Which Tennessee Degrees Pay Off? New Research Highlights Programs Tied to Economic Self-Sufficiency
Last week, Nashville-based education organization TN SCORE outlined which types of Tennessee postsecondary programs lead to employment where earnings are enough to be economically independent.
Tennessee Lawmakers Debate Future of Algebra II and Other Core Subjects as Graduation Requirements
Tennessee lawmakers and education leaders clashed this week over whether students with a career and technical education (CTE) focus might be able to substitute CTE courses for core subjects that are currently required for graduation.
Tennessee Tri-Star Reads Contest Winners Log Thousands of Summer Reading Minutes by Traveling to ‘Different Places’
A wizarding world. A magical farm. Other places human beings can scarcely imagine. These are just some of the places the Tri-Star Reads summer reading contest winners traveled to this summer…
Tennessee Lawmakers Discuss Tweaks to a Testing System Experts Say is Already Driving Student Improvement
The Advisory Committee on Innovations in K-12 Education will make recommendations for the General Assembly to consider next year on testing and other education issues.
Four Tennessee Lawmakers Recognized as “Team Kid Heroes” for Supporting Education Policies
Education advocacy organization Tennesseans for Student Success (TSS) recognized four state lawmakers for their leadership in education policy during the 2025 legislative session.
U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn Calls for Removing Barriers to Open Public Charter Schools
The U.S. Senator utilized her appearance at Nashville Collegiate Prep’s high school grand opening to promote her support for removing barriers that organizations face when starting new public charter schools.
Rutherford County Parents Make the Case to Launch a New Public Charter School
The Rutherford County School Board narrowly voted down Rocketship’s application to open a new public charter school last July, and the operator appealed that decision to the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission, hoping to overturn it.
Memphis Residents Champion Proposed Charter School as a Fix for a District That’s “Failed Thousands”
Memphis-based community members, including parents and retired educators, spoke out in support of a proposed public charter school they hope will help bandage a school district they say has “failed thousands.”
Tennessee Education Freedom Scholarship Program Reaches Capacity in First Year
Tennessee’s new Education Freedom Scholarship (EFS) program has filled all 20,000 available seats in its first year, according to TDOE.
Parents Make the Case for Jackson’s First Public Charter School
If the Jackson Museum School’s appeal is granted next month, the school would open with an initial class of 160 students in kindergarten through second grade.
New Research Provides a Caution as Tennessee Lawmakers Consider Potential Reductions in Graduation Requirements for CTE Students
Tennessee lawmakers are reconsidering graduation requirements for career and technical education (CTE) students, but new national research raises caution.
Tennessee Students Log Nearly 1 Million Minutes in Tristar Reads; Four Winners Earn $1,000 Scholarships
Tennessee students logged nearly 940,000 minutes this summer in the Tristar Reads contest, with four winners each earning $1,000 scholarships for their outstanding reading achievements.
Fewer Tennessee Grads Heading to College, but Future Trends Signal a Rebound
Tennessee’s college-going rate for the Class of 2024 has dropped to 56 percent, with the steepest declines among minority and low-income students.
MNPS Superintendent Adrienne Battle Highlights District Achievements at Nashville Rotary Club
Metro Schools Superintendent Adrienne Battle received a standing ovation at GEODIS Park Monday as she highlighted the district’s record-setting academic growth, including a fourth consecutive TVAAS Level 5 distinction and an 85.7% graduation rate.
New Analysis Finds Public Charter School Students are Playing an Oversized Role in the Historic Growth in Nashville and Memphis
New research by the Tennessee Charter School Center found public charter school students, including those in Nashville and Memphis, are making more academic progress than their peers in traditional public schools.
‘What Gets Measured Gets Done,’ Rep. John Rose Commits to Protecting Tennessee’s Assessment and Teacher Evaluation Systems if Elected Governor
In an interview with the Tennessee Firefly’s On the Fly podcast, Rose said he’d be open to tweaks to assessments and evaluations, but believes the state should “keep on keeping on” with both systems that polling has shown Republican voters support.
Nashville Symposium Explores How Environmental Factors Shape Student Success
Extreme weather, rising temperatures, and other environmental changes are affecting how Tennessee students learn and thrive, and experts say action is needed now.
Tennessee Virtual School Enrollment Distorts Funding, Officials Warn
Virtual students in Tennessee are causing unexpected distortions in how the state calculates school funding, according to findings presented Thursday by the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR).
Nashville and Memphis Report Historic Student Growth while Chattanooga Sees Steady Progress
Tennessee’s two largest school districts, Metro Nashville Public Schools and Memphis-Shelby County Schools, posted historic academic growth for the fourth year in a row, earning the state’s top rating on student progress in 2025, according to new Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) results.
Collierville High School Math Educator Who Believes ‘Every Child Can Do Math’ Named Tennessee Teacher of the Year
The Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) announced Dr. Brandi De La Cruz, a mathematics teacher at Collierville High School, as the 2025–26 Tennessee Teacher of the Year.

