Terms Used In Tennessee Code > Title 24 > Chapter 1 - Witnesses and Privileged Communications

• Abstinence: means not participating in any activity that puts an individual at risk for pregnancy or a sexually transmitted disease. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• abstinence-centered: means an approach that promotes sexual risk avoidance, or primary prevention, and teaches vital life skills that empower youth to identify healthy and unhealthy relationships, accurately understand sexually transmitted diseases and contraception, set goals, make healthy life decisions, and build character. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Advice and consent: Under the Constitution, presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate, and international treaties become effective only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote.
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• After-school learning mini-camp: means an after-school educational program, as part of the learning loss remediation and student acceleration program, that is designed to remediate student learning loss and support student academic needs using an educational approach to learning that uses science, technology, reading, engineering, the arts, and mathematics (STREAM) as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue, and critical thinking. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Age-appropriate: means designed to teach concepts, information and skills based on the social, cognitive, emotional and experience level of most students at a particular age level. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Community grant: means federal funds made available to the state of Tennessee for administration and distribution pursuant to any of the following programs:
  (A) The maternal and child health block grant program. See Tennessee Code 8-4-402
• Community grant agency: means any private corporation that contracts with a state agency to receive one (1) or more community grants in consideration for rendering specified services to the public. See Tennessee Code 8-4-402
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• County mayor: means and includes "county executive" unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the department of education. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• electronic textbooks: which means computer software, interactive videodisc, magnetic media, CD-ROM, computer courseware, local and remote computer assisted instruction, online service, electronic medium or other means of conveying information to the student or otherwise contributing to the learning process through electronic means. See Tennessee Code 49-6-2202
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Family life education: means an abstinence-centered sex education program that builds a foundation of knowledge and skills relating to character development, human development, decision making, abstinence, contraception and disease prevention. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Gateway sexual activity: means sexual contact, as defined in subdivision (14), that could precipitate engagement in a nonabstinent behavior. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Germane: On the subject of the pending bill or other business; a strict standard of relevance.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Highway: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Hotline: means a method or system created or established to accept any telephonic or electronic form of communication that is communicated to the office of the comptroller of the treasury, for the purposes of providing governmental employees and citizens of Tennessee a means to report or provide information relating to alleged fraud, abuse, or wrongdoing. See Tennessee Code 8-4-402
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• Joint resolution: A legislative measure which requires the approval of both chambers.
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Lands: includes lands, tenements and hereditaments, and all rights thereto and interests therein, equitable as well as legal. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Learning loss: means the loss of academic knowledge or skills previously acquired or a pause in academic advancement, most commonly due to extended time away from school or in-person instruction. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Learning loss bridge camp: means a four-week educational program conducted each year before the beginning of the school year, as part of the learning loss remediation and student acceleration program, that is designed to support student academic needs and remediate student learning loss. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Learning loss remediation and student acceleration program: means a program established and administered by the department to aid LEAs and public charter schools in remediating learning loss by facilitating the provision of educational services to students in person outside of the regular school day, including through after-school learning mini-camps, learning loss bridge camps, and summer learning camps. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
• limited public forum: means public property that the LEA provides for students as a place for expressive activity which may impose reasonable, content-neutral time, place and manner restrictions on certain groups or topics of speech. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1801
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Local agency: means any county, municipality, branch or agency of a county or municipality, public utility, utility district, entity created pursuant to any interlocal agreement, or any other political subdivision thereof. See Tennessee Code 8-4-402
• local board of education: means the board of education that manages and controls the respective local public school system. See Tennessee Code 49-1-103
• Medically accurate: means information that is grounded in evidence-based, peer-reviewed science and research. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Minor: means any person who has not attained eighteen (18) years of age. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Oath: includes affirmation. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Parent: means the parent, guardian, person who has custody of the child, or individual who has caregiving authority under §. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Personal property: includes money, goods, chattels, things in action, and evidences of debt. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Priority student: means :
  (A) For purposes of an after-school learning mini-camp:

  (i) A student who completed third or fourth grade in the immediately preceding school year and scored below proficient in math or English language arts on the student's most recent Tennessee comprehensive assessment program (TCAP) test. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Property: includes both personal and real property. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Puberty: means a developmental stage during which the pituitary gland triggers the production of testosterone in boys and the production of estrogen and progesterone in girls. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Recess: A temporary interruption of the legislative business.
• Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Representative: when applied to those who represent a decedent, includes executors and administrators, unless the context implies heirs and distributees. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Risk avoidance: means an approach that encourages the prevention of participation in risk behaviors as opposed to merely reducing the consequences of those risk behaviors. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Road: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Sexual activity: means sexual penetration or sexual contact, or both. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Sexual contact: means sexual contact as defined under §. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• Sexual orientation: means an individual's actual or perceived sexual orientation as heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1301
• signed: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed, or any other symbol or methodology executed or adopted by a party with intention to authenticate a writing or record, regardless of being witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• State: means the state of Tennessee. See Tennessee Code 8-34-101
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• State agency: means each state board, commission, committee, department, office, or any other unit of state government. See Tennessee Code 8-4-402
• State-adopted benchmark assessment: means an assessment created under the innovative benchmark assessment pilot program established under §. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Stipend: means :
  (A) The compensation provided to teachers for providing educational services to students in:

  (i) After-school learning mini-camps, learning loss bridge camps, or summer learning camps based on factors such as the teacher's level of overall effectiveness score or other performance data. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Summer learning camp: means a six-week summer educational program, as part of the learning loss remediation and student acceleration program, that is designed to support student academic needs and remediate student learning loss. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Tennessee universal math screener: means the uniform tool that screens and monitors a student's progress toward proficiency in math that is provided to LEAs and public charter schools by the department as part of the innovative benchmark assessment pilot program. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Tennessee universal reading screener: means the universal reading screener that is provided to LEAs and public charter schools by the department as part of the innovative benchmark assessment pilot program. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• Testator: A male person who leaves a will at death.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• textbooks: includes "electronic textbook" or "electronic textbooks" which means computer software, interactive videodisc, magnetic media, CD-ROM, computer courseware, local and remote computer assisted instruction, online service, electronic medium or other means of conveying information to the student or otherwise contributing to the learning process through electronic means. See Tennessee Code 49-6-2202
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Universal reading screener: means a uniform tool that screens and monitors a student's progress towards phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. See Tennessee Code 49-6-1502
• written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105