Tennessee § 49-5-209 Educator's Bill of Rights

Tennessee Statutes

§ 49-5-209 — Educator's Bill of Rights

Tennessee § 49-5-209

Title49

This text of Tennessee § 49-5-209 (Educator's Bill of Rights) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-5-209 (2026).

Text

(a)This section is known and may be cited as the "Educator's Bill of Rights." (b) For purposes of this section, "educator" means any teacher, principal, supervisor, or other individual required by law to hold a valid license of qualification for employment in the public schools of this state.

(c)An educator has the right to:

(1)Be treated with civility and respect;

(2)Have his or her professional judgment and discretion respected;

(3)Report any errant, offensive, or abusive content or behavior of students to school officials or appropriate agencies;

(4)Provide students with a classroom and school in which the educators, students, the property of the educator and students, and peers will be safe;

(5)Defend themselves and their students from physical violence or physical harm pursuant

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(a) This section is known and may be cited as the "Educator's Bill of Rights." (b) For purposes of this section, "educator" means any teacher, principal, supervisor, or other individual required by law to hold a valid license of qualification for employment in the public schools of this state. (c) An educator has the right to: (1) Be treated with civility and respect; (2) Have his or her professional judgment and discretion respected; (3) Report any errant, offensive, or abusive content or behavior of students to school officials or appropriate agencies; (4) Provide students with a classroom and school in which the educators, students, the property of the educator and students, and peers will be safe; (5) Defend themselves and their students from physical violence or physical harm pursuant to § 49-6-2802 ; (6) Share information regarding a student's educational experience, health, or safety with the student's parent or legal guardian unless otherwise prohibited by state law or the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) ( 20 U.S.C. § 1232g ); (7) Review all instructional material or curriculum prior to those materials being utilized for instruction of students; (8) Not be required to use their personal money to appropriately equip a classroom; (9) Report students who commit offenses of assault and battery or vandalism on school property endangering the life, health, or safety of others pursuant to § 49-6-4301 ; and (10) Receive benefits in accordance with § 49-5-714 if the educator is a teacher who is absent from the teacher's assigned duties as a result of personal injury caused by a physical assault or other violent criminal act committed against the teacher in the course of the teacher's employment activities.

Legislative History

Amended by 2023 Tenn. Acts, ch. 153, s 2, eff. 4/13/2023. Amended by 2022 Tenn. Acts, ch. 682, s 1, eff. 3/28/2022. Amended by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 77, s 7, eff. 1/1/2022. Added by 2017 Tenn. Acts, ch. 360, s 1, eff. 5/11/2017.