becoming a refuge for families from Mexico, Central America and Asia, she shifted gears and became an English as a second language teacher, pushing to smooth her students’ — and their families’ — transition to life in the U.S. The post Five Things to Know About Missy Testerman, the 2024 National Teacher of the Year first appeared on The Tennessee Firefly ..read more