The Tennessee General Assembly is once again talking about school district leadership, and Cheatham County leaders and residents have a lot to say about it.
House Bill 1849 and corresponding Senate Bill 1719 were filed Wednesday, Jan. 21 and Thursday, Jan. 15, respectively, by 28th District Tennessee Sen. Joey Hensley and 41st District Tennessee State Rep. Ed Butler and would give government bodies in Tennessee the option to change the appointed director of school positions to that of superintendent of schools that would be elected, instead. The bill lays out the requirements for an elected superintendent as follows:
“This bill requires the state board of education to establish minimum requirements for a license of qualification for a superintendent, which must include, at a minimum, the following:
- The applicant must hold a teacher’s professional license with endorsement as principal or supervisor of instruction;
- The applicant must hold a master’s degree; and
- The applicant must have at least five years’ experience to include both teaching and administrative experience.”
According to the bill, should it be passed into law, the legislative body of the municipal or county government would have to get a majority vote to switch the position from an appointed to an elected one…