One of the most talked about issues in the mayor's election this year will probably be education. No surprise there, but what's interesting is that it appears the mayor really has very little to do with education in the city of Chattanooga. Take a look at these quotes from some of the candidates' websites.

Dan Johnson puts it bluntly:

OK. Let's all understand the obvious: the city of Chattanooga has no direct responsibility for the operation of the schools within the city limits.

Ron Littlefield takes a softer approach, but says basically the same thing:

It might be said that the City of Chattanooga is no longer in the business of operating a school system

Ann Coulter doesn't inform us of the distinction, but makes it plain how she feels about it:

...she in no way advocates a return to separate city and county schools

All three of the above candidates mention at least one specific education-related goal or promise in their issue statements. Coulter, who volunteers regularly at Battle Academy, "will work tirelessly with the County to achieve the Education Summit goal of having all Hamilton County students reading at grade level by the end of third grade." Littlefield believes that "our local library system can be modeled into a more modern, more readily accessible learning resource." Dan Johnson, though, was the quickest to get my attention with this tidbit:

"As mayor of Chattanooga I will encourage the council to join me in doing the things we can to support our schools. And please don't be misled. ‘Support’ doesn't have to mean 'money'.