The Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement Act (TISA) was passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by Governor Bill Lee on May 2nd, 2022. TISA is Tennessee’s new public-school funding formula and replaces the 30-year-old “Basic Education Plan” (BEP). The state of Tennessee and the Department of Education is currently accepting public comment on the details of TISA. It's important that our community have access to materials that can help explain how TISA will change public school funding in Tennessee and what that means for students with disabilities.
In early October, Governor Bill Lee and Department of Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn announced a 90-day stakeholder review of the Basic Education Plan (BEP). The BEP is the funding mechanism used to finance Tennessee schools, and determines how much money each district and school gets for its operating costs. As it is currently constructed, the BEP is outdated and complex, resulting in unequal funding to schools and poor outcomes for Tennessee students.
This week, September 13th-20th, is National Disability Voter Registration Week! This week is a celebration of the power of the disability vote, but also a recognition that undue barriers continue to present obstacles to voters with disabilities in enacting this civic responsibility and constitutional right.
As Tennessee children return to school amidst a surge in Covid-19 cases it is important to consider how to best protect them, particularly those who are the most vulnerable because of disability or health condition. This a topic that is complicated but one thing is clear: empirical evidence shows that there are strategies to mitigate the danger of contracting Covid-19.
