Who will evaluate the evaluations?

As announced by Gov. Bill Haslam today, SCORE, the organization founded by former U.S. Sen. Bill Frist, and headed by former state Sen. Jamie Woodson, has been asked to conduct a formal assessment of the teacher evaluation process that was put into place as part of an education reform package that landed Tennessee a prize package of federal dollars in 2010.

An accompanying legislative resolution is sponsored by Rep. John Fogerty (R-Athens) and Sen. Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville).

Here are video snippets of Wednesday’s announcement:

Here is the press release provided by the governor’s office.

Chattanooga Chamber advocates ‘rich talent pool’ in superintendent search

In a letter from CEO Tom Edd Wilson, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce implores the Hamilton County Board of Education to “cast a wide net” in its search to replace outgoing Superintendent Jim Scales.

Click the link below to read the letter (PDF).
Chamber School Board Letter 5-25-11

Chattanoogans organize for action against Canada?

According to a Facebook post, a coalition of Democratic Party and progressive groups is hosting a “State of Education Forum” today at The Camp House in downtown Chattanooga. The event is titled “NOT Waiting for Superman,” evidently in reference to the (mostly) popular and award-winning Davis Guggenheim documentary Waiting for “Superman” which describes a successful charter school program in New York. Continue reading

Memphians give up city schools for Lent (or longer)

According to early results, voters in Memphis have “overwhelmingly” decided to surrender the administration of their city school system to Shelby County control.

Local readers will recall that, about seventeen years ago, Hamilton County and Chattanooga incurred a roughly similar school system merger.

With that in mind, Memphis and Shelby County are hereby wished all good things.