NASHVILLE – Gov. Bill Haslam is committed to a nationwide search for a state education commissioner, but hiring someone from outside of Tennessee might take a change to the law.
State law requires the education commissioner to have a Tennessee teaching certificate. Administration officials are researching whether a waiver is feasible.
Haslam told the Knoxville News Sentinel that he has spoken with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush about the desirable qualifications for a commissioner. He would not say whether they were potential appointees but said he was “not going to rule anybody in or out.”
Tennessee Education Association lobbyist Jerry Winters said the statewide teachers’ organization is concerned that whoever takes the job has some practical experience in public education.