NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced the first-ever statewide assessment of school facilities and safety procedures will be fully completed by the end of August, with unprecedented school security funding now available to school districts to implement identified school security and safety needs. In March, the governor’s School Safety Working Group recommended the statewide review of school facilities and safety procedures and precautions. The recommendation, accepted by the governor, led to immediate safety assessments by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, in coordination with the Department of Education and local school officials. To date, 1,796 schools – or about 99 percent of Tennessee’s public schools – have completed the security assessment with the remaining 1 percent set for completion by August 31.

NASHVILLE – Governor Bill Haslam and First Lady Crissy Haslam today honored 23 state employees who are helping Tennessee lead by providing outstanding state services every day. The employees, who were nominated by their departments’ leadership for the Governor’s Excellence in Service Awards, were invited to attend a luncheon at the Tennessee Residence for providing efficient and effective service to the state and their fellow Tennesseans. “The employees honored today are on the forefront of improving how Tennessee state government delivers services,” Haslam said. “By exceeding leadership and customer expectations, creating innovative solutions or improving processes and services, these state employees are helping provide taxpayers with the highest quality service at the lowest possible cost.”

NASHVILLE – Tennessee was listed today among five states that are leading the way in the use of data to create evidence-based results for citizens, in a report issued by the national nonprofit organization Results for America. Tennessee joined Colorado, Oregon, Minnesota and Washington as states recognized for outstanding performance. The recognition was announced at an event today in Washington hosted by the National Governors Association.