Tennessee
State Government
Governor
Bill Lee (R)
State Senate
6
Democrats,
27
Republicans
State House
24
Democrats,
75
Republicans
Economic well-being - Tennessee
Extreme poverty rate
0.1
Food insecurity
0.156
Minimum wage
7.25
Percent of working families under 200% of the poverty line
0.314
Poverty rate
13.5%
Unemployment rate
3.6
Number of Black or African American children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment
Number of Hispanic or Latino children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment
Percent of individuals who are uninsured
9.7
Poverty by demographic - Tennessee
Child poverty rate
0.19
Number of Asian and Pacific Islander children below 200% poverty
4000
Number of Black or African American children below 200% poverty
157000
Number of Hispanic or Latino children below 200% poverty
104000
Senior poverty rate
12.2 %
Women in poverty
3,611,301
Chattanooga Times Free Press, February 26, 2012: Santorum brings national spotlight to Hixson with campaign speech at Abba's House
"If elderly Tennessee voters nudge Santorum to the top, they may be voting against their interests. A topic Santorum didn't discuss during his Abba's House speech is what he would do with Social Security. Unlike the rest of the GOP field, Santorum has said he would cut benefits immediately and set a higher eligibility age."
USA Today, February 9, 2012: Obama lets 10 states escape 'No Child' rules
While many educators and many governors celebrated, congressional Republicans accused Obama of executive overreach, and education and civil-rights groups questioned if schools would be getting a pass on aggressively helping poor and minority children -- the kids the 2002 law was primarily designed to help."
The Tennessean, February 10, 2012: Schools in TN get reprieve
"In return for granting the waiver, the U.S. Department of Education will require Tennessee to increase its percentage of students considered proficient or advanced on state exams by at least 3 percent each year. That number is 6 percent for low-income and minority students."
The Tennessean, January 26, 2011: Local kids living in poverty Local high school helps with grandparent program
"One in five Robertson County school-aged children were living in poverty in 2010, according to new U. S. Census data released. Sometimes, younger children fall victim to their parents' financial struggles, said Monica Causey, the lead family contact with Early Connections Network in Nashville."
The Tennessean, January 25, 2012: Franklin schools rezoning aims for poorer students to mingle
"In Middle Tennessee, Rutherford County schools used income factors when drawing attendance zones for new schools. Oakland and Whitworth-Buchanan middle schools opened in 2010, and Rutherford County used the opportunity to spread the district's 40 percent low-income students out more evenly."
Knoxville News-Sentinel, January 18, 2012: Area college students to help count homeless
"Fifteen students who are enrolled in a three-week winter term course will participate in the Blount County point-in-time homeless count, a national data collection effort commissioned by the Department of Housing and Urban Development that asks each community to count its homeless residents on one day. "