The application process remains open, until April 15, for adults to enroll tuition-free this fall at a community or technical college through Tennessee Reconnect.
Following the first week of the application process being open, over 4,000 applications were submitted — a record start in helping adults who want to go back to school to advance their futures.
Tennessee Reconnect builds off the groundbreaking Tennessee Promise program — which provides high school graduates two years of tuition-free community or technical college — by establishing a last-dollar scholarship for adults to earn an associate degree or technical certificate free of tuition or mandatory fees.
Both Tennessee Reconnect and Tennessee Promise are programs under the Drive to 55, an initiative spearheaded by lawmakers to increase the number of Tennesseans with a postsecondary degree or certificate to 55 percent by 2025. Studies show that by 2025, at least half the jobs in Tennessee will require a college degree or certificate.
Early results of the Tennessee Promise program show that students participating in the program are succeeding at higher rates than their peers. Tennessee is the first state in the nation to offer all citizens, both high school graduates and adults, the chance to earn a postsecondary degree or certificate tuition-free.
Those interested in applying for Tennessee Reconnect can do so by following these 4 simple steps:
- Complete the application at TNReconnect.gov;
- Apply to a local community college or eligible Tennessee Reconnect institution;
- File the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) at http://FAFSA.ed.gov;
- And enroll in a degree or certificate program at least part-time.
To be eligible for Tennessee Reconnect, a student must not already hold an associate or bachelor’s degree, must be a Tennessee resident for at least one year, and be determined as an independent student on the FAFSA.
For additional information about how to get involved with Tennessee Reconnect, click here.