Tennessee

Tennessee must see through Gov. Bill Lee’s new try at expanding school vouchers | Opinion

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

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Tennessee must see through Gov. Bill Lee’s new try at expanding school vouchers | Opinion

Vouchers are the school’s choice, not school choice.
Vouchers allow discrimination on special needs kids and any family who doesn’t fit the school’s “values.”

Caleb Hemmer
| Guest columnist

As expected, Gov. Bill Lee and his Republican supermajority in the legislature have filed their latest version of a statewide voucher proposal.

Once again, this new version is jam-packed with all kinds of seemingly nice things tacked on to try and distract people from the fact that this is all a scam designed to defund public education. Lee and his voucher scammers want you to pay attention to the long overdue teacher raises and the newly-dedicated funding source for school construction projects promised in the bill.

But let’s face it − if they were really serious about the proposals, they would have already done them. They wouldn’t have to tie them to a bait-and-switch scheme to designed to undermine public education and make out-of-state billionaire voucher backers happy.

Vouchers aren’t improving student school test scores

Here’s what’s underneath all the pretty packaging. Here’s what Governor Lee is not telling you about his voucher scam:

First of all, Lee wants you believe that he wants to expand vouchers statewide because of the success of the pilot program. However, the pilot program is not a proven success.

In fact, Lee’s own handpicked education commissioner had to admit before the Senate Education Committee this past January that the academic scores of the students in the voucher program, well, in her own words: “aren’t anything to write home about.”

In fact, according to the Department of Education’s annual report on the pilot program, the “exceeded expectations” scores for the state’s participating Education Savings Accounts schools only grew by an average of 0.4% in math and 1.2% in English Language Arts − and far less than the margins of public schools.

So since, the test scores aren’t dramatically improving, the governor wants to direct your attention to how the parents currently enrolled the program are satisfied with it. But again, let’s look at who those parents really are.

Vouchers do not cover the cost of the average private school

The average price of a private school in Nashville is estimated to cost around $12,000. In Memphis, it’s a little under $10,500. So, if you wanted to send to your child to a private school, you’re still going to have to be able pay thousands of additional dollars a year just for tuition.

That doesn’t include transportation or any other needs.

So, the people Lee claims he really wants to help − the working people who are struggling to put food on the table − are still priced out.

For example, according to a 2023 Time magazine article, in Arizona more than 75% of new voucher applicants had never actually attended public school before and not to mention the uncontrolled $1.4 billion hole vouchers caused in Arizona’s budget.

Vouchers leave out the most vulnerable students

Finally, as the governor gives out these “entitlement” payments to families that can already afford it, our public schools get further left behind.

Private schools get to pick their students, meaning that many students are excluded, including the most vulnerable who need the most help.

Vouchers end up excluding most disadvantaged students because they simply aren’t desirable for many private schools. That includes students with disabilities who use Individualized Education Plans, which this bill expressively says private schools don’t have to continue.

Vouchers are the school’s choice, not school choice.

Vouchers allow discrimination on special needs kids and any family who doesn’t fit the school’s “values.”

I would urge people to not be fooled by all of the shiny bells and whistles attached to this new voucher scam bill. Don’t be fooled by the words the governor is saying − take a good, hard look at what he’s not telling you.

Vouchers aren’t good education policy or conservative; it’s just a scam to defund your local school to align to a misguided political ideology.

State Rep. Caleb Hemmer, D-Nashville, represents District 59 (part of Davidson County) in the Tennessee General Assembly.

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Tennessee

Watch: Gretchen Walsh Cracks NCAA Record in 100 Butterfly (Tennessee Invite Day 2 Race Videos)

Published

14 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Watch: Gretchen Walsh Cracks NCAA Record in 100 Butterfly (Tennessee Invite Day 2 Race Videos)

2024 Tennessee Invite

The third day of the 2024 Tennessee Invite saw lots of action, with the unique setup of the meet, the A-finals were contested in a 1-on-1 format that brought many fans to their feet and proved to bring an extra layer of excitement to the meet. UVA’s Gretchen Walsh built on that excitement to continue her record-breaking streak, shattering her own American, US Open, and NCAA Record in the 100 butterfly with a time of 47.35.

Even though the day might be over, you can relive all of the action with the race videos below. Courtesy of the University of Virginia.

WOMEN’S 200 MEDLEY RELAY- TIMED FINALS

NCAA Record: 1:31.73, Virginia- 2023
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:36.24
2025 NCAA ‘B’ Cut: 1:36.76

Virginia A- 1:32.58 A
Tennessee A- 1:34.35 A
Virginia B- 1:35.89
Tennessee B- 1:37.94
Kentucky A- 1:39.66
Kentucky B- 1::41.35

Race Video:

MEN’S 200 MEDLEY RELAY- TIMED FINALS

NCAA Record: 1:20.15, Florida- 2024
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:23.62
2025 NCAA ‘B’ Cut: 1:23.90

Tennessee A- 1:21.71 A
Tennessee B- 1:25.31
Kentucky A- 1:26.75
Kentucky B- 1:27.48
Virginia A- DQ
Virginia B- DQ

Race Video:

WOMEN’S 100 FLY – FINALS

~~NCAA Record: 47.42, Gretchen Walsh (UVA) – 2024~~ 47.35, Gretchen Walsh (UVA)- 2024
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 50.52
2025 NCAA ‘B’ Cut: 53.34
2024 NCAA Cutline: 51.88

Gretchen Walsh (UVA)- 47.35 *New NCAA Record*
Claire Curzan (UVA)- 49.50 A
Josephine Fuller (TENN)- 51.51 B
Sara Stolter (TENN)- 52.15 B
Maggie Schalow (UVA)- 52.33 B
Emily Brown (TENN)- 52.85 B
Lydia Hanlon (UKY)- 53.85
Maddy Hartley (UKY)- 54.33

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

MEN’S 100 FLY – FINALS

NCAA Record: 42.80, Caeleb Dressel (FLOR) – 2018
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 44.51
2025 NCAA ‘B’ Cut: 46.80
2024 NCAA Cutline: 45.37

Jordan Crooks (TENN)- 43.77 A
Spencer Nicholas- 44.41 A
Gui Caribe (TENN)- 45.18 B
Hayden Bellotti (UVA)- 45.85 B
Martin Espernberger (TENN)- 46.29 B
Ryan Merani (UKY)- 47.12
Simon Lins (UVA)- 47.43
Logan Ingerick (UKY)- 48.29

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

WOMEN’S 400 IM – FINALS

NCAA Record: 3:54.60, Ella Eastin (STAN) – 2018
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 4:03.62
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 4:16.78
2024 NCAA Cutline: 4:10.74

Leah Hayes (UVA)- 4:01.34 A
Ella Jansen (TENN)- 4:06.29 B
Ella Bathurst (UVA)- 4:09.53 B
Emma Redman (4:11.33)- 4:11.33 B
Kate McCarville (TENN)- 4:11.39 B
Emily Brown (TENN)- 4:13.17 B
Marie Bell (UKY)- 4:17.57
Fernanda De Goeij (UKY)- 4:19.56

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

MEN’S 400 IM – FINALS

NCAA Record: 3:28.82, Leon Marchand (ASU) – 2023
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 3:38.37
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 3:49.53
2024 NCAA Cutline: 3:42.93

Levi Sandidge (UKY)- 3:42.52 B
Tony Laurito (TENN)- 3:44.06 B
Matt Styczen (UVA)- 3:44.95 B
Dillon Wright (UVA)- 3:45.45 B
Colin Bitz (UVA)- 3:46.13 B
Gus Rothrock (TENN)- 3:46.47 B
Aidan Crisci (TENN)- 3:47.84 B
Jackson Mussler (UKY)- 3:54.39

Race Videos:

A-Final

No Race Video Currently Available

B-Final

C-Final

WOMEN’S 200 FREE – FINALS

NCAA Record: 1:39.10, Missy Franklin (CAL) – 2015
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:42.60
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 1:46.85
2024 NCAA Cutline: 1:44.80

Aimee Canny (UVA)- 1:42.67 B
Camille Spink (TENN)- 1:43.57 B
Anna Moesch (UVA)- 1:43.12 B
Cavan Gormsen (UVA)- 1:44.85 B
Julia Mrozinski (TENN)- 1:45.64 B
Sara Stolter (TENN)- 1:46.33 B
Lauren West (UKY)- 1:46.46 B
Katy Jost (UKY)- 1:48.10

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

MEN’S 200 FREE – FINALS

NCAA Record: 1:28.81, Luke Hobson (TEX) – 2024
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:31.21
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 1:35.35
2024 NCAA Cutline: 1:32.93

Nikoli Blackman (TENN)- 1:32.12
Sebastien Sergile (UVA)- 1:32.38
David King (UVA)- 1:33.19
Joaquin Vargas (TENN)- 1:34.67
Jack Stelter (TENN)- 1:35.82
Connor Boyle (UVA)- 1:36.54
Justin Peresse (UKY)- 1:36.66
Caue Gluck (UKY)- 1:36.93

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

WOMEN’S 100 BREAST – FINALS

NCAA Record: 55.73, Lilly King (IU) – 2019
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 58.01
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 1:01.22
2024 NCAA Cutline: 59.75

McKenzie Siroky (TENN)- 58:00
Aimee Canny (UVA)- 58.64
Emelie Fast (TENN)- 58.41
Emma Weber (UVA)- 58.67
Zoe Skirboll (UVA)- 59.23
Bridget Engel (UKY)- 59.83
Hannah Marinovich (TENN)- 1:00.54
Olivia Mendenhall (UKY)- 1:03.08

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

MEN’S 100 BREAST – FINALS

NCAA Record: 49.53, Liam Bell (CAL) – 2024
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 51.02
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 53.43
2024 NCAA Cutline: 51.89

Noah Nichols (UVA)- 51.32 B
Adomas Gatulis (UKY)- 52.85 B
Kevin Houseman (TENN)- 53.10 B
Jed Garner (TENN)- 53.30 B
Jay Gerloff (UVA)- 53.40 B
Jonathan Rom (UKY)- 53.73
Grayson Nye (TENN)- 53.79
Matt Heilman (UVA)- 53.84

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

WOMEN’S 100 BACK – FINALS

NCAA Record: 48.10, Gretchen Walsh (UVA) – 2024
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 50.66
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 53.53
2024 NCAA Cutline: 52.28

Claire Curzan (UVA)- 49.37 A
Josephine Fuller (TENN)- 51.06 B
Charlotte Wilson (UVA)- 52.01 B
Reilly Tiltmann (UVA)- 52.51 B
Lexi Stephens (TENN)- 52.55 B
Sophie Brison (TENN)- 53.21 B
Grace Frericks (UKY)- 53.47 B
Torie Buerger (UKY)- 53.83

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

MEN’S 100 BACK – FINALS

NCAA Record: 43.35, Luca Urlando (UGA) – 2022
2025 NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 44.48
2025 NCAA “B’ Cut: 47.16
2024 NCAA Cutline: 45.56

Results:

Harrison Lierz (TENN)- 45.25
Jack Aikins (UVA)- 45.84
Lamar Taylor (TENN)- 46.32
Nick Simons (TENN)- 46.67
Will Thompson (UVA)- 46.99
Devin Naoroz (UKY)- 47.06
Szymon Mieczkowski (UKY)-47.67
Max Berg (UKY)- 48.93

Race Videos:

A-Final

B-Final

C-Final

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Tennessee

Tennessee reading law: Less than 1% of third graders held back in 2024

Published

23 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Tennessee reading law: Less than 1% of third graders held back in 2024

Just 0.88% of Tennessee public school third graders were held back this year under the state’s controversial reading law, despite 60% of the class falling short of a state reading benchmark this spring.

With around 74,000 third graders enrolled in the 2023-24 school year statewide, that works out to 655 students who were retained, according to data from the Tennessee Department of Education. The state reading law took effect last year and led to the retention of 1.2% of third graders in 2023, which came out to 898 students.

The law primarily determines children’s reading proficiency by their English language arts scores on the standardized Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, test.

The 60% who fell short on this year’s TCAP represent roughly 50,000 students. However, that number does not include students who were exempt from being held back. Here are those exemptions, including how many students met them:

11,468: Students with disabilities or suspected disabilities that may impact their reading
3,511: Students who are English learners with less than two years of English language arts instruction
2,596: Students who were held back in a previous grade
2,345: Students who had other exemptions determined by their local education leaders

Exemptions were up to the districts to sort out. The remaining students had to successfully take one of the state’s many “pathways” to avoid being held back.

Here’s a look at how those students fared.

How Tennessee third graders moved on to fourth grade

Third graders who scored “below” or “approaching” expectations on the English language arts section of the TCAP had several options to avoid being held back.

Retakes were offered to third graders shortly after the spring TCAP. A total of 3,274 made a passing score and moved on to fourth grade. Another 99 students won an appeal because they faced a catastrophic circumstance around the time they took the TCAP.

Third graders who scored as approaching proficiency had three options to move on to fourth grade. Here’s how many qualified for each one:

1,124: Enrolled in summer school, met 90% attendance and showed adequate growth
7,426: Opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade
3,262: Scored in the 50th percentile or higher of a state-approved universal reading screener and opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade
2,895: Won a parent appeal and opted into an academic remediation plan in fourth grade, which includes tutoring

Third graders who scored as below proficiency had one option to move on to fourth grade. Here’s how many qualified:

3,411: Enrolled in summer school, met a 90% attendance rate and opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade

Students who qualified for tutoring in fourth grade must meet an individualized growth goal by the end of fourth grade. This growth goal does not apply to two groups who opted into tutoring: Those who won an appeal, or those who scored as “approaching” on the third grade TCAP and scored in the 50th percentile or higher on the third grade universal reading screener.

A total of 1,950 third graders who fell short on the spring TCAP either did not enroll again or had data that has not been reported to the state. The data reflects reports from districts as of Sept. 6, according to the state department of education.

How the Tennessee reading law affected fourth graders

Fourth graders who enrolled in yearlong tutoring to avoid being held back in third grade must pass the English language arts section of the TCAP or hit individualized growth goals set by the state. However, the reading law does not mandate that they be held back if they do not meet those goals.

Instead, it requires the student’s parents or legal guardians, principal and English language arts teacher to determine what’s best. They can either decide to retain the child or promote them to fifth grade with state-provided tutoring in place.

According to the state department of education, here’s how fourth graders enrolled in tutoring this year fared:

5,389: Promoted to fifth grade with tutoring in place
3,996: Met adequate growth goals
1,740: Scored proficient on their spring TCAP English language arts section
132: Retained in fourth grade

A total of 906 fourth graders either did not enroll again or had data that was not reported by their district, according to the state education department.

Where can I learn more?

More information on the third grade reading and retention law from the Tennessee Department of Education can be found at tn.gov/education/learning-acceleration.

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Former Titans Coach Named Top Candidate for Jets

Published

1 day ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Former Titans Coach Named Top Candidate for Jets

Former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel remains a hot name, and he may have another head-coaching job as soon as next season.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently named a bunch of potential candidates for the New York Jets job in 2025, and Vrabel was at the top of his list.

“Mike Vrabel makes the most sense to me, mostly because he won’t stand down to an owner, and that’s exactly what the New York Jets need,” Breer wrote.

The problem with that is Jets owner Woody Johnson is known to be a meddler, so he a Vrabel-Johnson partnership may never actually come to fruition.

Still, Vrabel could end up being a perfect fit for the Jets from a stylistic perspective given that New York is built upon a strong defense.

It’s not the first time that Vrabel has been linked to Gang Green, either.

Vrabel actually did a very solid job during his time with the Titans, going 54-45 while making three playoff appearances—including a pair of AFC South titles—across five seasons.

Things went south over Vrabel’s final two years in Tennessee, with the Titans going just 13-21 during that span. However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the problem was not with Vrabel.

Vrabel is currently serving as an assistant for the Cleveland Browns, but it seems like only a matter of time before he lands a better job elsewhere.

The 49-year-old also had a 14-year NFL playing career from 1997 through 2010, spending time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. He won three Super Bowls with the Patriots and also made a Pro Bowl with the squad in 2007.

The Jets have been one of the league’s most disappointing teams this season, as they are just 3-8 in spite of having one of the most star-studded rosters in the sport.

Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

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