Department of Education Requests $30 Million for Summer Camps

Dyer County students taking part in a learning camp last summer (Photo by the Tennessee Department of Education)

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Tennessee lawmakers passed legislation to create new bridge camps and summer learning camps designed to help students recover from learning losses.

The programs proved so successful, lawmakers made them permanent in 2023.

Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds (Photo by the Tennessee Department of Education)

On Thursday, Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner (TDOE) Lizzette Reynolds reported that roughly 90,000 K-9 grade students have been participating in the camps each summer, and 73 percent of those students attended at least 90 percent of the programming. Reynolds’ department is asking Governor Bill Lee to provide an additional $30 million each year to continue the program and add new flexibility for the school districts that run them.

“For some of them, it could be continuing summer learning. It’s really to help remediate, particularly in the earlier grades, to get kids ready for third and fourth grade,” said Reynolds. “For some, it could be tutoring. What many districts have talked to us about…is there an opportunity to create even more flexibility during the school year to support more tutoring support.”

Department Requests $39 Million in New Spending

Reynold’s request for extra summer camp funding is part of $39 million in increased spending the department is requesting for the 2026/27 fiscal year. Governor Lee held budget hearings this week for each state department, including TDOE, to make requests for the coming year.

The department is additionally requesting:

·      $2.6 million in recurring funding for paid parental leave. This year, 2,300 employees used the program.

·      $693,000 in recurring funding to ensure State Special School teachers have salaries comparable to equivalent positions at nearby school districts.

·      $2.6 million in recurring funding and $1.5 million in nonrecurring funding to support the state’s School Turnaround Program.

·      $1.5 million to support the ongoing costs of a statewide data system upgrade.

Education Freedom Scholarship Update

Reynolds’ funding requests do not yet include any potential increases in spending for the new Education Freedom Scholarship Act. Families of 20,000 students in 86 counties are utilizing the scholarship this year to pay for private school expenses.

Lawmakers and gubernatorial candidates are discussing expanding the number of scholarship recipients next year, which would increase the program's overall cost in the 2026/27 budget.

Opponents of the program have questioned whether it might siphon money away from local school districts, but Reynolds praised its support from participants on Thursday by reading a letter from a scholarship parent with three children.

“Your efforts mean more to me than you know. Knowing that the state has gone so far above and beyond to help kids like mine in this way brings comfort and makes me proud to be a Tennessean,” said Reynolds.