Advocacy Toolkit
for HB 2485/SB 2385
Every student deserves access to a high-quality education, but Tennessee’s economically disadvantaged student definition undercounts and underserves the students and districts most in need of additional resources.
That’s why in 2025 EdTrust-Tennessee released a new report — The Undercount: Tennessee’s Narrow Poverty Definition Shortages Schools and Students. The report has become a cornerstone of our legislative advocacy, informing conversations with lawmakers and stakeholders in our efforts to advance HB 2485/SB 2385 to modernize accountability and funding systems, so they more accurately reflect student need.
Scroll down to learn more about the bill, identify ways you can advocate in your community, find shareable resources to advocate for your community, and see district-specific data showing how many students are being undercounted.
By using this toolkit to advocate for HB 2485/SB 2385, you join us in amplifying our collective power to influence and inform the policy decisions being made on behalf of students from low-income backgrounds, of color, with disabilities, in rural areas, and English learners, regardless of citizenship status.
Undercounting of Economically Disadvantaged Students by District
This dashboard highlights the disparity between the number of Tennessee students who meet the state’s definition of an economically disadvantaged student under TISA and students who meet the federal definition of identified students under the federal definition of identified students. Based upon estimates from historic data, the dashboard visually demonstrates the restrictive nature of the definition of “economically disadvantaged,” and why Tennessee’s definition must be revised to more accurately identify and support students from low-income backgrounds.
Legislator One-Pagers
Bring a one-pager to your legislator that details district-specific data showing how many students in your legislator’s area are being undercounted under the current economically disadvantaged definition.
