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New Data: 60% of Students Graduate Within 8 Years

Among students who started at a community college or four-year institution in 2010, 60.4 percent graduated by 2018, according to new data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, which tracks all but a small percentage of college students. That national eight-year completion rate is 5.6 percentage points higher than the six-year rate of 54.8 percent...Read More

What we heard from Tennessee’s education commissioner during her first week

From students in the classroom to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, Penny Schwinn introduced herself as Tennessee’s education commissioner this week by praising the state’s academic gains over the last decade and promising to keep up that momentum by supporting school communities. Schwinn toured seven schools in Middle and East Tennessee during her first three days on the job to get a firsthand...Read More

Newly formed lawmaker group takes aim at improving Tennessee’s early education system

Tennessee lawmakers hope a newly formed Senate and House caucus can take a focused look on strategies that increase the state’s stubbornly low third-grade math and reading scores. The Tennessee Early Education Caucus, an informal assembly announced Wednesday, will focus on early education policy and strategies to increase the improvement of third-grade students.  The goal is...Read More

With 2 Years Left in Congress, Senator Lamar Alexander Lays Out His Road Map for Reauthorizing America’s Higher Education Act

Simplified applications for financial aid, fewer loan repayment options, and a new accountability system for colleges are Sen. Lamar Alexander’s top priorities for a pending reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, he said Monday. Alexander, speaking at the American Enterprise Institute, also said he is committed to working with Democrats to address hot-button issues surrounding...Read More

Why Private And Public School Teachers In Nashville See A Need To Join Forces

A growing group of Nashville educators has been quietly taking professional development into their own hands. Through regular meetings and summer workshops they’re helping one another improve at their jobs, and intentionally cutting across the private-public school divide. It all began when sixth-grade English teacher Greg O’Loughlin left Metro for a private school in Nashville. He says he...Read More

Study: Tennessee schools with the biggest needs tend to have lower-quality principals

Tennessee’s least effective principals are more likely to work in schools with students who are lower-achieving and live in poverty, according to new research. And the pattern exists in both urban and rural districts. The findings are outlined in a research brief released Thursday by the Tennessee Education Research Alliance, which is looking closely at school leadership through a...Read More