Funding AND Accountability

Metro at large candidate Megan Barry (and wife of Nashville Scene's Bruce Barry a vehement anti-SSA spokesman) broadcast via e-mail a fund raising invitation which contained this paragraph:

Education
"The usual line about public education in Nashville is that we’re making progress because our test scores are increasing. Although there are many bright spots, the fact of the matter is that our public schools continue to be plagued with issues of funding, accountability, and morale. Student scores on state tests are rising, but against national achievement benchmarks we show meager academic progress, and graduation rates are unacceptably low. The Council’s role is to fund the school system, and although money won’t solve every problem, our public schools cannot improve without adequate resources. I will be a forceful advocate for public education; one who believes that funding and accountability go hand-in-hand." (emphasis in the original)

I'm very glad to see her recognize publicly the difference between state test scores and national ones. That gets overlooked too often in the puffy PR.