By Chas Sisk - The Tennessean -

Teachers would have to wait at least two more years for tenure, and the cap on the number charter schools would be removed, under a proposal released today morning by Gov. Bill Haslam.

The waiting period for teacher tenure would be extended to five years from three years, and teachers would also have to clear a performance review before having tenure granted, Haslam told reporters at a press conference in which he unveiled his legislative priorities.

Haslam said the measures will lift the state’s education system by measuring teacher performance and was not meant to penalize teachers.

“What we’re doing, across the board, is we’re raising standards,” Haslam said.

Haslam also proposed abolishing a law that limits the number of charter schools in Tennessee to 90 across the state and letting lottery scholarship recipients take summer courses. The governor also said he will file new limits on damages in civil suits.

State law allows teachers to come up for tenure after completing a three-year probationary period, which Haslam would extend to five years.

Haslam would also make getting tenure harder by grading them using a new evaluation system in each of the last two years of their probation. Teachers would be sorted into five classes, and teachers would have to grade into the top two classes for two consecutive years to get tenure.

Teachers would continue to be graded after they receive tenure. If they fell into the bottom two classes for two consecutive years, they could revert to probationary status and would again have to score in the top two categories for two straight years to get their tenure back.

“We’re going to deal with the definition of ineffectiveness with tenured teachers,” Haslam said.

Haslam also proposed measures that could expand access to charter schools.

In addition to removing the 90-school cap on charters, Haslam proposed giving school districts the power to open charter school enrollment to any student. At-risk students would still be given first priority in charter schools that have more applicants than slots, Haslam said.