Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-5-5603: Licenses to teach granted only to graduates of qualifying institutions

(a) In order to assure the public that every teacher has been adequately trained, licenses to teach shall be issued only to those students who have been graduated from a Tennessee institution certified by the department of education or from an out-of-state institution certified by the state in which it is located.

(b) If the state in which an institution is located does not certify its institutions, then the department may do so consistent with standards applicable to Tennessee institutions.