Education, Dept. of

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49, relative to education.

Education Taxes

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: Hensley, Cepicky
Last action: 2026-04-15
Official status: Placed on Senate Message Calendar for 4/16/2026
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not mention setting higher math standards for grades 5-7.

Math Education Changes in Tennessee

This bill allows eighth-grade math teachers to teach Algebra I or equivalent courses without additional training costs and requires schools to enroll high-achieving seventh graders in advanced math classes.

What This Bill Does

Allows eighth-grade math teachers to also teach Algebra I or an equivalent course at no extra cost.
Requires LEAs and public charter schools to enroll seventh graders who score 'exceeds expectations' on their TCAP test into Algebra I or a similar advanced class, unless parents opt out.

Who It Names or Affects

Eighth-grade students who excel in math
Teachers of eighth-grade mathematics
Local education agencies and public charter schools

Terms To Know

LEA: Local Education Agency, which is a school district or other local organization that manages public schools.
TCAP test: Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program test, used to measure student achievement in Tennessee.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if a school cannot offer Algebra I or an equivalent course.
It is unclear how the changes will affect students who do not meet the criteria for advanced math courses.
There are no details on how schools should notify parents about their child's placement in advanced math classes.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HA1019

Amendment 1-0 to HB2276

Plain English: This amendment to Tennessee Code Annotated allows eighth-grade math teachers to teach Algebra I or equivalent courses without additional licensing costs and requires certain students scoring highly on seventh-grade math tests to be enrolled in advanced math classes in eighth grade.

Allows current eighth-grade math teachers to also teach Algebra I or an equivalent course, with no extra cost for the teacher.
Requires local education agencies (LEAs) and public charter schools to enroll students who scored 'exceeds expectations' on seventh-grade math TCAP tests in Algebra I or a similar advanced math class in eighth grade, unless parents opt out.
Includes grades from high school courses taken by eighth graders in the uniform grading system.

The exact details of how teachers will be allowed to teach additional subjects without extra costs are not fully explained.

SA0804

Amendment 1-0 to SB2375

Plain English: This amendment to SB2375 adds new sections to Tennessee's education laws that allow eighth-grade math teachers to teach Algebra I or equivalent courses without additional licensing costs and requires schools to enroll high-performing seventh graders in advanced math courses starting from the 2027-2028 school year.

Allows current eighth-grade mathematics teachers to also teach Algebra I or an equivalent course, with no extra cost for them.
Requires the standards recommendation committee to include advanced math standards for grades five through seven in their final recommendations.
Mandates that starting from the 2027-2028 school year, high-performing seventh graders (those who exceed expectations on the TCAP test) must be enrolled in Algebra I or an equivalent course unless a parent requests otherwise.

The exact details of how schools will implement these changes and ensure quality education for advanced students are not specified.

Bill History

2026-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Message Calendar for 4/16/2026
2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed H., as am., Ayes 92, Nays 0, PNV 0
2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly
H. adopted am. (Amendment 1 - HA1019)
2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly
Subst. for comp. HB.
2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly
Comp. SB subst.
2026-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly
H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/13/2026
2026-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/9/2026
2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly
Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.
2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly
Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Sponsor(s) Added.
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Engrossed; ready for transmission to House
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 32, Nays 0
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0804)
2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Government Operations Committee for 4/6/2026
2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly
Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Government Operations Committee
2026-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/2/2026
2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/31/2026
2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly
Action def. in Education Committee to 4/1/2026
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 8, Nays 0 PNV 0
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/24/2026
2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly
Action def. in Education Committee to 3/24/2026
2026-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Education Committee calendar for 3/18/2026
2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Action deferred in Senate Education Committee to 3/18/2026
2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/17/2026
2026-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly
Rec for pass if am by s/c ref. to Education Committee
2026-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Education Committee
2026-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Education Committee calendar for 3/11/2026
2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Education Instruction Subcommittee for 3/10/2026
2026-03-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Introduced, Passed on First Consideration
2026-03-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Approved by Delayed Bills Committee
2026-02-24 Tennessee General Assembly
Assigned to s/c Education Instruction Subcommittee
2026-02-24 Tennessee General Assembly
Ref. to Education Committee - Government Operations for Review
2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly
P2C, caption bill, held on desk - pending amdt.
2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Intro., P1C.
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Refer to Senate Delayed Bills Committee
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON APRIL 2, 2026, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 2375, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites this bill to make the following additions to present law concerning math education:

(1) Requires t
he state board of education, in consultation with the department of education, to establish a pathway for an educator who currently holds a license or endorsement to teach eighth grade mathematics to also teach Algebra I or an equivalent mathematics cours
e to students in eighth grade at no additional cost to the educator;

(2) Requires the standards recommendation committee to include in their final recommendation for the academic standards for mathematics to the state board of education advanced mathematics academic standards for students in an advanced mathematics cours
e in grades 5-7; and

(3) Beginning with the 2027-2028 school year, requires LEAs and public charter schools, after notifying a student's parents, to enroll a student who achieves a performance level rating of "exceeds expectations" on the mathematics portion of the student'
s seventh grade TCAP test in Algebra I or an equivalent mathematics course, as determined by the state board of education, instead of enrolling the student in the eighth grade mathematics course, unless the student's parent or legal guardian submits a wri
tt
en request to the LEA or public charter school to remove the student from the course. A student who is enrolled in Algebra I or an equivalent mathematics course pursuant to this amendment must be administered the end-of-course examination for the course.
If the successful completion of an Algebra I course or the equivalent mathematics course is required by the state board of education for students to receive a full high school diploma, then a student's successful completion of the Algebra I course or th
e
equivalent mathematics course in the eighth grade also satisfies the Algebra I or the equivalent mathematics course requirement for high school.

ON APRIL 13, 2026, THE HOUSE SUBSTITUTED SENATE BILL 2375 FOR HOUSE BILL 2276, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 2375, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1
adds a requirement that the state board of education, in developing and adopting a uniform grading system for students in grades 9-12 which LEAs must adopt and use pursuant to present law, to include in such system the high school course grades achieved b
y students in eighth grade.

This amendment also specifies that the uniform grading system for students in grades K-8 must include K-8 coursework.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HOUSE BILL 2276
By Cepicky

SENATE BILL 2375
By Hensley
SB2375
012671
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49,
relative to education.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-6-1012(g), is amended by
deleting the subsection and substituting:
(g) The department of education shall submit an annual report to the education
committee of the senate and the committee of the house of representatives having
jurisdiction over academic acceleration, on the implementation of this section.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.