Todd Skelton, legal counsel to Tennessee’s COVID-19 Unified Command, responded to the joint higher education appeal for the campus communities to be included in the state’s phase 1B of the vaccine distribution plan.  TICUA drafted the letter addressed to Governor Bill Lee and Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Lisa Pierecy requesting the priority placement.  The letter’s signatories included TICUA, the University of Tennessee System, Tennessee Board of Regents, and all the LGI presidents.  Unfortunately, the letter did not result in the desired outcome.  Here is the full text of the response:

Dear Presidents and Chancellor:

Thank you for reaching out on this high interest and impactful effort. Tennessee’s COVID-19 Vaccine Plan is divided into population-specific phases with concurrent age-based criteria.  This allocation plan balances the need to protect those who are contributing most to the morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 in Tennessee with the need to protect critical infrastructure and those at increased exposure.  This plan was informed by an assessment of cases and risk in Tennessee, the recommendations of the CDC, ACIP and NASEM, and vetted by a group of more than 30 stakeholder organizations and associations.  Limited phases are necessitated by the limits of the current vaccine supply. 
 
Persons with high-risk health conditions are included in Phase 1c regardless of employment sector, and persons also become eligible as their age bracket is reached.  Accordingly, higher risk faculty and staff will have priority access to COVID-19 vaccines.
 
In the interest of providing additional rationale regarding the plan, disruptions to instruction caused by the pandemic and the limitations of remote learning are generally greater with K-12 relative to higher education, and the repeated closure of K-12 schools impacts the ability of parents to participate in the work force.  Undoubtedly, COVID-19 has challenged higher education, and the efforts of faculty and staff are appreciated.
 
Please let me know if we may be of any further assistance.  Thank you.
 
Sincerely,
Todd

The Tennessee House and Senate have announced members of their respective Education Committees.  Senator Brian Kelsey will serve as the new Chair of the Senate Education Committee.  He replaces Sen. Dolores Gresham who recently retired from the Senate.  Members of Senate Education Committee include: Brian Kelsey, Chair; Jon Lundberg, 1st Vice Chair; Raumesh Akbari, 2nd Vice Chair; Mike Bell; Rusty Crowe; Ferrell Haile; Joey Hensley; Bill Powers; and Dawn White.

The House Education Committee structure has changed significantly.  There are now two main Education Committees, each with subcommittees.  The two main committees consist of the Education Administration Committee, chaired by Rep. Mark White, and the Education Instruction Committee, chaired by Rep. Debra Moody.  It is anticipated that all higher education bills will go through the Higher Education Subcommittee and then to the Education Administration Committee.

The Education Administration Committee has two subcommittees - Higher Education and K-12.  The Higher Education Subcommittee is chaired by Rep. Justin Lafferty, with the following Representatives as members: Charlie Baum, Mark Cochran, Tandy Darby, John Gillespie, Yusuf Hakeem, Antonio Parkinson, and Mark White.  The K-12 Subcommittee is chaired by Kirk Haston, with members, Michele Carringer, Glen Casada, Scott Cepicky, John Ray Clemmons, Chris Hurt, Harold Love, John Ragan, and Mark White.  All subcommittee members serve on the main Education Administration Committee.

The Education Instruction Committee has one subcommittee.  The Education Instruction Subcommittee is chaired by Rep. Scott Cepicky.  Members include Representatives: Vincent Dixie, Bruce Griffey, Torrey Harris, Kirk Haston, Tim Hicks, Sam McKenzie, Debra Moody, John Ragan, Todd Warner, and Terri Lynn Weaver.  These members serve on the full committee, Chaired by Rep. Debra Moody, as well as Representatives: Eddie Mannis, Antonio Parkinson, Iris Rudder, and Mike Sparks.