Tag: Tennessee public schools

Questions Continue to Surface Around Company Contracted to Manage Tennessee Education Savings Accounts

TC Weber

The Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) awarding Students First Technologies (SFT) a contract to manage the state’s Education Savings Account (ESA) program continues to raise concerns.

“Our government owes citizens the responsibility of providing the best service at an affordable price. Often they outsource services that could be done better or more efficiently in-house. ” JC Bowman, executive director of Professional Educators of Tennessee told The Tennessee Star, “When that work is outsourced it needs to be with people who have the adequate experience and skills to deliver quality service. We need to know who does the work, and they must be held accountable.”

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Tennessee Public Schools Among Worst In Nation, Report Says

Wendy Wilson

  Tennessee K-12 public schools ranked among the worst in the nation in a study published Monday by WalletHub.com. Tennessee schools ranked 42 overall out of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. WalletHub analysts evaluated schools using 21 metrics across two key areas, quality and safety. Tennessee ranked 35 in quality and 49 in safety. For quality, analysts reviewed math and reading test scores, SAT and ACT scores, pupil-teacher ratios, high school graduation rates among low-income students, dropout rates, and other factors. The safety category included a look at disciplinary and bullying rates, as well as the number of high school students reporting they had access to illegal drugs on campus or were threatened or injured with a weapon on campus. Other factors considered in the safety category included the number of high school students reporting they had been involved in a physical fight on campus, or did not attend school because they felt unsafe on campus or going to and from school. The states with the best schools, starting at the top, were Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Wisconsin and Vermont. Those at the very bottom, starting with the lowest, were Louisiana, New Mexico, West Virginia, District of…

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