OPTING OUT: On November 13, Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman announced he will be stepping down from his post, after over three years championing education reform in the Volunteer State.
Huffman, a former executive at Teach For America, polarized Tennesseans through his reform efforts. Last year, 4th and 8th graders in Tennessee showed the highest gains in the country on the “Nation’s Report Card.” But several of Huffman’s initiatives, including an unsuccessful teacher evaluation and licensing system based on student test scores, prompted outcry both from state Republicans (who called for his resignation this summer) and superintendents, 60 of whom signed a letter to the governor denouncing Huffman’s efforts in 2013. Huffman plans to work as a private consultant and write, according to The Tennessean.
