Education News

Three New Members Elected to MNPS Board

Three new members will soon be weighing in during Metro Nashville Public Schools board meetings. Former teacher and mom Rachael Anne Elrod will represent District 2.  She beat four other opponents to win the seat that has been held by Jo Ann Brannon for many years. Elrod said the was excited and encouraged by the election results.  She said her priorities will be transparency and...Read More

Leaders of Tennessee’s state-run district call test scores ‘sobering,’ ask educators for new energy

Sharon Griffin, the new leader of Tennessee’s state-run district, vowed to a crowd of school leaders and educators that together they would fix falling achievement scores in underachieving schools. Griffin, who was named to lead the Achievement School District two months ago, spoke directly about the staggering challenges facing the 6-year-old school system. She was joined by state Education...Read More

Here are the 37 Tennessee educators chosen to offer advice on TNReady testing

Tennessee has tapped 37 educators to serve as advisers to the state Department of Education and its testing companies after widespread problems this spring with the standardized TNReady assessment. Thirty-one teachers and six testing coordinators were named Tuesday as the state’s first TNReady Ambassadors. They are to provide ongoing input and feedback to the state and its two TNReady vendors,...Read More

Mayor, community leaders applaud $800K donation from Dollar General for early literacy efforts

Nine months ago, a shocking state statistic inspired the Nashville Literacy Collaborative to create the Blueprint for Early Childhood Success, a citywide initiative to double the number of third-graders reading on grade level by 2025. “To this day, I am shaken to the core by the statistic that less than one in three kids at the end of third grade reads on grade level,” said Shannon...Read More

Letter From Jamie Woodson: Developing Principals Who Can Lead People And Drive Learning

Dear Friends, “Great leaders create great school culture where students want to come to learn. One of the opportunities for growth for Tennessee education is to ensure that we have the correct leadership aligned to every school to make sure we have success in every school.” – Dexter Murphy, Upper School Dean, Emerald Academy Public Charter School, Knoxville The quote above is one SCORE used...Read More

Nashville school board district data empowers local voters

Data empowers sound decision-making. That is true for parents, teachers, and school leaders, and importantly, elected officials. Even while a lot of media and attention is paid to state and federal races this election season, public engagement in local school board elections is just as significant.  On August 2, along with the statewide primaries, Nashville will decide on four of the nine...Read More

Metro Schools Announce New Program

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) has partnered with Nashville State Community College for the 2018-2019 school year with the inaugural launch of the Early College High School Program.  Dr. Shawn Joseph, Director, of MNPS, shared this exclusive announcement with the Tennessee Tribune as he continues to remarkably exceed the expectations of the community and prepare today’s students to be...Read More

TNReady doesn’t count, but here’s what you can still learn about your school

The failures of TNReady testing this year infuriated parents, teachers and students who spent months preparing for the high-stakes exam. Lawmakers were equally furious, and passed legislation to make sure no one would be negatively affected by the results. But test results in Tennessee are used for a variety of purposes beyond students’ grades and teacher evaluations. Without that data,...Read More