Legislative liaison flags voucher issues as state assembly convenes
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Summary
Board legislative liaison Michelle Childs briefed the board on the Tennessee General Assembly session and summarized a recent comptroller study that raised questions about ESA background-check monitoring and low parent survey response rates for voucher programs.
Board member and legislative liaison Michelle Childs gave a briefing ahead of the Tennessee General Assembly convening. Childs said previously active bills carry into the new two-year session and called attention to voucher programs (including the education savings account, or ESA, programs and the education freedom scholarship) expected to be topics this session.
Childs summarized findings from a recent comptroller report: some ESA programs allow non-licensed teachers and the Tennessee Department of Education has reportedly not been monitoring whether the required background checks for private providers and ESA recipients are being performed. She said most ESA participants in the referenced program are from Memphis even though the program covers several districts. Childs also said parent satisfaction surveys had only a 15% response rate last year and that involuntarily or voluntarily withdrawn students are not included in survey tallies, which could skew satisfaction metrics.
She noted private schools expressed concerns to the comptroller about administering TCAP testing for ESA students and about background-check practices. The liaison concluded by saying the district will continue to monitor the session and report back at future meetings.