Brainerd High School one of 30 state schools to benefit from Advise TN

Brainerd Principal Uras Agee addresses the fourth and fifth graders of Orchard Knob Elementary. Brainerd High School is among 30 schools picked by Gov. Bill Haslam to participate in Advise TN, a new program to increase the number of students accessing higher education.
Brainerd Principal Uras Agee addresses the fourth and fifth graders of Orchard Knob Elementary. Brainerd High School is among 30 schools picked by Gov. Bill Haslam to participate in Advise TN, a new program to increase the number of students accessing higher education.

Gov. Bill Haslam has announced that Brainerd High School will be one of 30 schools picked to participate in Advise TN, a new program designed to bolster the number of students pursuing post-secondary education.

The schools benefiting from the state-funded program will add to their staffs college advisers who will help guide juniors and seniors through the college application process as they leave high school, according to a news release.

photo Gov. Bill Haslam (center) poses for a photo Friday at the 2016 Tennessee Governor's Conference on Hospitality and Tourism that drew some 400 tourism industry professionals to the Chattanooga Convention Center.
photo Todd Gardenhire

"Advise TN was developed to build on the work being done to create a college-going culture across the state. We want students to know that college isn't only an option for them, it's an expectation," Haslam said.

"Providing one more adult in students' lives to help them navigate the transition from high school to college helps these students succeed, and it also supports our state and Drive to 55 goals."

Advisers will participate in one-on-one advising sessions with students and steer them through College App Week and filling out a free application for federal student aid (FAFSA).

Brainerd principal Uras Agee welcomed the news Tuesday, saying: "It's an awesome program."

"This person can do a lot more one-on-one. So it really lends itself for us to do more things that will impact kids toward graduating high school," he said. "This person can really just focus on everything that's dealing with getting them in the school."

The program was developed by the governor's office with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. The 30 schools selected came from a pool of more than 100 applicants, all of which posted a college-going rate below the state average.

The program was included in Haslam's yearly budget proposal and was approved by the General Assembly to the tune of $2,455,800. Advisers will undergo training sessions in October and begin working in schools at the end of the month.

"The Advise TN partner schools are a diverse and exciting group of high schools," THEC Executive Director Mike Krause said. "Each school brings a strong commitment to partnership with Advise TN and a relentless dedication to helping students access higher education opportunities."

State Sen. Todd Gardenhire said the program is a step in the right direction to better equip high school students for college.

"This gives Brainerd, which is our highest priority school we have in Hamilton County... an extra tool to work with the kids out there to start early to advise them on college careers," he said. "This is something that came about after months of work to really put some assets down there from the state extra over and above what we've been doing."

Contact staff writer Emmett Gienapp at egienapp@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6731. Follow him on Twitter @emmettgienapp.

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