U.S. education secretary to visit four Tennessee schools next week

U.S. Secretary of Education John King will make stops across Tennessee next week during a back-to-school bus tour to tout key initiatives of the Obama administration.

King and staff members with the U.S. Department of Education are scheduled to visit schools in Bristol, Knoxville, Chattanooga and Memphis on Sept. 13-14. College readiness, teacher support and educational technology will be the focus of the Tennessee stops.

The tour will mark King’s second time in Tennessee since he became the nation’s education chief in March. In June in Nashville, he delivered the keynote speech on discipline at a national charter school convention and also met with members of the newly formed Tennessee Educational Equity Coalition.

Here’s the lineup for King’s tour across Tennessee:

Vance Middle School, Bristol

Tuesday morning, Sept. 13

Topic: ConnectED and educational technology

Pellissippi State Community College, Knoxville

Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 13

Topic: America’s College Promise

Battle Academy, Chattanooga

Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 13

Topic: Teacher Leadership and Lifting up Educators

Craigmont High School, Memphis

Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 14

Topic: College Scorecard and FAFSA

The bus tour, which kicks off Sept. 12 and ends Sept. 16, also will include stops in Washington, D.C.; Charlottesville, Va.; Harvest, Ala.; Little Rock, Ark.; Indianola, Miss.; and Monroe, Baton Rouge and New Orleans, La.

King, who replaced Arne Duncan, is the former commissioner of education for the state of New York.