News Releases « State Collaborative on Reforming Education

ADVISORY: Frist and SCORE to Release “State of Education in Tennessee” Report

March 21st, 2011

(Nashville) – The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) will release its annual State of Education in Tennessee report on Thursday, March 24. SCORE Chairman and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist will present the report at a press conference during SCORE’s quarterly Steering Committee meeting. Committee members include major education stakeholders from across Tennessee.

WHO: Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader and SCORE Chairman Bill Frist
WHAT: SCORE releases its annual State of Education in Tennessee report, highlighting innovative successes in education reform, recommendations for improvement in public K-12 education, and public education data
WHEN: Thursday, March 24, 2PM Central (media setup at 1:45PM)
WHERE: First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University, First Floor, 1207 18th Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212
DIRECTIONS: The First Amendment Center is located on the edge of Vanderbilt’s campus, near the intersection of 18th Avenue South and Edgehill Avenue. Parking is across the street.

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works with state and local governments to encourage sound policy decisions in public education and advance innovative reform on a statewide basis.

SCORE Releases Video in Support of Tenure Reform

March 15th, 2011

Frist: “It’s Time to Move to a System that Rewards Excellence in the Classroom”

(Nashville) – The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) today released a video, narrated by Dr. Bill Frist, Chairman of SCORE and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader, on the importance of reforming Tennessee’s tenure system as a way to improve teacher effectiveness.

“Teachers are the most important factor in determining how much a student learns,” said Dr. Frist. “A crucial step in ensuring there is a great teacher at the front of every classroom is reforming the way Tennessee grants tenure. Tenure should be a reward for excellent teachers and an incentive for others to improve. The legislation proposed by Governor Haslam and currently moving through the General Assembly will make tenure for teachers meaningful by clearly tying it to classroom performance.”

The video highlights recent statistics on teacher effectiveness and tenure, and encourages Tennesseans to sign a SCORE-sponsored petition supporting tenure reform at www.tenurereform.com.

Video text: “Every child deserves a great teacher. Of all of the factors that determine how much a student learns, research has shown that teachers are the most important¹. Unfortunately, Tennessee has done a poor job of rewarding great teachers, and identifying which ones need improvement. Tennessee’s students have fallen behind the rest of the nation², yet 99% of teachers received a “satisfactory” rating on their evaluations³ and 90% go on to receive tenure⁴. Of the 65,000 teachers who work in Tennessee, only 50 tenured teachers are removed from their jobs each year, or 0.07%⁵. It’s no surprise that 57% of teachers say there is a tenured teacher in their school who is performing poorly⁶. The truth is that teachers are a diverse group of professionals with different skills and levels of ability. Shouldn’t tenure be a reward for great teachers, and an incentive for others to improve? It’s time for Tennessee to ditch its “one-size-fits-all” approach to granting tenure, and move to a system that rewards excellence in the classroom. Join SCORE and sign the petition to make tenure meaningful by tying it to classroom performance. Because every child deserves a great teacher.”

¹Weisman, D.; Sexton, S.; Mulhern, J.; Kneeling, D. (2009). The Widget Effect: Our National Failure to Acknowledge and Act on Differences in Teacher Effectiveness. The New Teacher Project; Jonah E. Rockoff (2004). The Impact of Individual Teachers on Student Achievement: Evidence from Panel Data. The American Economic Review (94); Rivkin, S.G.,. Hanushek, E.A., .Kain, J.F. (2005). Teachers, Schools, and Academic Achievement. Econometrica, 73(2).

²U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences. (2010). NAEP State Comparisons. Retrieved from National Center for Education Statistics: http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/statecomparisons/.

³Moore, R. (2008). Teacher Tenure in Tennessee. Tennessee Office of Research and Educational Accountability.

⁴Gauther, K. (2010, April). “Jobs for life?”. Chattanooga Times Free Press.

⁵Moore, R. (2008). Teacher Tenure in Tennessee. Tennessee Office of Research and Educational Accountability.

⁶Weisman, D. et al (2009). The Widget Effect: Our National Failure to Acknowledge and Act on Differences in Teacher Effectiveness. The New Teacher Project.

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works with state and local governments to encourage sound policy decisions in public education and advance innovative reform on a statewide basis.

Statement from Bill Frist on Appointment of Kevin Huffman as TN Commissioner of Education

March 3rd, 2011

(Nashville) – Dr. Bill Frist, chairman of the Tennessee State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader, released the following statement today on the appointment of Kevin Huffman as Tennessee Commissioner of Education:

“Kevin Huffman is exactly the type of reform-minded individual that Tennessee needs to lead its public school system. Kevin’s experience in the classroom, in education law, and in leadership at one of our nation’s most innovative education organizations gives him the unique knowledge and background to make a significant positive impact on behalf of our state’s children. Tennessee has transformed into a national leader in education reform in the last few years, and with Kevin’s leadership we are poised for even greater success.”

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works with state and local governments to encourage sound policy decisions in public education and advance innovative reform on a statewide basis.

Statement from Bill Frist on Release of Tennessee Education Data

January 7th, 2011

(Nashville) – Dr. Bill Frist, chairman of the Tennessee State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader, released the following statement today on the release of the 2009-2010 Tennessee Adequate Yearly Progress data and state Report Card on Pre-K-12 Education:

“The data released today mark a significant step in education reform in Tennessee as they reflect new, rigorous academic standards. While Tennessee’s new standards will help ensure every child graduates high school prepared for college or the workforce, today’s data show our students have a long way to go in meeting these higher expectations. Communities across our state must come together to support principals, teachers, and students as they work to meet these higher expectations.”

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works with state and local governments to encourage sound policy decisions in public education and advance innovative reform on a statewide basis.

SCORE Joins Highlands Town Hall Debate 2010

August 31st, 2010

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) is joining The Highlands, Nashville’s WTVF NewsChannel5, Tennessee Tech University, and the League of Women Voters of Tennessee as a sponsor in the Highlands Town Hall Debate 2010, a general-election gubernatorial debate scheduled for September 14 at TTU in Cookeville.

BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Pledges $500k to SCORE

August 6th, 2010

BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee today announced a $500,000 contribution to advance K-12 public education reform — and better health outcomes — in partnership with the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE), founded by former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

Poll: Tennesseans ‘Strongly Support’ High Standards Despite Expected Drop in Test Scores

July 26th, 2010

A sizeable majority of Tennessee voters “strongly support” high academic standards in K-12 public schools despite expectations that raising the bar will lead to lower student test scores in the short term, according to the results of a new statewide poll.

Frist, SCORE Join First to the Top Coalition

July 22nd, 2010

Governor Phil Bredesen, Education Commissioner Tim Webb and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist this week launched the First to the Top Coalition, a statewide alliance of more than 30 business, community and education groups joining together to support public education reform in Tennessee.

Frist, Bredesen, Barber Talk Race to the Top

May 11th, 2010

Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist’s State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) today hosted an event featuring Gov. Phil Bredesen and Sir Michael Barber to discuss challenges in advancing education reform through Race to the Top.

Frist: Race to the Top Win ‘Cause to Celebrate’

March 29th, 2010

Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who chairs the education-reform group Tennessee SCORE, today issued this statement following news that Tennessee is a winner in the federal government’s Race to the Top competition: