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WGU Tennessee Launches Program for Tennessee Promise Graduates

WGU Tennessee Launches Program for Tennessee Promise Graduates

By MP&F Staff

Tennessee PromiseWGU Tennessee, a nonprofit, online university formed through a partnership with the state, has announced the launch of its Fulfilling the Promise initiative. The campaign will encourage spring and summer community college graduates to sustain their academic momentum and pursue bachelor’s degrees.

To jump-start the initiative, the university is offering a new scholarship – called the Fulfilling the Promise Scholarship – to provide up to 20 students with $2,000 toward a bachelor’s degree program at WGU Tennessee. Additionally, all spring and summer community college graduates who enroll with WGU Tennessee will receive a 5 percent tuition discount and $200 off tuition for their first terms.

“The first class of Tennessee Promise students is graduating from community colleges this year, and due to the proposed expansion of the program to all adults in Tennessee, we expect the community college pipeline to expand quickly,” said WGU Tennessee Chancellor Dr. Kim Estep. “Our goal is to extend Gov. Haslam’s Tennessee Promise by giving those students an affordable opportunity to earn bachelor’s degrees, and we hope our Fulfilling the Promise initiative becomes an annual campaign that does just that.”

Students with associate degrees can typically obtain bachelor’s degrees from WGU Tennessee in three terms, or 18 months. Due to the nonprofit university’s already-low tuition of approximately $3,000 per six-month term, Tennessee Promise graduates who go on to finish a bachelor’s degree at WGU Tennessee would spend roughly $10,000 total.

The Fulfilling the Promise scholarship will be awarded to 20 students who obtain an associate degree from any of Tennessee’s 13 community colleges in the spring or summer of 2017. For more information and to learn how to apply, visit tennessee.wgu.edu/promise.

About WGU Tennessee

WGU Tennessee is an online, nonprofit, competency-based university established to expand Tennesseans’ access to higher education throughout the state. Formed through a partnership between the state of Tennessee and nationally recognized Western Governors University, WGU Tennessee is open to all qualified Tennessee residents. The university offers more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the high-demand career fields of business, K–12 teacher education, information technology, and health professions, including nursing.

Degrees are granted under the accreditation of Western Governors University, which is accredited through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Teachers College programs are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), and nursing programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).*

In addition to WGU Tennessee, there are five other WGU state-based, state-endorsed universities: WGU Indiana, established in June 2010; WGU Washington, established in April 2011; WGU Texas, established in August 2011; WGU Missouri, established in February 2013; and WGU Nevada, established in June 2015.

For more information, visit the WGU Tennessee website, tennessee.wgu.edu, or call 855-948-8495.

About Tennessee Promise

Tennessee Promise is both a scholarship and mentoring program focused on increasing the number of students that attend college in our state. It provides students a last-dollar scholarship, meaning the scholarship will cover tuition and fees not covered by the Pell grant, the HOPE scholarship, or state student assistance funds. Students may 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.
While removing the financial burden is key, a critical component of Tennessee Promise is the individual guidance each participant will receive 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, Tennessee Promise participants must complete eight hours of community service per term enrolled, as well as maintain satisfactory academic progress (2.0 GPA) at their institution.