Our Priorities
Our Policy Development Process
TQEE is Tennessee’s go-to source for sound early education policy proposals anchored in the four core priorities above. Developing those proposals is an involved process that requires a lot of inputs, and four key considerations.
What Works.
First and foremost we start with what works. The field of early education is chock full of research and evidence on practices that lead to effective early learning outcomes. We gather new information through regular research, through our national network of state early education advocates, and especially through our Tennessee-based policy advisors.
What’s Cost Effective.
One of the things we love about early education is the huge body of research demonstrating the strong return on investment for high quality early education. But we also dig into the specific program and practices, and we champion new research that helps us better understand program effectiveness and cost-effectiveness here in Tennessee. We also actively look for opportunities for our state to use existing resources more effectively.
What Tennesseans Want.
Tennessee voters overwhelmingly support our early education priorities and policy proposals; but we don’t take that for granted. We conduct a public opinion survey across the state each and every year to make sure our policy priorities are aligned with values and opinions of Tennesseans.
What State Government Leaders are Prioritizing.
We recognize and appreciate that there are many priorities for state government. That’s why we give special attention to aligning our legislative initiatives to other priorities which have momentum and where there exists a natural fit. For example, in response to Governor Lee’s executive order for government departments to give special attention to rural distressed communities, we proposed the first PreK expansion in over a decade begin in rural distressed communities.
