Former Sen. Bill Frist and Country Music Star Josh Turner to Highlight Educational Success at Prize Event (Nashville) - The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) today announced the 12 finalists for the first annual SCORE Prize Award. The Prize will be awarded to the elementary, middle, and high school, along with one school district in Tennessee that have most dramatically improved student achievement in spite of the challenges they face. The winners of the SCORE Prize will be announced at an event at the historic Ryman Auditorium on Tuesday, September 20 at 6 pm, which will be hosted by SCORE Chairman and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and will feature a performance by Grammy-nominated country music star Josh Turner. Tennessee Commissioner of Education Kevin Huffman will make remarks during the event. The 12 SCORE Prize finalists are:
- Elementary Charlotte Elementary, Dickson County Fairview Elementary, Anderson County John Sevier Elementary, Maryville
- Middle Jo Byrns High School, Robertson County Power Center Academy, Memphis South Cumberland Elementary, Cumberland County
- High Fred J Page High School, Williamson County Maryville High School, Maryville Mt. Juliet High School, Wilson County
- District Loudon County Schools Maryville City Schools Williamson County Schools
“In awarding The SCORE Prize, SCORE aims to recognize those schools and districts in Tennessee that are doing the hard work of education reform,” said SCORE Chairman and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. “These schools and districts are preparing more and more students for college and the workforce. We will highlight and share their best practices, and show other schools and districts throughout Tennessee that improvement is possible.” The SCORE Prize will award $10,000 to the elementary, middle, and high school and $25,000 to one district in Tennessee that have most dramatically improved student achievement. Winners are chosen in a two-step process; the first stage identified finalists through a multi-staged criteria selection process that set benchmarks for attendance rate, TVAAS growth, and TCAP improvement, and awarded bonus points for ACT college-readiness benchmark rates and college-going rates, among others; the second stage consisted of site visits of the finalists to document the policies and practices that have enabled schools and districts to make significant gains in student achievement. The SCORE Prize event is being held in conjunction with the Tennessee Department of Education’s annual LEAD Conference. To learn more about the selection process and the selection committee, and find information about attending the event, visit: www.tnscore.org/scoreprize.