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State board rule lowers end-of-course exam weight to 5–15% and moves credit-recovery items into rule
Summary
A joint Government Operations committee on Dec. 11 recommended a State Board of Education rule that reduces the share EOC exams contribute to high-school grades to 5–15% beginning fall 2024 and transfers several credit-recovery requirements from policy into rule; the committee gave the measure a positive recommendation and it will be folded into an omnibus bill.
The Joint Government Operations committee recommended a State Board of Education rule change Dec. 11 that reduces how much end-of-course (EOC) exams count toward high-school course grades and moves certain credit-recovery provisions from policy into rule.
Mr. James, speaking for the board, told the committee that the proposed change "reduces this percentage to between 5 15% beginning with courses taken in the fall of 2024," a shift the presenters said responds to feedback from districts, educators and advocacy groups. Rachel Soupey, general counsel for the State Board of Education, told legislators the board is acting under its board-authority statute and that the cited provision for grades 3–8 is silent about grades 9–12. "It doesn't lay out in statute what the percentage of range should be, for grades 9 through 12," Soupey said, explaining why the board set a range by rule.
Why it matters: Board members and presenters framed the change as preserving local flexibility while ensuring EOC exams remain part of students' final grades. They also cited practical concerns about whether test results are available in time to be calculated into final grades, a point the board said informed its decision.
Discussion in the committee focused on the statutory basis and the size of the reduction. Representative Bolsow asked for the statutory citation and said he could not find a requirement in the cited statute for the previous 15–25% range; Soupey and Mr. James replied that 49-1617(a) addresses grades 3–8 and is silent for grades 9–12 and that the board relies on its rulemaking authority under TCA 49-1-302 to set the range for high-school courses.
Committee action and next steps: After brief questions and no public comment, the committee accepted a motion for a positive recommendation. The House approved the motion by voice vote; the Senate recorded five aye votes and the chair reported the item "moves out with a positive recommendation" to be included in the omnibus bill for final consideration.
The committee did not vote on a final statutory change; this action is a committee-level recommendation to advance the rule into the omnibus package.
