Oct. 16: Tennessee’s Unemployment Rate Holds Steady; Early Voting Participation Picks Up

STEADY WORKFLOW: Tennessee’s unemployment rate for September was 3.4 percent, which was unchanged from July and August, according to data released by the Tennessee Department of Workforce and Labor Development on Thursday. Through the first half of the year, that figure was 3.5 or 3.6 percent, and in September 2025, it was 3.5 percent. From October 2025 through September 2026, nonfarm jobs grew by 28,400, including an increase of 2,500 in September, with the largest gains in leisure and hospitality, healthcare, social assistance, and state government. Tennessee workers earned an average of $25.79 per hour in September, which was up from $25.31 the previous month but below the national average of $30.19 per hour. Tennessee’s unemployment rate, however, was well below the national average of 4.2 percent. — David Boclair

EARLY VOTING: More voters cast ballots on Thursday, the second day of early voting for the Nov. 3 general election, than on the opening day. The Davidson County Election Commission reported that 10,330 voters turned out across the county’s 15 early voting locations. That brings the two-day total to 18,723, which is 3.88 percent of all registered voters. Early voting continues through Oct. 29 (excluding Sundays) with polls open from 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. on Friday and 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on Saturday. — David Boclair

EMPTY STREETS: Neighborhoods interested in closing their streets to ensure the safety of trick-or-treaters on Halloween are encouraged to apply for a block party permit through the Open Streets Nashville program created by the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure (NDOT) and Walk Bike Nashville. There is no application fee for a neighborhood open street. “Street safety is a priority every day and Halloween night is no different,” NDOT Director Ryan Lynch said. “Opening streets for people is a great tool for neighborhoods looking to celebrate.” — David Boclair

MAPPING HISTORY: An interactive map and database outlining the 592 surviving Rosenwald school structures is now available. Jewish philanthropist Julius Rosenwald and Black educator Booker T. Washington launched a school-building program in the rural South in 1912. Over the next 20 years, they built 5,357 schools, teacher homes and shop buildings for more than 600,000 children who received little or no education in 15 Southern states. More than 500 of the structures still stand today, including a dozen across Tennessee and one in Nashville. The database includes resources, images, locations, and histories of the schools and the communities where they were built. — Eden Turner

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