Phil Bredesen on Education Democratic TN Governor

Supports charter schools but "not wild about vouchers

Marsha Blackburn (R): Yes, has voted for vouchers.

Phil Bredesen (D): No. Supports charter schools but "not wild about vouchers."

Free community college tuition; lower student loan interest

Marsha Blackburn (R): No. Voted against earlier proposal to refinance student loans.

Phil Bredesen (D): Some level of support. "I'm someone who went to school with student loans, but they were much lower interest than these student loans & longer pay-out times."

Q: Should federal student financial aid, like Pell Grants, be increased?

Marsha Blackburn (R): Unknown.

Phil Bredesen (D): Unclear, but earlier pushed for free community college tuition.

New reforms: student achievement to evaluate teacher

$48M for state colleges for tuition, & $10M scholarships

• $120 million for at-risk students in K-12, to fully fund the state's share of these costs
• $27 million for student growth needs in local school districts, to fully fund the state's share of these costs
• $48 million to keep tuition increases at state colleges and universities modest
• $10 million to offer free community college tuition to high school students who make an average score of 19 on the ACT, 19 on the math component and 19 on the test's reading component
• $9.3 million to increase Tennessee's Hope Scholarships to $4,000 annually
• $48 million to fund operating increases in Tennessee's higher education system
• Implementation of ACT testing for 8th and 10th grade students, to assess their academic needs early on and design individual learning plans to help them graduate on time and ready for work or college

Raise teacher pay;expand pre-K

• Fully funding the Basic Education Program (BEP).
• Raising teacher pay.
• Expanding pre-kindergarten programs.
• Encouraging reading initiatives.