New Recovery School District Could Overhaul 11 Schools Next Year

As part of the legislature’s special session in January, Governor Phil Bredesen wants to create a new kind of district for failing schools. It could upend two schools in Nashville that have been struggling for years.

The recovery district would remove struggling schools from local control and plop them into a state-run district.

Education Commissioner Tim Webb says it’s possible every teacher would be fired, along with the principals.

“You quite possibly could be looking at an entire new staff, new leadership, new instructional methodology with extended learning opportunities on Saturdays. They would have basically complete academic autonomy.”

There are 11 such schools across the state that would be candidates for the new recovery district. The two in Nashville are Glencliff High School and Cameron Middle.

Webb says a similar experiment has been attempted in Louisiana.

“We have reached a point with these particular schools where we have to take daunting and drastic action in order to try to make a difference and intervene here.”

Governor Bredesen is asking for hundreds of millions from the Obama Administration’s federal grant program. To better position for the money, he’s also hoping to get the legislature to approve using student test scores in teacher evaluations.