TN SCORE Releases Final Report

The Tennessee State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE)released its final report entitled "A Roadmap to Success: A Plan to Make Tennessee Schools #1 in the Southeast Within Five Years." The report details measurable steps Tennessee can take over the next five years to make its public schools the best in the Southeast. The report shows this goal is achievable if Tennessee makes the same kind of rapid student achievement gains that Florida and North Carolina made in the 1990s.

The report contains a detailed roadmap of how to achieve this goal. This roadmap is based on four key strategies:
• Embrace High Standards
• Cultivate Strong Leaders
• Ensure Excellent Teachers
• Utilize Data To Enhance Student Learning

The report contains over 60 specific recommendations for how to pursue these four strategies, identifies who is responsible for implementing each of these specific recommendations, and details a timeline on which these recommendations can be completed. The plan requires no new state funding in the short-term, although four priorities for long-term state investment are identified.

The report concludes by identifying specific actions 14 different stakeholder groups can take to implement this plan. For example, the report details specific laws and policies that need to be passed or changed by the General Assembly and State Board of Education, specific areas where short-term investment from the business and philanthropic community can make a difference, and ideas for how superintendents, principals, and teachers can work together to improve student achievement.

For more information and to view an electronic copy of the SCORE final report, you may visit www.tennesseescore.org.