A Vote For Education Is Critical In Tennessee

  • Friday, October 31, 2014

In a state where just 28 percent of eighth graders are proficient in math and 33 percent are proficient in reading according to national assessments, education is deserving of more attention in 2014 elections. Across the country, more parents are making informed decisions about their child’s education, but for Volunteer State parents without resources, choices are difficult to come by in a system where a child’s education is largely determined by zip code. As Tennesseans head to the polls, it’s important they seek out candidates that share their views in putting student results first, regardless of party or politics.  

Three years ago, Governor Bill Haslam, who is up for reelection this year, fulfilled a promise of his initial campaign for the state’s high office and lifted the cap on the number of charter schools allowed across Tennessee. Recently, he enacted a policy allowing the state board of education to overturn unwarranted local district denials of charters. Haslam also has proposed, though failed to win through the legislature, a limited voucher program and teacher evaluation system based on a value-added measure of student test scores.

Challenger Charles Brown, with only a Facebook page and no campaign funds, said he would like to increase the influence of the Bible in public schools and bring back some form of tenure for teachers. It’s uncertain whether he plans to link the two in some interesting way. 

While educators and parents are doing inspiring things everyday at the classroom and community level to further student outcomes, reform and innovation in schools go only so far as the laws that govern them. The key to solving the nation’s education crisis is electing governors who understand that they have the power to change a system, and holding them accountable to do so. With 36 gubernatorial elections underway in 2014, we should all resolve to make education our top priority when we take to the polls in November. 

It’s up to Tennessee voters to spot the candidate who has a chance of enacting the types of state-level reforms that have been gaining traction in Nashville and have proven successful elsewhere across the nation, but have the potential to do much more in a state that has taken modest strides in making true innovation possible. As families increasingly demand positive change at rallies and in their communities, now is the time to demand it at the ballot box.   

Kara Kerwin
President of The Center for Education Reform

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