Tennessee teachers who complete non-traditional pathways to licensure are significantly less likely than traditional degree program graduates to remain in the profession during their early careers, particularly by the start of their fifth year, according to a new study from TERA.

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) is teaming up with Vanderbilt University on a new $450 thousand research project aimed at tackling one of the city’s most pressing education challenges: chronic absenteeism.