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ABOUT TENNESSEE PROMISE* Scholarship and mentoring program offering two years of free education at a community or technical college* Covers tuition and fees not covered by the Pell grant, the HOPE scholarship, or state student assistance funds* Students may use the scholarship at the state’s 13 community colleges, 27 colleges of applied technology, or other eligible institution offering an associate’s degree program* Participants will receive guidance from a mentor who will assist the student in navigating the college admissions process* Students must complete eight hours of community service per term enrolled and maintain 2.0 GPASource: Tennessee Promise website
The Tennessee Promise: Free community college education
New program draws more students, should boost state's college graduation rates
By Mike Pare
For the Tennessee Association of Manufacturers, workforce development and education has been its No. 1 priority for years.
That's why TAM chief Tim Spires says that manufacturers see the Tennessee Promise scholarship program as a kind of educational on and off ramp for people.
"It might lead to a certificate credential, or it might go further to an associate degree," he says. "Once you're in a corporation, they'll pay for higher education. Folks might go onto a bachelor's degree. We support it 100 percent."
The latest data show that more than 20,000 Tennessee Promise students plan to use the scholarship to attend a community or technical college this fall for free. Figures show that more than 58,000 high school seniors initially applied for the scholarship that covers tuition at any of the institutions.
Tennessee Promise bills itself as both a scholarship and mentoring program. Its focus is to increase the number of students that attend college in the state.
It provides students a last-dollar scholarship, meaning it will cover tuition and fees not covered by the Pell grant, the HOPE scholarship, or state student assistance funds. Students can use the scholarship at any of the state's 13 community colleges, 27 colleges of applied technology, or other eligible institution offering an associate's degree program.
Christian Woodfin, an 18-year-old Red Bank High School graduate, plans to attend Chattanooga State Community College this fall with help from Tennessee Promise and study fire science.
"I want to become a firefighter," he says. "I always liked helping people."
Woodfin says he lives with his grandparents and they've already put three people through school. He knew it would be difficult for them to pay college costs for his younger sister and him.
"I knew that the only way I'd go to college is to get scholarships. Tennessee Promise was a blessing to our family," he says, adding he already has done community service that's tied to the scholarship at a Red Bank fire hall.
Woodfin says he plans on getting a two-year degree at the college. "I plan on taking full advantage of it," he says.
Tanner Layne, a Chattanooga State Community College student from Dayton, Tennessee, says his cousin plans to join him there with the scholarship program's help. Tennessee Promise is his cousin's only way to get into a two-year education program at no cost, Layne says.
"It helps a lot of students who don't have the money," he says.
Lori Smith of Chattanooga, whose son Avery is a 9th grader and looking at taking some college classes, says she sees Tennessee Promise as helping students who also work to keep some of that money for their personal use.
"If a student gets an associate degree, they could go further in their education," she says.
Each Tennessee Promise participant will receive help from a mentor who will assist the student as he or she navigates the college admissions process. This is accomplished primarily via mandatory meetings that students must attend in order to remain eligible for the program.
In addition, participants must complete eight hours of community service per term enrolled, as well as maintain a 2.0 GPA.
The initiative offered by Gov. Bill Haslam and passed by the state Legislature is part of his so-called "Drive to 55" effort. Its aim is to improve Tennessee graduation rates from colleges and universities from the current 32 percent to 55 percent by 2025.
Haslam says that 55 percent of all jobs will require a degree or certificate 10 years from now.
"We had to do something to shock the system," he says, and the answer was Tennessee Promise.
Because of Tennessee Promise, there are record numbers of high school seniors who plan to further their education, the governor says.
He says that of the nationwide increase in the number of FAFSAs, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, 40 percent of the jump is coming from Tennessee. Haslam says that Tennessee is only 2 percent of the nation's population.
"In a way never seen before, Tennesseans are saying 'I can go to school beyond high school. Before I didn't think I could. I didn't know how I'd pay for it. I didn't think that was a possibility. No one in my family has ever been to college before,'" he says.
But now, Haslam says that through Tennessee Promise, "People are saying. 'My future really could be different."
One of Haslam's gubernatorial predecessors, U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, who served as Tennessee's governor from 1979 to 1987, said Tennessee Promise is a "brilliant marketing effort" to encourage more students to consider going to college.
"Community college was almost free already for low-income students with Pell grants and Hope scholarships, but unfortunately many students didn't know that," Alexander says. "We need to stop telling students they can't afford to go to college. I think that Tennessee Promise and its offer of free tuition at two-year schools will have a major impact of our workforce."
Spires said TAM officials see Tennessee Promise as a chance for people, no matter of their financial situation, to enter a career in manufacturing.
"Having the ability to get financial support to get that post-secondary education opens doors to people who haven't had that opportunity in the past," he says.
State officials estimate that the initial annual cost will be around $34 million. Funding comes from interest on $312.5 million that was taken from the Tennessee Lottery's surplus fund that's been put into an irrevocable trust. State Treasury employees invest the trust's money, and the interest will be used to finance Tennessee Promise.
The governor also cited Tennessee Reconnect, which is permitting any adult, regardless of education background, to go to technical school for free.
"We're training the next generation of welders and information system processors and diesel mechanics and a lot of other jobs in which we know the demand is there," he says.
Training programs are run at the state's Tennessee College of Applied Technology units and take anywhere from 15 months to 24 months to complete, the governor says.
Of the students who start, 85 percent complete the coursework, he says. Of those, more than 85 percent are hired to a job when they finish, Haslam says.
"I tell people Harvard would like to say that about their graduates," he says. "We're training the workforce that the market is actually saying they need."
ABOUT TENNESSEE PROMISE
* Scholarship and mentoring program offering two years of free education at a community or technical college
* Covers tuition and fees not covered by the Pell grant, the HOPE scholarship, or state student assistance funds
* Students may use the scholarship at the state's 13 community colleges, 27 colleges of applied technology, or other eligible institution offering an associate's degree program
* Participants will receive guidance from a mentor who will assist the student in navigating the college admissions process
* Students must complete eight hours of community service per term enrolled and maintain 2.0 GPA
Source: Tennessee Promise
MENTOR SYSTEM
Tennessee Promise has a mentor system in place. Adults are taking on five high school seniors and walking them though the college entry process. Mentors aid students with everything from making sure they show up to take the ACT to helping them get to college classes at the right place and time.