It’s February, and in the spirit of Valentine’s Day, we’re inviting you to share all the things you love about Sycamore. No, really, let us know.
Sycamore Than You Knew
- 95 Counties ~ Each year, the Census Bureau releases new estimates about each county’s income, poverty, health insurance coverage, and education levels, which we recently summarized.
- Private Schools ~ We updated our report on the Education Freedom Scholarship Act to reflect the enacted version. It explains how many scholarships are offered, the amount given, school eligibility, testing requirements, and more.
- Special Session Dollars ~ Sycamore released a brief explaining where the money for last month’s special session would come from, along with proposed costs.
- Zoom in on the Budget ~ Sycamore is hosting a Zoom next Wednesday where our research team will explain the proposed FY 2026 budget, including where the dollars come from, where they go, and give context surrounding the largest proposals.Register to attend today!
Not From Around Here
- Sycamore board member, Judge Sheila Calloway, was recently quoted in The Tennessean explaining how the new “blended sentencing” law will work and potential challenges.
- Each year, the Recording Academy and the Grammy Museum present a Music Educator Award honoring educators who’ve made a lasting impact in music education. This year’s winner is Adrian Maclin, music teacher at Cordova High School in Memphis.
- A Vanderbilt professor has been awarded grant dollars from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to support efforts in predicting and monitoring water toxins and identifying potentially impacted communities. The team will develop learning models to predict “forever chemical” contamination in drinking water.
- Author Barbara Kingsolver wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Demon Copperhead, which was set in Appalachia and explored the effects of the opioid crisis. She used the royalties to open a recovery house for women in the region where the book was set—Lee County, Virginia, which borders Hancock County.
- In 2023, the General Assembly passed the Transportation Modernization Act, which introduced choice lanes to help alleviate traffic. TDOT recently announced that they are considering new choice lane projects in Nashville, Chattanooga, and Knoxville.
- While it may feel like Americans are increasingly divided, the nonprofit group, More in Common, has recently found consensus among Americans, including: “a commitment to constitutionality, bipartisan support for wildfire relief, shared beliefs in principled foreign policy, and a desire for unity.”
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Dusting Off the Archives
With much of the state weathering some snow, our report on housing explains why housing is important and some of the natural hazards that can impact different communities.
