Governor Bill HaslamNASHVILLE - Some 22,800 students have registered to participate so far in Gov. Bill Haslam's Tennessee Promise program, which offers "last dollars" scholarships to high school graduates to attend two-year state community colleges or colleges of applied technology, an official said Friday.
Mike Krause, executive director of the state's Drive to 55 initiative, cited the figure in a presentation to the Tennessee Board of Regents at their quarterly meeting near Knoxville.
Tennessee Promise, which has received national attention, is expected to increase enrollment of first-time freshman who can attend for free two-year Regents' schools like Chattanooga State and Cleveland State.
Students will have volunteer mentors able to guide them through problems.
Drive to 55 is another Haslam program aimed boosting the percentage of Tennesseans who have college degrees or certificates 55 percent by the year 2025.
Regents, who met at Pellissippi State near Knoxville, also discussed and approved a recent evaluation of TBR Chancellor John Morgan's performance, according to the system's news release.
Officials also discussed systemwide completion initiatives and new workforce training programs, giving Cleveland State the OK to begin offering an associate of applied science in paramedics.
A report on the system's college completion agenda showed the number of bachelor's degrees awarded in the 2013-2014 school year was 13,665, slightly above the year's goal. But associate degrees reached 9,858 or 24 percent above the target. Community college certificates reached 5,658, some 212 percent above the goal. And TCAT awards reached 7,801, 6 percent above goal.