government Who is Ralph Rodgers And why does he make $1.9 million? Media failed to report that Bill Sansom’s term as TVA board chair was extended to May and that fellow board member Mike McWherter, son of the late Gov. Ned McWherter, voted against Sansom at the board’s recent meeting in Oxford, Miss. It was an 8 to 1 vote. It is rare that anyone votes against the choice to be chair or many other votes for that matter. Disagreements are worked out in advance at closed committee meetings. Sansom’s term on the board expires in May 2014, but under the law he does not go off the board until the end of 2014 unless replaced by another nominee before then. When contacted, McWherter declined to comment on why he voted no. The no vote by McWherter is a public sign of the unrest and change which may be coming. Several board members are stunned to learn TVA General Counsel Ralph Rodgers is making $1.9 million a year. Most East Tennessee attorneys do not make a quarter of that amount in one year. An equally or more competent attorney could be employed for far less and save ratepayers money. Most people in Knoxville do not have a clue who Ralph Rodgers is. ■ Neil McBride lost his TVA seat last week because President Obama failed to nominate anyone including McBride. Sources tell me the White House will nominate three new persons to the board in the next few weeks or by May at the latest. One will replace McBride and the other two will replace Sansom, 72, and Barbara Haskew, 73, whose term also expires in May. With three new members, the White House is apparently interested in having a board asking more questions in its public sessions and a chair who is actually a Democrat. The Obama White House was stunned that the eight TVA board Democrats selected the only Republican to be chair. With the filibuster now gone, it is likely whoever Obama names will be confirmed. ■ Pam Reeves, Knoxville attorney and federal judge nominee, will likely get a Senate vote on her nomination this month or next, if it has not already happened by the time this appears in print. It will be a favorable vote.
A-4 • JANUARY 13, 2014 • HALLS/FOUNTAIN CITY Shopper news
Is there room for Kristi Davis? Knoxville lawyer Kristi Davis threw her hat in the ring last week to replace Circuit Court Judge Dale Workman at her campaign kickoff at The Bistro at The Bijou.
Victor Ashe Jake Mabe ■ The special state Supreme Court has failed to render a decision six months after hearing the John Jay Hooker lawsuit on the method by which state appellate judges are selected. The court includes two attorneys from Knoxville, former city Law Director Morris Kizer and former U.S. Attorney Russ Dedrick. This high profile case has generated considerable interest. The fact the decision has taken so long to be released is leaving many observers wondering if the court is divided and if the final decision will be a split one. It is hard to imagine that a special Court appointed entirely by Gov. Bill Haslam would overturn the current system, but the delay to release an opinion is causing many to become anxious as to the outcome. If this court sided with Hooker, it would be the equivalent of a political earthquake. Although it was interesting to see former GOP Gov. Winfield Dunn at the Court hearing in Nashville supporting the argument of Hooker, his 1970 Democratic opponent for governor. ■ The City Council budget retreat will be held Friday, Feb. 7. Location has not been announced. ■ Former city Law Director Louis Hofferbert died Jan. 2 at age 86. He was one of the city’s longest-serving law directors having served eight years in the two non-consecutive terms of Kyle Testerman. The longest-serving law director in the past 75 years is Thomas Varlan, now federal district judge, who served 10 years for this writer. He is followed by Jon Roach who served eight consecutive years for Randy Tyree. Michael Kelley served six years also for this writer. Among those attending the receiving for Hofferbert were current city Law Director Charles Swanson, who once worked a few months for Hofferbert; former Knoxville First Lady Janet Testerman (now Janet Crossley); County Commissioner Ed Shouse; former County Commissioner Wanda Moody; former school board member D.M. Miller and city Judge John Rosson.
In what promises to be a barn-burner of a race, Davis joins lawyers Ray Hal Jenkins and Billy Stokes. All are Republicans. The early question is how Davis fits into the equation. Both Jenkins and Stokes are former Knox County Republican Party chairs. Davis says that’s a positive for her. “I have never been the leader of a political party, which, frankly, I think is better for this position of judge.” Davis, who has been a partner at Hodges, Doughty & Carson since 2007, successfully appealed 4th Judicial District Child Support Magistrate Lu Ann Ballew’s
decision last year to forbid Cocke County parents from naming their child “Messiah.” Ballew’s decision was set aside and she was cited by a court panel for an inappropriate religious bias in violation of the state judicial code of conduct. Asked why she’s running, Davis says it’s something she feels called to do. She said she thinks a good judge is one who “has been a lawyer in a courtroom, and understands how to try a case. The best judges are scholars of the law.” But they also must possess integrity. “If you can’t do that, show impartiality and fairness, all of your legal knowledge is for naught.” She adds that a good judge should also show “appropriate judicial demeanor (and) be respectful of those in the courtroom. Be firm, be in control, but in a respectful way. It’s not (a judge’s) courtroom, it’s Knox County’s courtroom. “But most importantly (a good judge) has a commitment to the concept of justice, making sure wrongs are righted.” A Knox native and Karns
Kristi Davis chats with supporter Chris Fortner at her campaign kickoff last week at The Bistro at The Bijou. Davis, a Knoxville lawyer, is running for Knox County Circuit Court judge. Photo by Jake Mabe
High graduate, Davis majored in broadcasting at UT and graduated magna cum laude from UT’s College of Law in 1998. She has worked at Hodges, Doughty & Carson since 2000. Stokes is holding his campaign kickoff 5-7 p.m. tonight (Monday, Jan. 13), at Calhoun’s on the River. He has some heavy hitters in his corner, including Victor Ashe, Jimmy Kyle Davis, Gail Jarvis, James A.H. Bell, Kreis Weigel, and the Perry Mason and Hamilton
Larger classes ahead? Education reform on the cheap
Every Tennessee governor in living memory has wanted to be remembered as the Education Governor. Bill Haslam is no exception. He staked his claim to the title by ending 2013 with a victory lap around the state celebrating the National Assessment of Education ranking Tennessee the fastest-improving state in academic growth in 4th grade math and reading scores over the past two years. Reporters and TV cameras showed up to record him delivering sheet cakes to selected schools, lapping up the photo ops without bothering to ask whether he and his education commissioner, Kevin Huffman, can legitimately claim these scores as the product of their reforms, many of which haven’t yet been fully implemented, or why the achievement gap between have and have-not communities isn’t closing, or why 63 district school superintendents signed a letter accusing Huffman of considering “teachers, principals and superintendents impediments to school improvement rather than partners.” He was asked about the hundreds of protesting teachers in his hometown, but blew them off as a few bellyaching malcontents.
Betty Bean
Many teachers feel that the bulk of recent educational reforms – successful and otherwise – have come at their expense. They point to diminishing job security, collective bargaining rights and pension plans as well as plans to tie licensure to student test scores. Many of these reforms did not start with the Haslam administration; it was Gov. Phil Bredesen who shepherded the state’s Race to the Top effort that won Tennessee a $500 million grant from the Obama administration and came with a lot of strings attached, including requirements to step up high stakes testing. Except for Haslam himself, Kevin Huffman has no bigger public fan than U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who proclaimed Tennessee’s National Report Card results “simply remarkable” – it’s a bipartisan deal. Most of Haslam’s reforms have steamrolled their way into law over the protests of the increasingly marginalized teachers, with one glar-
ing exception. In 2012, an administration proposal to raise the state-mandated cap on average class size for individual classrooms was a resounding failure, even though Haslam pitched it as a way to return autonomy to local school districts. (Currently, maximum class size, grades K-3 is 25, schoolwide average class size for those grades must not exceed 20. In grades 4-6, the individual maximum is 30, schoolwide average must not exceed 30. In grades 7-12, the classroom maximum is 35, but the schoolwide average cannot exceed 30.) Pushback came from everywhere, not just from teachers. Haslam reluctantly withdrew the proposal, vowing to bring it back after critics can be made to understand that its purpose is to give local school districts flexibility to hire teachers in high
Clarification Knoxville Communications Director Jesse Fox Mayshark requested this clarification: “Victor Ashe’s column of Dec. 30 misstated the organization of the city of Knoxville Communications Department. Former Se-
Burger MPC lawyer duo – Arthur Seymour Jr. and John King. Stokes probably is the front-runner, but it’s worth noting that his announced support is West and East Knox heavy. If Stokes holds the Republican establishment and Jenkins grabs at least some of the red-meat Republicans North and South, where is Davis’ GOP base? Fasten your seat belts and hang on tight. The Republican Primary is May 6.
priority areas. Does this mean there are “low priority areas” in public schools? Research and common sense tell us that that all kids do better in smaller classrooms. Education on the cheap is not an idea that Haslam learned at Webb School of Knoxville, which his children, siblings and other family members also attended, and where he has served on the board of directors. Webb’s website boasts two teachers per classroom in the lower school, an average class size of 22 and a 10:1 overall student/faculty ratio. Lower School tuition is $15,480; Upper School tuition is $17,170. “Small class size helps teachers know students as individuals and fosters maximum student participation,” the website says. The bottom line is, good schools cost money. Haslam needs to take his case to Tennesseans and level with them about the cost of educating our kids versus what it costs not to. nior Director of Communications Angela Starke reported to Deputy to the Mayor/Chief Policy Officer Bill Lyons. She did not report directly to Mayor Madeline Rogero. There has been no change in this structure since Starke’s departure.”
More than 200,000 women in the U.S. are diagnosed with breast disease each year. Are you one of them? A breast cancer diagnosis is a huge disruption to your life. But getting treatment shouldn’t be. Tennova Cancer Center located at North Knoxville Medical Center offers convenient diagnostics, treatment, surgery, and recovery services—all close to your home. Even parking is easy. We were the first center in the area to earn recognition from the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), making us one of only eight facilities in the state with this distinction. Our skilled and caring staff will provide you with quality treatment, while keeping friends and family close by for support. For more information, call 865-859-8000.
North Knoxville Medical Center 7565 Dannaher Drive Powell, TN 37849
Tennova.com
1-855-836-6682