Students at Cleveland State were greeted today on their first day of class by Gov. Bill Haslam.
First-year college students using the Tennessee Promise scholarship sat in class with the Governor and listened as he reminded them that attending class today is just the first step, and that having them each cross the stage at graduation is the goal.
“Success is actual completion [of a college degree],” Haslam said.
Tennessee Promise was signed into law last year as a part of Haslam’s “Drive to 55” initiative, which aims at boosting the rate of college graduates in Tennessee from 32 to 55 percent within the next 10 years.
The program provides students with last-dollar scholarships for two years of post-secondary education at any of the state’s 13 community colleges, 27 colleges of applied technology or any eligible institution offering an associates degree program.