Nashville, TN — During the month of November, the Tennessee Department of Education is celebrating Career Development Month by highlighting the Career and Technical Education (CTE) and Innovative School Models (ISM) programs that provide every student the necessary skills to pursue postsecondary education and high-skill, high-wage, and in-demand careers. Additionally in November, the department will recognize Early Postsecondary Opportunities (EPSO) Week, November 11-15, and National Apprenticeship Week (NAW), November 18-22. Schools, educators, and districts are encouraged to join in highlighting their work by sharing on social media using #EPSOWEEK2024, #NationalApprenticeshipWeek2024, or #NAW2024.

Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced the 2023-24 statewide graduation rate is 92.1 percent, breaking the previous record achieved in the 2022-23 school year at 90.6 percent.

Nashville, TN—Today, the Tennessee Department of Education highlighted the free ACT retake opportunity for public high school seniors in Tennessee to boost their scores on the ACT college entrance exam.

Nashville, TN—Today, the Tennessee Department of Education, in partnership with Belmont University, announced 57 school leaders selected to the 2024-25 cohort of the Tennessee Rural Principals Network (TRPN), which is a comprehensive approach to improve the preparation, retention, and development of principals in rural communities across Tennessee.

NASHVILLE, TN—Today, the U.S. Department of Education recognized six Tennessee schools as 2024 National Blue Ribbon Schools, which is based on each school’s overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps among student groups.

Nashville, TN—This evening, the Tennessee Department of Education announced Bryan Kerns, an educator from Kingsport City Schools known for his compassion and dedication to his students, as the 2024-25 Tennessee Teacher of the Year at the department’s 2024 Excellence in Education 65th Sapphire Anniversary Celebration.

NASHVILLE, TN— Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced the finalists for the 2024-25 Tennessee Principal of the Year and Supervisor of the Year awards. The finalists represent each of the state’s Center of Regional Excellence (CORE) regions, with three finalists in each Grand Division: West, Middle, and East.

Chattanooga, TN— As part of the annual Career and Technical Education (CTE) Institute, today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced the 49 work-based learning (WBL) employers named a Tennessee Flagship Industry Partner for their contributions and partnerships with local school districts across the state.

Nashville, TN – Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced over $2.6 million in Perkins Reserve Grant (PRG) grant funds have been awarded to 55 school districts for the 2024-25 school year to support Career and Technical Education (CTE) across the state.

Nashville, TN—Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced Jonathan Criswell, Director of Schools for Milan Special School District, will join the department as Chief Program Officer (CPO), effective later this summer. In this role, Criswell will lead the department’s core programming efforts, such as data and evaluation, school improvement, choice, federal programs, and assessment and accountability.

Nashville, TN— Today, the Tennessee Department of Education released the 2023-24 Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) state-, district-, and school-level results, which include both fall 2023 end-of-course (EOC) exams and spring 2024 exams in English language arts (ELA), mathematics, science, and social studies, with the exception of math EOC data, which will be available later in the fall pending the standards setting process.

Nashville, TN— Today, the Tennessee Department of Education released statewide average 3rd grade and 4th grade results for the ELA portion of the spring 2024 Tennessee Comprehensive Academic Program (TCAP) assessment. Third grade student scores remained steady as 4th grade student scores showed significant improvement, thanks to the nation-leading, comprehensive statewide literacy strategy for Tennessee public schools.

NASHVILLE, TN—Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced the nine finalists for the 2024-25 Tennessee Teacher of the Year award.

Nashville, TN — Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced four state finalists for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST). The PAEMST award is the nation’s highest honor for U.S. K–12 science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science teachers.

NASHVILLE, TN – Today, the Tennessee Department of Education is highlighting the multiple promotion pathways for 3rd grade students who may need extra learning supports, including the 3rd grade English Language Arts (ELA) Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) retake assessment and the appeals window for families of 3rd grade students.