Last night, Governor Bill Lee delivered his 2025 State of the State address, outlining his legislative priorities and proposed budget for the coming fiscal year. This annual address sets the stage for key policy decisions, including education—which accounts for 19% of proposed new allocations. As the General Assembly debates and finalizes the budget, EdTrust-Tennessee remains committed to advocating for investments that drive equity and opportunity for students in Tennessee.
Governor Lee announced several investments we believe expand education equity and opportunity for students in next year’s budget:
- Early Childhood Education: Investments in early childhood education, including $7.2M to expand retention bonuses for child care workers through the WAGE$ program, and $5.9M to expand subsidized child care based on income through the Smart Steps Child Care Program.
- Career Pathways: An additional $10M in the Governor’s Investment in Vocational Education (GIVE) grant program to support partnerships between public technical and community colleges, school districts, and industry to create nuclear energy career pathways.
- Public School Funding: Funding of $244M in Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) formula growth, including planned increases to teacher pay, and $25M further investment in the Fast Growth Fund for districts with growing enrollments.
- Student Mental Health: A $1M expansion of the school-based behavioral health liaison program, supporting student mental health needs.
- Financial Aid: A $12.1M new scholarship program, TennesseeWORKS, which will cover tuition and fees at Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology (TCATs) and costs of tools and equipment for students from low-income backgrounds.
- Postsecondary Access and Success: Investments in postsecondary student retention and support, including $52.8M to fully fund Tennessee’s outcomes-based funding formula and $2M to build technology infrastructure that supports seamless transfer, outreach, and student support.
While these investments are important steps toward expanding education equity in Tennessee, they are accompanied by rhetoric and policies that create significant barriers to that progress. This contrast underscores the ongoing challenges that remain.
Join us for two upcoming webinars where we’ll take a deeper look at how education is funded in Tennessee and explore opportunities for advocacy.
February 20 | 4 PM CT – (Webinar) TISA in Action: Implementation, Impact, and Local Advocacy Opportunities
Learn how Tennessee’s public schools are funded and discover ways to advocate for district budgets that prioritize student needs.
February 25 | 4 PM CT – (Webinar) Understanding Tennessee’s Education Budget with the Sycamore Institute
Featuring Mandy Spears, Sycamore Institute’s Deputy Director, this session will break down the Governor’s budget and its impact on education.
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