Latest news with #RutherfordCountyCommission
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Divided Rutherford school board reinstates meeting prayer 'for some divine guidance'
The Rutherford County Board of Education will start meetings with prayer instead of moments of silence, the majority recently decided. Board member Caleb Tidwell called for the 5-2 vote March 20 to allow for a short prayer and "ask for some divine guidance at the beginning," which was practiced at meetings in prior decades by elected school officials. Board member Stan Vaught opposed Tidwell's motion, which was proposed near the end of the meeting and excluded from the agenda. Vaught said he was concerned the district could face expensive First Amendment challenges for bringing back prayer at board meetings, "if it went all the way to the Supreme Court. "You're asking for trouble," he told Tidwell and the others in the majority. "You're asking for the taxpayers of this county to bail us out." TN ACLU attorney: Lawsuit coming soon for Rutherford Schools 'appetite for banning books' Prior to the March 20 vote, Board attorney Jeff Reed estimated that school officials could spend more than $1 million in legal costs to defend a lawsuit all the way through to the nation's top court. In 1962, the U.S. Supreme Court in Engel v. Vital ruled that public school prayers provided to all students in a classroom or campus violated the establishment clauses of the First Amendment, according to a webpage from the national Free Speech Center based at Middle Tennessee State University. Reed previously told The Daily News Journal that school board meetings are expected to follow the same public school requirements by offering no official prayers, based on a ruling from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, which has jurisdiction over parts of Tennessee, including Rutherford County. "Given recent Supreme Court rulings, the courts could view the case different than previously," Reed said. Courts have permitted legislative bodies such as the state legislature and Rutherford County Commission to open meetings with prayer, Reed said. Meeting prayer in 2018: Buddhist monk served as Rutherford County Commission's guest chaplain Tidwell's motion for prayer had support from Butch Vaughn, Katie Darby, Tammy Sharp and vice chairwoman Frances Rosales. Chairwoman Claire Maxwell joined Vaught in opposing. Vaughn, who seconded the motion to approve, suggested there are "lots of kids who want to pray with us." He also asked why the school board had to give up prayer at meetings in the first place. "I'm ready to fight," he said. "The structure of our country is based on that. I'd just like to get it back myself." 'I will do my very best': New Rutherford school board chairwoman Claire Maxwell faces challenges As part of his argument, Vaught said he'd rather observe moments of silence so each board member, district employee, person in the sometimes 150-plus strong audience and everyone watching the video-recorded meetings can send up his or her own prayer. "You're infringing on other people's liberty by doing this," Vaught told the majority. "I don't know if you're thinking about that or not, but we have to protect everybody's liberty: right, wrong, black, white, pink, purple, polka dot, Jew, Christian, Muslim, Hindu." Vaught also pointed out how the district has 52 different languages spoken by students and employees at Smyrna High School, alone. He noted that Rutherford County Schools is home to several different religions observed among its 52,000 students and 7,000 employees. Before the board's vote, Darby convinced a majority to amend the motion to include a statement making it clear that elected school officials are "not asking anyone to pray with us" and that audience members can step out of the meeting room if they "don't want to join in prayer." School board politics: Rutherford school board Zone 2 race gets divisive with RINO insult to GOP officials After the meeting, Vaught told The Daily News Journal he'd received praise for his stance on the prayer issue from Nashville's Rae Levine. "As a Jew in TN and especially, a retired MNPS (Metro Nashville Public Schools) teacher, reading Stan's words, renews my faith and hope for Tennessee," Levine said in a letter to the editor in The Tennessean. "Our Constitution, the supreme law of the land, is being trampled upon by Trump and his legion, by Governor Lee, and TN GOP legislators, by school board members all over our state, as separation of church and state has become a 'woke' thing, which is unfathomable." Prior to the meeting and subsequent prayer vote, Vaught, who attends First Baptist Church on East Main Street in downtown Murfreesboro, offered to meet in prayer with elected school officials. "We can pray right there, right then, before the meeting starts," he said. 'We are banished': Rutherford schools book banning upsets free speech advocates Reach reporter Scott Broden with news tips or questions by emailing him at sbroden@ To support his work with The Daily News Journal, sign up for a digital subscription. This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Tennessee school board to reinstate meeting prayers after split vote
USA Today
11-02-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Split Rutherford school board backs DEI by 1 changed vote: 'Diversity is a good thing'
Board member: Resolution 'sends the wrong message' Tidwell contends DEI has 'agenda tentacles' Darby wants merit-based pay for teachers Rosales recalls being 'the only Hispanic in the entire classroom' Public school today offers 'a beautiful rainbow,' Rosales says Divided Rutherford County school officials rejected, upon second vote, an attempt Thursday to oppose Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policies. In an unusual occurrence, the school board first approved a resolution to reject DEI hiring practices in the district based on diversity such as race, gender or ethnicity, for example, before later rescinding the resolution less than a half hour later. 'Diversity is a good thing," Rutherford County Schools Board of Education vice chairwoman Frances Rosales said after reversing her initial position to oppose DEI. Fellow school board member Caleb Tidwell called for the vote to oppose DEI the second time around, resulting in four of the seven all-Republican school board members rejected his motion. DEI policies also have faced fierce opposition from Republican President Donald Trump, Republicans and some corporate headquarters in Tennessee. School board members debated DEI issues after also rescinding a previous controversial issue that called for the federal government to secure national borders. Immigration issue:Rutherford school board votes in support of closing nation's borders due to rising English as a Second Language needs Board votes to eliminate DEI upon first vote Tidwell said his DEI motion opposes a policy to "consider race in the hiring process." 'I don't think that should be a factor," said Tidwell, adding that there's established law that says considering race in the hiring process "is discriminatory." 'I think we should focus on merit," Tidwell said. Tidwell also said he expects that the Tennessee General Assembly will pass a law that takes the same stance in opposing DEI. "I think this is a great resolution," Tidwell said. Official in audience upset by first DEI vote: 'Shame on you!' The board initially approved Tidwell's resolution in a 4-3 vote, which upset audience members, including Hope Oliver, an elected Rutherford County Commission member representing a La Vergne district. "Shame on you!" Oliver shouted from the back row of the packed audience seats. When Oliver heard Tidwell mention hiring practices should focus on merit, she uttered "merit means white." 2022 elections bring change:21-member Rutherford County Commission will see new faces with 9 elected officials Board member: Resolution 'sends the wrong message' Tidwell had initial support from Frances and fellow board members Tammy Sharp and Katie Darby. Frances then called for a new vote to join in opposition to the resolution with Stan Vaught, Butch Vaughn and chairwoman Claire Maxwell. Vaught questioned if the resolution was a way for Tidwell to "run for state representative." "I'm all for you buddy, but passing this tonight sends the wrong message," Vaught said. "I don't think you're hearing yourself right now. The message you're conveying is that if you're not a middle-class white guy, don't apply. And I don't think that's the message that you're trying to say, but that's how it's coming out right now." Vaught noted how there's a lot of diversity in this community, including at Smyrna High that serves students from families speaking 52 languages. Republican politics:Rutherford school board Zone 2 race gets divisive with RINO insult to GOP officials Tidwell contends DEI has 'agenda tentacles' Maxwell also questioned Tidwell's resolution. "We are not burdened by DEI in Rutherford County," Maxwell said. "This resolution is a needless distraction for political purposes." Maxwell also said "nervous parents" of special education students have been calling and emailing her about their concerns with the DEI resolution. "This just sends a bad message to inclusion," said Maxwell, who served as an educational assistant for special education students at Riverdale High School prior to winning her board seat in 2020. Tidwell contends that DEI policies have "agenda tentacles." "There's a political aspect to it," Tidwell said. "Pointing out the politics exist is not bringing politics into education." 'We are banished':Rutherford schools book banning upsets free speech advocates Darby wants merit-based pay for teachers Darby said it was not fair for her fellow school officials to make accusations against Tidwell. "I am a huge fan of merit-based decisions and trying to get our teachers on merit-based pay," Darby said. "What's best for our students is to have the best educator in the classroom regardless of the color of their skin, their religion, their sexual orientation, it doesn't matter. We want the best teacher in the classroom teaching our students." Partisan politics:Democrat fears new GOP majority county school board may mean book banning, teacher firing Rosales recalls being 'the only Hispanic in the entire classroom' Ultimately after a board recess, Rosales changed her vote, which resulted in a 3-4 vote to reject the resolution to end DEI. Prior to the vote change by Rosales to oppose the DEI opposition resolution, she apologized to schools Director James "Jimmy" Sullivan by saying she agreed with him that partisan "politics would interfere with what's important for the education of children." Rosales also recalled the challenges she faced as a public-school student. 'I was the only Hispanic in the entire classroom, the entire high school, for many grades," Rosales said. The public school experience was "very traumatizing" for Rosales to be in a school where she said no one spoke Spanish or understood her culture. 'I didn't have a teacher that looked like me, that sounded like me," Rosales said. "I was pretty much in a little island. And as a child growing up, it was really, really hard for me to feel how I identified.' First Amendment issues:Rutherford schools removal of 160 more books draws opposition from free speech advocates Rosales: Public school today offers 'a beautiful rainbow' Rosales also remembered her early childhood years when race was not an issue in Puerto Rico. "The skin color didn't matter," Rosales said. "I come here, and it was difficult. I had to pick between different camps. Am I with the whites or am I with the Blacks." Rosales said she sees diversity in the schools in a different way as an adult volunteer and substitute teacher. "Now when you come to school, it's a beautiful rainbow," Rosales said. "You've got kids that are from Iran. You've got kids that are from South America. You have kids that are white. You have kids that are Black." Rosales said she encourages the children during Black History Month to learn from the civil rights advocacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and his bravery for the barriers he faced. "And I'm telling you, and I'm able to tell them that the American dream that a lot of people come to is attainable for everybody," Rosales said. Free speech challeges:Rutherford school board removes 'Beloved,' 5 other books that include sexually explicit scenes from libraries Reach reporter Scott Broden with news tips or questions by emailing him at sbroden@ Follow him on Twitter @ScottBroden. To support his work with The Daily News Journal, sign up for a digital subscription.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Murfreesboro lawmakers file bill to allow moratorium on apartment complex development
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WKRN) — Two Republican lawmakers who serve Murfreesboro and Rutherford County have filed legislation that would allow the Rutherford County Commission to halt all development of apartment complexes. SB 1098/HB 1161, filed by Sen. Dawn White and Rep. Robert Stevens, authorizes a local government to impose a moratorium on the development of apartment complexes if they wish and pass it with a two-thirds majority vote. The moratorium would only apply to counties with a population of at least 325,000, according to the 2020 census or a subsequent federal census; the provision would not apply to any county with a metropolitan form of government. According to U.S. Census data, the only counties in Tennessee with a population of at least 325,000 were Rutherford, Hamilton, Knox, Davidson, and Shelby. Since Davidson County has a metropolitan government, it would be excluded from the provision. According to the text of the bill, the moratorium could be imposed if the county legislative body adopts the resolution. The moratorium would be 'limited to one (1) year in duration,' the bill says, but that year-long moratorium could be extended by the county authority upon another two-thirds majority vote. The extensions would also be limited to one year, but there is no limit to how many extensions the county legislative body could pass. Smyrna High School celebrates new space on campus The bill's text also specifies an 'apartment complex' means a 'building or group of buildings for multi-family use within the same development containing twenty-five (25) or more individual dwelling units for residents.' If passed, the law would take effect immediately upon receiving Gov. Bill Lee's signature. The measure comes as Rutherford County is seeing explosive growth. According to the Tennessee State Data Center in the University of Tennessee Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, Rutherford County saw more than a 30% growth in population from 2010 to 2020. It was listed as the fifth-largest county in the state in the 2020 federal census, according to the Boyd Center. Murfreesboro city officials recently approved a nearly $5 million road improvement project. The project includes adding turn and through lanes and a traffic signal at the intersection of Burnt Knob, Manson Pike and Blackman Road. A new elementary school is set to open in August, followed by a new middle school. READ MORE | Latest headlines from Murfreesboro and Rutherford County Smyrna High School celebrated a new addition to its campus to accommodate an influx of students earlier this year. The new wing has 39 new classrooms that replace 19 older portable buildings used for schooling. The increased capacity is around 2,500 students, according to Rutherford County Schools (RCS) Director of Schools Jimmy Sullivan. La Vergne High School also submitted a request for expansion later in the year to the Rutherford County Commission. In October, RCS sent the commission an approximately $40 million funding request to build an annex onto the high school. La Vergne High School annex vote comes to Rutherford County School Board The annex will be roughly 100,00 square feet in space and increase the school's capacity to about 2,600 students, according to the school board. RCS spokesman James Evans said the Rutherford County Commission approved the funding request. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
