Marta W. Aldrich
@martaaldrich.bsky.social
Journalist covering education for @Chalkbeat.org. Proud Tennessean, Mizzou alum, wife, and mom.
Some personal news: After some 40 years as a working journalist in Tennessee, including a decade with Chalkbeat, I am retiring. This is my final day. (1 of 6)
February 28, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Some personal news: After some 40 years as a working journalist in Tennessee, including a decade with Chalkbeat, I am retiring. This is my final day. (1 of 6)
With an ally in the White House, Moms for Liberty renews its fight against its longtime target — social and emotional learning. New reporting from @chalkbeat.org in Tennessee with @ericameltzer.bsky.social
Moms for Liberty renews its fight against social and emotional learning
The conservative group views the widely used educational approach as a “Trojan horse” for indoctrination, and it’s training parents to help root it out.
www.chalkbeat.org
February 27, 2025 at 11:24 PM
With an ally in the White House, Moms for Liberty renews its fight against its longtime target — social and emotional learning. New reporting from @chalkbeat.org in Tennessee with @ericameltzer.bsky.social
Here's the list of charter operators applying to open or run 13 schools in 5 Tennessee districts in 2026-27
Here are the charter operators applying to open or run schools in Tennessee in 2026-27
Charter school operators have applied to operate 13 schools in five Tennessee school systems beginning in the fall of 2026 amid the state’s rapidly changing school-choice landscape.
www.chalkbeat.org
February 25, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Here's the list of charter operators applying to open or run 13 schools in 5 Tennessee districts in 2026-27
Brian Kelsey once chaired the Tennessee legislature's Senate Education Committee, a powerful gatekeeper of state policies affecting students and children. Now he's in prison, reports Jonathan Matisse @apnews.com
Former Tennessee state senator reports to federal prison for campaign finance scheme conviction
A former Tennessee state senator has reported to federal prison after he pleaded guilty in 2022 to an illegal campaign finance scheme, then tried to take back his plea.
apnews.com
February 25, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Brian Kelsey once chaired the Tennessee legislature's Senate Education Committee, a powerful gatekeeper of state policies affecting students and children. Now he's in prison, reports Jonathan Matisse @apnews.com
Tennessee teachers should follow Trump’s ‘Gulf of America’ order, GOP leader says
Tennessee teachers should follow Trump’s order renaming Gulf of Mexico and Denali, says GOP leader
A GOP leader filed a resolution encouraging Tennessee teachers to use the names Gulf of America and Mount McKinley when speaking with their students about map locations rebranded by President Donald T...
www.chalkbeat.org
February 21, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Tennessee teachers should follow Trump’s ‘Gulf of America’ order, GOP leader says
The last schools in Tennessee’s shrinking Achievement School District seek to return to their home district in Memphis
The last schools in Tennessee’s shrinking Achievement School District seek to make their move
The operator of the last charter schools in the state’s waning turnaround district asks to continue managing them under their original Memphis school system before state takeover.
www.chalkbeat.org
February 21, 2025 at 1:05 AM
The last schools in Tennessee’s shrinking Achievement School District seek to return to their home district in Memphis
Members of TN Capitol Hill Press Corps on the Hill this week
February 14, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Members of TN Capitol Hill Press Corps on the Hill this week
Some Tennessee charter school applicants could bypass local districts under governor’s proposal
Tennessee governor’s proposal would give charter schools ways to bypass local oversight
Gov. Bill Lee is pushing for a major revision to Tennessee charter school law to create ways for operators to apply directly to a state commission for authorization.
www.chalkbeat.org
February 13, 2025 at 11:55 PM
Some Tennessee charter school applicants could bypass local districts under governor’s proposal
Gov. Bill Lee expects a quick launch after signing TN's universal school voucher law. But questions remain about which company will manage the program, and how the state will verify students’ legal residency.
Tennessee governor confident of a quick launch after signing universal school voucher law
Gov. Bill Lee signed Tennessee’s universal school voucher bill into law, officially kicking off the state’s push to roll out the program this year for up to 20,000 students.
www.chalkbeat.org
February 13, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Gov. Bill Lee expects a quick launch after signing TN's universal school voucher law. But questions remain about which company will manage the program, and how the state will verify students’ legal residency.
While the state's fiscal analysis of TN's Education Freedom Act assumes this vendor would manage the statewide voucher program, here's some new information and context just received by Gov. Lee's office (1 of 4):
The voucher vendor that will run Tennessee's expanded program had no previous state-level experience managing education savings accounts. Arkansas terminated its contract with company last fall.
Tenn. picks voucher novice as vendor to run education savings accounts - ChalkbeatclockCST_
Student First Technologies, a 6-year-old company based in Indiana, faces a tight timeline to stand up new systems that need to work well enough to build public trust in Tennessee’s controversial progr...
www.chalkbeat.org
January 31, 2025 at 10:46 PM
While the state's fiscal analysis of TN's Education Freedom Act assumes this vendor would manage the statewide voucher program, here's some new information and context just received by Gov. Lee's office (1 of 4):
The voucher vendor that will run Tennessee's expanded program had no previous state-level experience managing education savings accounts. Arkansas terminated its contract with company last fall.
Tenn. picks voucher novice as vendor to run education savings accounts - ChalkbeatclockCST_
Student First Technologies, a 6-year-old company based in Indiana, faces a tight timeline to stand up new systems that need to work well enough to build public trust in Tennessee’s controversial progr...
www.chalkbeat.org
January 31, 2025 at 2:32 PM
The voucher vendor that will run Tennessee's expanded program had no previous state-level experience managing education savings accounts. Arkansas terminated its contract with company last fall.
The passage of Gov. Bill Lee's signature education package culminates the drive from voucher advocates who for decades watched their policy dreams come up short in the battleground state of Tennessee.
Universal school voucher plan passes in Tennessee legislature
The passage of Gov. Bill Lee's signature education package culminates the drive from voucher advocates who for decades watched their policy dreams come up short in the battleground state of Tennessee.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 31, 2025 at 2:24 PM
The passage of Gov. Bill Lee's signature education package culminates the drive from voucher advocates who for decades watched their policy dreams come up short in the battleground state of Tennessee.
Worth noting that, minutes after #tnleg approved Gov. Lee's private school voucher plan, Sen. Bo Watson was on the Senate floor lauding Tennessee students' strong performance on the most recent nation's report card, or NAEP.
NAEP results: Tennessee students buck grim national trends on nation’s report card
Tennessee students held their ground on a major national test in a year when average student test scores declined nationwide.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 30, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Worth noting that, minutes after #tnleg approved Gov. Lee's private school voucher plan, Sen. Bo Watson was on the Senate floor lauding Tennessee students' strong performance on the most recent nation's report card, or NAEP.
BREAKING NEWS: Tennessee lawmakers approve Gov. Bill Lee’s universal private school voucher bill, creating a new track for educating K-12 students statewide.
Universal school voucher plan passes in Tennessee legislature
The Tennessee legislature on Thursday approved Gov. Bill Lee’s universal private school voucher bill, creating a new track for educating K-12 students statewide.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 30, 2025 at 9:39 PM
BREAKING NEWS: Tennessee lawmakers approve Gov. Bill Lee’s universal private school voucher bill, creating a new track for educating K-12 students statewide.
BREAKING NEWS: Universal school voucher plan passes in Tennessee House. Senate vote set for later today.
Universal school voucher plan passes in Tennessee House
The Tennessee House on Thursday approved Gov. Bill Lee’s universal private school voucher bill, while the Senate was to take up the matter later in the day.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 30, 2025 at 7:44 PM
BREAKING NEWS: Universal school voucher plan passes in Tennessee House. Senate vote set for later today.
Tennessee's school voucher bill barrels toward final votes in special legislative session. Senate sponsor says the plan was never intended to exclusively help disadvantaged kids.
Tennessee governor’s school voucher bill barrels toward final votes in special legislative session
The Senate sponsor defended the voucher proposal against critics who said it favors affluent families: “It shouldn’t be based on income. It should be universal.”
www.chalkbeat.org
January 30, 2025 at 12:55 AM
Tennessee's school voucher bill barrels toward final votes in special legislative session. Senate sponsor says the plan was never intended to exclusively help disadvantaged kids.
Tennessee students buck grim national trends on the nation's report card
NAEP results: Tennessee students buck grim national trends on nation’s report card
Tennessee students held their ground on a major national test in a year when average student test scores declined nationwide.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 29, 2025 at 6:10 AM
Tennessee students buck grim national trends on the nation's report card
School leaders in Tennessee, and elsewhere, are trying to unravel what this Trump order means for their students. w/ @ericameltzer.bsky.social
Trump freezes federal grants. What does it mean for schools?
The federal grant freeze fueled widespread confusion about which programs will be affected. Experts say the freeze may be illegal.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 28, 2025 at 7:43 PM
School leaders in Tennessee, and elsewhere, are trying to unravel what this Trump order means for their students. w/ @ericameltzer.bsky.social
Tennessee GOP leaders aim to speed school voucher bill through special session. Student protesters call on them to address gun violence with the same urgency.
Tennessee GOP leaders aim to speed school voucher bill through special session
State lawmakers kicked off a special session on school vouchers, disaster relief, and immigration Monday, with GOP leaders signaling that they want to pass all three packages by Friday.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 28, 2025 at 3:42 AM
Tennessee GOP leaders aim to speed school voucher bill through special session. Student protesters call on them to address gun violence with the same urgency.
Timeline: Here's how Tennessee got to this point on private school vouchers
Timeline: How Tennessee’s flailing school voucher push became a juggernaut, then stalled again
Political swings, judicial reversals, and outside money helped turn the tide on school vouchers in Tennessee. Plus: the pandemic.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 27, 2025 at 8:34 PM
Timeline: Here's how Tennessee got to this point on private school vouchers
Tennessee universal school vouchers would cost at least $1.1 billion in first 5 years, state projects
Tennessee universal school vouchers would cost at least $1.1 billion in first 5 years, state projects
The governor and the legislature’s GOP leaders are seeking even more funding for the program’s first year than the legislative analysis identifies.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 27, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Tennessee universal school vouchers would cost at least $1.1 billion in first 5 years, state projects
Under Trump, immigration arrests at school could be a step too far, even for some conservatives
Under Trump, immigration arrests at school could be a step too far for some conservatives
Some Republicans believe the schoolhouse door is a step too far for any measures aimed at mass deportation, even as they cheer President Trump’s push against illegal immigration.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 24, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Under Trump, immigration arrests at school could be a step too far, even for some conservatives
The latest deadly school shooting in Nashville happened in a state that has invested hundreds of millions of dollars to fortify its campuses since 2023. Other states are trying different approaches. Gun control advocates say it's the guns. www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/20...
Another fatal Tennessee school shooting puts spotlight on security and gun control
Two more Tennessee students have died by gunfire in a state that has recently invested hundreds of millions of dollars to fortify schools — and done little to restrict gun access.
www.chalkbeat.org
January 23, 2025 at 1:12 AM
The latest deadly school shooting in Nashville happened in a state that has invested hundreds of millions of dollars to fortify its campuses since 2023. Other states are trying different approaches. Gun control advocates say it's the guns. www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/20...
Reposted by Marta W. Aldrich
In a recent @brookings.edu piece, experts on immigration and education weighed in on the potential implications of enhanced immigration enforcement on public schools and young people and what education leaders can do to protect their students.
www.brookings.edu/articles/imm...
www.brookings.edu/articles/imm...
January 21, 2025 at 9:33 PM
In a recent @brookings.edu piece, experts on immigration and education weighed in on the potential implications of enhanced immigration enforcement on public schools and young people and what education leaders can do to protect their students.
www.brookings.edu/articles/imm...
www.brookings.edu/articles/imm...
Reposted by Marta W. Aldrich
Neither of Trump's top two picks for the U.S. Department of Education come from the culture warrior camp of the conservative movement. Schwinn certainly brings education experience that McMahon lacks. Her tenure in Tennessee was a complicated one. www.chalkbeat.org/2025/01/18/t...
Trump names former Tennessee schools chief Penny Schwinn to deputy education secretary
As Tennesee schools chief, Penny Schwinn championed literacy initiatives and sometimes rankled cultural conservatives. She’s the second appointment Trump has made to a department he ostensibly wants t...
www.chalkbeat.org
January 18, 2025 at 10:21 PM
Neither of Trump's top two picks for the U.S. Department of Education come from the culture warrior camp of the conservative movement. Schwinn certainly brings education experience that McMahon lacks. Her tenure in Tennessee was a complicated one. www.chalkbeat.org/2025/01/18/t...