SCORE Blog

Knox Promise is an innovative new initiative to help more Tennessee Promise students in Knox County persist and graduate from college.

For the past 10 years, Tennesseans have agreed that improving education must be a statewide priority. Bold action has made Tennessee a national leader in K-12 student academic growth and affordable and accessible college for all students. Along with our partners in education, advocacy, and philanthropy, the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) is proud…

We are writing to share some exciting news for the future of student success in Tennessee that will better align efforts and bring even greater focus to boosting K-12, college, and career success across Tennessee. Together, we are working to ensure that education remains a priority in Tennessee and that policy decisions center on what…

Tennessee has a new statewide appellate Public Charter School Commission to help expand student access to high-quality public charter schools. Here Tennessee State Board of Education Executive Director Sara H. Morrison explains the duties involved and the benefits of a separate commission.

In seven years, I have learned a tremendous amount about education in Tennessee. I have had the honor to work in education at the classroom level as a Nashville teacher, at the state level for the State Board of Education, and at SCORE as an education advocate. It has reinforced my belief that all three sectors must work together to achieve better educational opportunities and outcomes for all Tennessee students.

As I finish my junior year of college at Vanderbilt University, I think often about my career aspirations and those of my peers. Many of my fellow students, especially those with whom I share interests, want to serve the greater good by working in the field of public policy. In classes throughout our areas of…

Tennessee’s foundational policies in academic standards, annual assessment, and educator evaluation provide the fundamental building blocks of a high-quality education system. As Tennessee considers future opportunities to accelerate student learning, our collective commitment to these essential policies enable the practices and innovations that will propel our students to the success we all know they can…

One of the four priorities in SCORE’s annual report, Priorities For Progress: 2018-19 State Of Education In Tennessee, focuses on Tennessee’s foundations for student success. The innovations and raised expectations from a few years ago have now become the bedrock for Tennessee’s current and future success. A specific student-focused policy that has helped drive the…

As a research and advocacy organization, SCORE frequently checks the pulse of voters regarding various education issues. From public opinion surveys to focus groups, understanding what is on the minds of Tennesseans is important as we work to improve education for all students in our state.

There have been important changes to Tennessee’s elementary and secondary assessments, TNReady, in the last year due in part to feedback received during a statewide listening tour launched by former Governor Bill Haslam in the fall of 2018.

You’re an educator and your voice matters. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that said to me. I’m one year away from reaching double digits in my teaching career and it is only within this past year that I have really seen and felt how much my voice as a teacher, as an educator, truly matters.

Chattanooga 2.0 is a coalition centered around ten cradle-through-career priority areas as voiced by our community members. Over 150 organizations continually come together to work on these priorities, which as a whole, assist in establishing local talent pipelines and bridging the gap between our classrooms and workforce needs of employers.

The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (Perkins V) brings changes to the federal investment in CTE. It provides new opportunities to improve CTE programs and enables more flexibility for states to meet the unique needs of their learners, educators, and employers.

(This column was written for The Tennessean and published on March 11, 2019.) A decade ago, the nonprofit State Collaborative for Reforming Education, or SCORE, began collaborating with Tennessee’s leaders, educators, and community and education advocates to make Tennessee one of the fastest-improving states in the nation. Children in Tennessee today have better opportunities for…

In other states, student-focused education policy has turned out to be a passing fad and attention is turning to other issues. In Tennessee, the hard work of improving student achievement is continuing to drive discussion and action. This is what it will take to help Tennessee students become among the best in the nation. Early…

Tennessee is considering new policies and practices for postsecondary and workforce readiness, including two proposals from Governor Bill Lee to strengthen career and technical education offerings as well as provide students with more career-focused classes. SCORE has launched the monthly Classroom To Career newsletter to highlight relevant news about the work to reimagine college and career readiness in Tennessee.

While teaching is a demanding job, it is also the best job in the world! Teaching is a calling because educators help students academically and emotionally; the greatest reward in teaching comes from knowing that I have had a positive impact on a student’s life. Because teaching is integral to student success, supporting great teaching is a priority identified in the new SCORE report, Priorities For Progress: 2018-19 State Of Education In Tennessee. 

The application for the Tennessee Educator Fellowship is open through Tuesday, February 26. Fellows from the 2018-19 cohort share why their colleagues should apply.

I’m proud to work in Tennessee education. Our state has done the challenging work of implementing policies that prioritize what is best for students, and that focus has led us to be one of the fastest improving states in the nation in education. Educators, policymakers, and leaders share a firm belief that our students are…

Across her education career, Dr. Penny Schwinn has shown she has the head for effective administration, the guts to be innovative, and a big heart for students. When she enters her office as Tennessee commissioner of education, she will be ready to go to work for students.