Staff photo by Erin O. Smith / …Bill Lee, a Tennessee gubernatorial candidate, talks about his candidacy during a Chattanooga Times Free Press interview Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at his office in downtown Chattanooga, Tenn.Quality education is one of the most important issues Tennessee voters are thinking about before they cast their ballots in November, according to a statewide poll.
At least one-third of voters said education is an important issue in deciding their vote for governor, the poll conducted by the nonpartisan education policy and advocacy nonprofit State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) found.
More than 75 percent of voters would prefer a candidate who favors policies that would better prepare students for post-secondary education and careers, the poll also found. The majority of Tennesseans – 59 percent – are not confident that high school graduates are prepared for the workforce and 47 percent do not think students are prepared for college.
Karl Dean speaks at the Spring into Action Rally at Grundy County High School Saturday, April 7, 2018 in Grundy County, Tenn. Dean, who is the former mayor of Nashville, is a democratic candidate running for the Tennessee governor seat. “One of the biggest problems facing Tennessee education is voters do not think the state’s high school graduates are properly prepared for the next stages of life, whether that is college or a job. In response to this concern, views of programs that can benefit high school graduates are very positive,” according to the poll results.
During Gov. Bill Haslam’s two terms, Tennessee has worked to improve the quality of education across the state.