Tag Archives: Dolores

Bill would have commission draft standards to replace Common Core

By Lucas Johnson, Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Two Republican state senators filed legislation Monday to repeal the state’s Common Core standards even though Gov. Bill Haslam has called for a public review of the higher benchmarks in English and math.

The proposal would set up a Tennessee Standards Commission that would recommend to the State Board of Education new standards to be used in the state’s K-12 public schools.

Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Dolores Gresham and Senate Government Operations Committee Chairman Mike Bell said the move is designed to ensure Tennessee students continue to improve by applying the highest standards while exerting state control over education.

“It is the next logical step that will take us into the future and ensure that we as Tennesseans have control over our education system,” Gresham told The Associated Press.

Common Core is a set of English and math standards that spell out what students should know and when. The standards — which have been adopted by most of the states — are intended to provide students with the critical thinking, problem solving and writing skills needed for college and the workforce.

The standards were scrapped this year in Indiana and Oklahoma. Governors in North Carolina, South Carolina and Missouri have signed legislation to reconsider the standards, even though they’re still being used in those states.

Last month, Haslam, a Republican, announced the formation of panels to review the math and English components of the Common Core standards and to report their recommendations at the end of next year. That’s months after the state Legislature concludes its annual session. The next session starts in January.

On Monday, after a speech to a group of educators, Haslam told reporters that he hasn’t thoroughly reviewed the repeal legislation. But he said he questions how the standards would be replaced because students and teachers are already using them.

“To change any standards is not an automatic process … that’s going to take some time,” Haslam said. He said the point of his review is to determine which changes would be possible.
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Senate Panel to Hold Common Core ‘Fact-Finding’ Sessions

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News release from Senate Republican Caucus:
NASHVILLE, Tenn.) – Senate Education Committee Chairman Dolores Gresham (R-Somerville) confirmed today that the Senate Education Committee will hold meetings in late summer or early fall to review facts regarding the state’s Common Core Standards. Gresham said the Committee will hear from critics from all ends of the political spectrum regarding concerns with the standards as well as gather testimony from proponents and state education officials.
The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) were developed by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSS0). Forty-five states and the District of Columbia have adopted the standards. Several states, however, have recently announced they are reevaluating them.
“These are fact-finding meetings,” said Senator Gresham. “Some parents and teachers have voiced concerns that we need to look at. It is also important that we review the progress of this program, including the latest test results. In addition, I want to evaluate how the standards might have affected state and local control.”
In Tennessee, the decision to adopt Common Core State Standards was made by Governor Phil Bredesen and the State Board of Education in July 2010. The State Board of Education is the governing and policy-making body for the Tennessee system of public elementary and secondary education. Since that time, school districts in Tennessee have phased in use of the Common Core State Standards for math and English language arts.
“It is very important that we have high academic standards to give our students the skills they need to compete in an increasingly global economy,” said Senator Gresham. “At the same time, I firmly believe that education is a state and local function and we must always work to ensure that we have the autonomy necessary to best serve the interest of Tennessee students. We will look at all the factors as we review how this program is serving our students and helping us reach our academic goals.”
Senator Gresham represents Senate District 26 which is comprised of Chester, Decatur, Fayette, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, McNairy, and Henderson Counties. She and her husband, Will, live on a farm in Somerville, Tennessee.

Charter Authorizer Finally Escapes Senate Finance

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The sponsor of a proposal that seeks to change the way certain charter schools are authorized said Wednesday the measure is needed to continue education reform in Tennessee.
The legislation sponsored by Republican Sen. Dolores Gresham of Somerville passed the Senate Finance Committee 7-3 and was sent to the full Senate.
The advancing measure is one of at least three versions that have been proposed. The previous version sought to create a state panel to authorize charter schools for five counties where there are failing schools.
Those counties include more than 330,000 students in the state’s four largest cities: Davidson, Hamilton, Knox and Shelby. Hardeman County also would be affected.
Currently, local school boards decide whether to authorize a charter application. There are currently 48 charters operating in Tennessee.
Under the latest proposal, the state Board of Education would be able to overrule local school board decisions on charter applications in the lowest-performing school districts.
The bill also gives an applicant approved by the Board of Education 30 days to return to the school district if the two can reach an agreement.
“It’s a way to get there,” Gresham said. “And we’re going to get there: a world class system of education in Tennessee.”
Members of the committee who at one time opposed the proposal appeared to be comfortable with the latest version. For one, the cost to create the panel was close to $240,000, where the new proposal drops the amount to $199,000.
The advancing proposal also would provide a more detailed hearing process before a decision is made on an application, as well as require some oversight from the state Department of Education.
“While it’s not perfect, I think it’s a good piece of legislation,” said committee vice chairman Bo Watson, R-Chattanooga.
However, Senate Minority Leader Jim Kyle didn’t seem too pleased with the measure, saying “this cake is not baked.”
The Memphis Democrat, whose city contains 69 failing schools, was unsuccessful in passing an amendment that sought to place a charter school within two miles of a failing school.
“We want them located where the people are who need them,” he said.

‘Vigilante’ Video Attacks on Animal Abuse Targeted in ‘Ag Gag’ Bill

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Legislators out to stop what they see as “vigilante” attacks on the livestock industry are pushing for enactment of a bill that critics see as an attack on constitutional freedom of speech.
The bill (SB1248) would require anyone observing abuse of livestock to promptly turn over all “unedited photographs, digital images or video” related to the abuse to law enforcement authorities. Under the current Senate version, this would have to occur within 48 hours of when the recording was made or, if the recording was made on a weekend, on the next weekday.
Violators would be guilty of a “class C” misdemeanor, penalized by a maximum fine of $500.
“This is a Catch-22 bill,” said Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris, R-Collierville, when the proposal (SB1248) came up on the Senate floor last week, referring to the Joseph Heller novel on a paradoxical situation.

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For-Profit Charter Schools Bill Resurrected in Senate

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Even though for-profit charter school companies targeted the Tennessee legislature with several lobbyists this year, their agenda appeared dead until a last-minute bid slid through last week, reports The Tennessean.
The plan to allow for-profit charter schools in Tennessee twice failed in Senate committees this year. But an eleventh-hour change to a noncontroversial bill originally created to clean up a few charter school rules started the debate again.
The newest plan is sponsored by Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, and is headed to a full Senate vote after last week sailing through the Senate Education Committee that she chairs. It has not been placed on the voting calendar yet.
…When she offered her changes to colleagues, Gresham said “As we all know, charter schools are an important part of ongoing education reform. Now that we see the real value of charter schools, now we have one more step.”
A spokesman for the Tennessee School Boards Association believes lobbyists can take some credit for the amendment Gresham introduced to allow for-profit companies. The original bill that Gresham chose to amend is Senate Bill 205; it has a counterpart in House Bill 315.
The House bill will be considered by the Finance, Ways & Means Subcommittee on Wednesday. At that time, a representative on the committee can offer an amendment similar to Gresham’s. The House bill was originally sponsored by Rep. Harry Brooks, R-Knoxville, who chairs the House Education Committee.

Haslam Abandons Push for Voucher Bill This Year

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NASHVILLE – By pushing for a more expansive school voucher program than Gov. Bill Haslam wanted, key state Senate Republicans probably have assured that no voucher bill of any sort will be enacted this year.
Haslam decided Wednesday to abandon for the year efforts to pass his bill to provide “opportunity scholarships” to a limited number of low-income students in the state’s lowest-rated schools.
Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris, R-Collierville, announced the governor’s decision.
“He did not want it to become a political football at the expense of the children,” said Norris, adding that the situation had devolved into “gamemanship.”
Senate Education Committee Chairman Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, and Sen. Brian Kelsey, R-Germantown, had been leading an effort to broaden the voucher bill to cover far more students than the Haslam bill. Their plans called for transforming the governor’s bill with amendments to accomplish that goal.
By yanking the bill from further consideration this year, Haslam and Norris avoid that possibility and, as a practical matter, eliminate chances for any voucher bill to pass this year.
Kelsey, however, said he has not given up and Gresham said she would be looking at options.

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Gresham Drops Expanded Voucher Push

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Senate Education Committee Chair Dolores Gresham has backed down from a potential clash with Gov. Bill Haslam over the number of school vouchers that could be offered to Tennessee students.
From TNReport:
During a meeting of Gresham’s committee Wednesday, the Somerville Republican pulled her expansive voucher legislation, Senate Bill 1358, from the full committee’s discussion agenda and sent it to a general subcommittee typically reserved for bills destined for no further consideration.
Gresham, however, also put off discussion on the governor’s scaled-back voucher legislation for another week.
…Gresham’s bill called for eligibility for middle-class families earning nearly $75,000 a year and would have removed any cap on the number of vouchers by 2016. The bill also opened up eligibility regardless of school performance.
Gresham was short on specifics about her reasons for dropping the competing bill. But she also told reporters she’s not entirely rule out bringing it back later. “I think it’s too early to tell,” Gresham said. “We’ll see what the Legislature does.”
Yet even with Gresham bowing out for the time being, there is still the possibility of a dustup amongst Republicans over the issue. Sen Brian Kelsey, a member of the Education Committee and long-time voucher advocate, spoke with reporters after the meeting. Kelsey said he hopes to amend the governor’s bill to bring it closer to what Gresham was proposing.

Legislators Wanted to Outlaw Undercover Videos (like one on horse soring)

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Two West Tennessee state legislators tried to pass a bill this year that would have made it a crime to conduct the kind of undercover investigation that produced video of horse abuse, reports Richard Locker. The video resulted in federal and state charges against a Collierville walking-horse trainer and three associates.
The bill was filed in January by state Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, and Rep. Andy Holt, R-Dresden, and appeared en route to passage in the Senate until it ran into opposition in a House subcommittee last month and died for the year.
As originally introduced, their bill — House Bill 3620/Senate Bill 3460 — would create a new state criminal offense “for a person to apply for employment with the intent to cause economic damage to the employer by means of unauthorized recording of video or audio while on the premises of the employer and releasing such recordings to a third party.”
The bill also declared that “All recordings taken in violation of this section shall be confiscated and, after used as evidence, destroyed.”
…A spokesman for the Humane Society of the United States said Thursday the Gresham-Holt bill would have made it illegal for the organization to have sent a representative undercover to work at Tennessee Walking Horse trainer Jackie McConnell’s Whitter Stables in Fayette County near Collierville.
McConnell, 60, of Collierville, and three associates are charged in a 52-count federal indictment in Chattanooga with violating the federal Horse Protection Act. He also faces state charges of violating Tennessee’s Cruelty to Animals Act.
The Humane Society released its undercover video Thursday, showing horses being prodded with electric prods, having chemicals applied to their legs, struck with sticks and subjected to other abuses. (Note: the video is available HERE.)
HSUS said the video was shot in 2011 at Whitter Stables by an undercover representative who applied for a job and worked at the stables for about seven weeks. The video aired on ABC’s “Nightline” Wednesday night and “Good Morning America” on Thursday and is now posted on the HSUS website. The abuses it shows have sparked outrage nationally.
….Holt could not be reached Thursday but Gresham said she wasn’t aware of the HSUS investigation at any time, doesn’t know McConnell and that the bill’s purpose was to ensure that such recordings “get to law enforcement, not to third parties.”
“I just went to the HSUS website and saw the video that they had put on the website. That video needs to be on (Fayette County Dist. Atty.) Mike Dunavant’s desk, not on the internet.”
Gresham said it should be up to law enforcement whether to make videos publicly available, regardless of the Humane Society’s position that posting it raises public awareness of abuse.

GOP Lottery Scholarship Bill Favors Home School Students

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A Republican plan to alter the lottery-funded Hope Scholarship program would make it easier for home-schooled students to qualify for the $4,000-per-year grant than students in traditional public and private schools, reports Richard Locker.
As originally filed, a controversial bill sponsored by Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, would toughen eligibility standards for both traditional and home-schooled students, but a Gresham amendment up for consideration by the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday would relax the bill’s original provisions for home-schoolers.
Meanwhile, House and Senate Democratic leaders on Monday afternoon called on Gov. Bill Haslam to help them block the overall bill, saying that it would deny full Hope Scholarships to 5,257 students in the 2015-16 school year, when the bill would go into effect if passed.
The Tennessee Higher Education Commission predicted about 6,600 would be affected in the second year, and that about 22 percent of students who would qualify under current standards would not be eligible if the change is approved.

Legislators Want to Give Teachers More Authority to Use Force

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A bill already given unanimous approval in the state Senate gives teachers and other school personnel more authority to use in controlling unruly students with less fear of liability, reports Rick Locker.
The bill, scheduled for a House committee hearing Tuesday, requires local school boards to adopt policies authorizing teachers and others to temporarily relocate a student with “reasonable or justifiable force,” if required, or for the students to remain in place until law enforcement or school resource officers arrive.
Senate Bill 3116, sponsored by Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, also requires principals to fully support teachers in taking action when it is done according to the policy. Gresham said she filed the bill after hearing from teachers concerned about liability or a lawsuit if they try to remove a student during an altercation.
“Teachers should not have to fear they will be found personally liable for standing in a doorway to stop a physical altercation between two students. They should have full authority to remove a student to another location even if it involves the use of force,” Gresham said. “This bill would apply to acts committed on school property, as well as those at official school functions, including sporting events and approved field trips. In addition to teachers, it would apply to administrators, school support staff, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, school resource officers, and others working in the school who interact with students.”