NASHVILLE - A major overhaul of teacher tenure laws is headed to Gov. Bill Haslam after the Senate today gave final approval to the bill.
Senators voted 21-12 and agreed to a minor change made by the House which moves the effective date from June 15 to July 1.
"What you're saying is teachers are safe for another two weeks," Senate Minority Leader Jim Kyle, D-Memphis, told Republican Majority Leader Mark Norris, R-Collierville.
The bill, a top priority for Haslam, makes it tougher for teachers to win and keep tenure protections. Instead of three years, it will take teachers five years to attain tenure.
It also ties evaluations to the tenure-granting process, requiring new teachers to be in the top two rankings of a five-tier evaluation system for two consecutive years before being considered for tenure.
For complete details, see tomorrow's Times Free Press.