Mayor Karl Dean is increasing his involvement in the future of Nashville public schools by bringing a coalition of education-oriented community groups into his office.

Alignment Nashville, which now shares office space with the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Metro Nashville Public Schools, will in the next few weeks move to City Hall. The group, which is funded by both pulic and private money, coordinates the efforts of 109 organizations within the framework of MNPS' strategic plan.

"I can't think of a better way to further that effort than to offer the full support of my office," Dean said in a statement this afternoon.

Dean, whose campaign last summer centered on public safety and education, has made the latter a priority of late, hosting community town hall meetings, advocating for charter schools and involving himself in the school system's search for a new director.

Alignment Nashville was launched earlier this decade and is led by Executive Director Sydney Rogers. Its board is led by Orrin Ingram and Tom Cigarran, chairman of Healthways Inc.