NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Gov. Bill Haslam is visiting several community colleges this week to help kickoff his Tennessee Promise program.
The scholarship provides high school graduates with two years of tuition-free attendance at a state community or technical college, which begin classes on Monday.
The Republican governor is scheduled to visit Cleveland State Community College and Nashville State Community College on Monday, and Southwest Tennessee Community College in Memphis on Tuesday.
Tennessee Promise executive director Mike Krause told The Associated Press on Sunday that he expects between 16,000 and 18,000 students to actually enroll. More than 58,000 high school seniors applied for the scholarship.
Tennessee Promise was launched as part of Haslam's "Drive to 55" initiative, which aims to increase the percentage of Tennesseans with a degree or certificate beyond high school, help improve overall job qualifications and attract employers to the state.
As of Aug. 1, there were more than 22,000 students qualified to attend through the program. Shelby County has the largest number of qualified students at 2,512, followed by Knox County with 1,733. Davidson County had 1,202 qualified students.