Nashville Organized for Action and Hope (NOAH) will host its annual “Hope in Action” banquet on May 29th. This year’s featured speaker: State Sen. Charlane Oliver, a staunch defender of public education.
NOAH says of Oliver:
This year’s keynote speaker is Tennessee State Senator Charlane Oliver, a trailblazing advocate for equity and justice. Senator Oliver, co-founder of The Equity Alliance, has been instrumental in advancing voting rights and empowering marginalized communities across Tennessee. Her address will focus on the power of grassroots organizing and the importance of sustained civic engagement.
The event is on Thursday, May 29th from 6:00-8:00 PM at the Boone Business Building on the campus of Trevecca Nazarene University.
A group of Tennessee pastors affiliated with the Southern Christian Coalition condemned Tennessee lawmakers for what the group said was a “harmful” legislative session.
“As a Christian pastor, I believe all children are made in the image of God and deserve the freedom to learn, be themselves, and thrive—regardless of where they’re born or their family’s income,” said Rev. Dr. C. Don Jones, Pastor of Andersonville and Heiskell United Methodist Churches in East Tennessee. “Yet this 2025 legislative session has harmed vulnerable children across our state. While we’re thankful some of the worst bills didn’t pass, significant damage was still done. The January Special Session’s voucher program diverted public education funds to private schools, hurting children in public schools. Lawmakers also continued restricting TANF funds meant to help families in poverty, and Governor Lee rejected federal money intended to feed hungry children during summer months. When will these attacks on our children stop?”
Lee rejected $75 million in federal funds that would have supported a program to add funds to EBT cards for families whose kids receive free/reduced lunch during the school year.
Unfortunately, in reading the tea leaves, when it comes to the education world, it appears to me, 2025 will provide much the same as 2024.
We’ll fight over vouchers, bemoan charter schools, while pretending that teacher shortages don’t exist.
I’m betting that conversation over funding for desperately needed updates to existing facilities will be shuffled to the back burner once again, and kids will continue to attend schools with pest problems, heating and cooling issues, and inadequate space for enrolled students.
Lawmakers reject additional investment in teacher pay
Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee rejected a move that would have invested the $140 million+ allocated for Gov. Lee’s voucher scheme into an increase in teacher pay.
“This amendment would take the K-12 education funding set aside for Gov. Lee’s school voucher program and reassign it to the K-12 student funding formula,” said Sen. Lamar. “There are so many needs our public school system has that this voucher money could be used for — one of which being teacher raises.”
The proposal failed on a party-line vote, with all nine Republicans on Senate Finance opposing the move.
A bill that would allow teachers to carry a concealed gun on campus and school property is moving through the Tennessee General Assembly.
It passed on the Senate floor on Tuesday with 26 votes for and five votes against. On Thursday, it was held on the House’s desk.
If passed, this bill would allow school staff members to carry a concealed gun upon completing training, background checks and a psychological evaluation. Substitute teachers or part-time employees cannot participate.
It’s not yet clear whether the House will move the legislation forward. Should the House pass the legislation, it would go to Gov. Lee for his signature.
Pratik Dash, from Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition Votes, said, “We are all here today on the first day of the 2024 legislative session – Black, Brown, White, younger and older, from different regions of the state because we love Tennessee. We’re here because we love our communities, our people, and our children enough to demand what we deserve. We deserve to live in a state where we can confidently say everyone – regardless of what we look like or where we come from, we are all safe from gun violence. Right now, all eyes are on Tennessee, but we know that our movement is bigger than this moment.”
The call for “love and hope” followed an earlier call for the rejection of school vouchers. Representatives of the Southern Christian Coalition noted that they believe vouchers are potentially harmful to Tennessee students and communities.
Senate Democratic Caucus Chair London Lamar of Memphis says the GOP’s actions are “reckless and irresponsible” and instead is calling on state lawmakers to invest more funds in public schools.
“Our students need more support in the classroom, not less. Our students need more access to tutoring, counselors and mental health specialists, not less. Our students need regular meals and wrap-around support to be the best learners they can be.
“There’s no future success story for students, families or our economy if Tennessee continues down this dangerous, anti-student path.”
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
Rev. Matt Steinhauer, Interim Pastor of St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Franklin, said, “As a Christian pastor and father of 3 children, one of whom is intellectually disabled who attended and graduated from TN public schools, I firmly believe that all Tennessee children, no matter where they live in the state, the color of their skin, or their ability level, are valuable and they deserve leaders who will ensure students have everything they need to thrive at school and succeed in the classroom and beyond. This is why I cannot begin to comprehend why there is currently a panel of elected leaders meeting to consider rejecting over $1 billion in annual funding annually to Tennessee children in our public schools.”
“As a mother, grandmother, and Christian pastor, I believe that Tennessee children and families are valuable and deserve leaders who will ensure students have everything they need to succeed in the classroom and prepare for their futures,” stated Rev. Dr. Donna Whitney, Pastoral Assistant at Metropolitian Interdenominational Church in Nashville. “This plan from Governor Lee and Tennessee’s Supermajority Legislature would take money out of our community schools, and instead prioritize their political agendas and schemes by denying children who they don’t want to serve, including high risk students across the state.”
Legislative leaders move forward with attempt to refuse federal education funding
House Speaker Cameron Sexton and Lt. Gov. Randy McNally have appointed a Joint Legislative Task Force to explore the possibility of Tennessee refusing the nearly $2 billion the state receives in federal education funding each year.
More from The Tennessee Journal:
The 10-member panel will also report on the feasibility of the state rejecting federal funds and recommend a strategy to reject certain federal funds or eliminate unwanted restrictions placed on the state due to the receipt of such federal funds if it is feasible to do so.
Sexton has previously suggested using the state’s significant revenue surplus to replace federal dollars for schools.
It’s worth noting here that a bipartisan task force found that the state underfunds schools by around $1.7 billion a year.
This means that rather than use surplus dollars to make up the current funding shortfall, Sexton is suggesting using the surplus to maintain the inadequate status quo.
Rev. C. Don Jones, Pastor of the Andersonville United Methodist Church, said of the proposal:
“Tennessee public schools are primarily locally funded. Extra funds from the Federal government administered by the State government help schools in our rural areas that are cash strapped. I do not understand why the Speaker, the Governor, or the present Supermajority of the General Assembly chose to harm these communities.
“As a pastor in a rural community, I see the Speaker’s proposal as irresponsible to the citizens of Tennessee.”
Senate Democratic Leader Raumesh Akbari of Memphis said the federal funding is a key tool in leveling the playing field for students in economically disadvantaged areas of the state.
“Federal education funding for states is essential to ensure educational equity and opportunity for all American students. It serves as a vital pillar of our nation’s commitment to providing a quality education regardless of a student’s geographical location or socioeconomic background.”
This could the most idiotic discussion I’ve seen in the Tennessee General Assembly probably since not expanding Medicaid and costing our state over a billion dollars a year. If you have a child with an IEP then this will drastically harm your child!
The task force has not yet announced its first meeting.
For more on education politics and policy in Tennessee, follow @TNEdReport
Over at The Education Report, I’ve written about the recently concluded legislative session.
Here are a couple highlights:
As the General Assembly finished its business this week, legislation that would expand the state’s fledgling voucher program (now confined to Memphis and Nashville) to Chattanooga was finally passed.
To be clear, it had been passed in the Senate before.
The House, however, was eager to get vouchers into even more communities – and so added an amendment that would add Knox County to the mix.
Ultimately, Knox County was NOT added – but let’s be clear: The legislature wants full-on privatization of the state’s public schools.
What’s up with third grade?
Tennessee now has a third grade retention law – meaning that students who don’t hit a certain benchmark on the state’s 3rd grade TNReady test MUST repeat third grade OR participate in remediation, including a summer reading program. Some estimates suggest more than 60% of students would be subject to the law’s requirements and around half of those may ultimately repeat third grade.
The legislature did so SOME tinkering – but it won’t help this year’s kids.
Unless the full legislature intervenes before adjourning in the next few weeks, this year’s decisions on who gets held back or sent to remedial programs will be based solely on TCAP reading test results. That’s the current criterion under a 2021 law that lawmakers passed in response to pandemic learning losses.
If the proposed revisions are approved as expected, the state would widen criteria beginning with the 2023-24 school year to consider results from a second state-provided benchmark test, too — but only for third graders who score as “approaching” proficiency on their TCAP.
Guns in Schools?
Gov. Bill Lee did ultimately propose the adoption of a Red Flag Law – but no GOP member of the House or Senate rose up to sponsor it in the legislature’s final days.
