A bold plan by Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Haslam would commit the state to providing all tuition costs and fees on a continuing basis for two years of community college or a vocational college to graduating high school seniors.
The governor announced the project Monday in his State of the State address. It would be the only state in the country to charge no tuition or fees to incoming students under the proposal, according to a statement released by the governor’s office.
“Through the Tennessee Promise, we are fighting the rising cost of higher education, and we are raising our expectations as a state,” Haslam said. “We are committed to making a clear statement to families that education beyond high school is a priority in the state of Tennessee.”
Public universities have steadily and sharply raised their tuitions since the 1990s. On average, only 32 percent of Tennesseans currently earn a four-year degree, but the governor wants to get that up to 55 percent by 2025, which compares with a census carried out two years ago that showed roughly 30 percent of Americans hold a four-year degree, a record high.
“It is a promise that will speak volumes to current and prospective employers,” Haslam continued in the statement. “It is a promise that will make a real difference for generations of Tennesseans, and it is a promise that we have the ability to make. Net cost to the state, zero. Net impact on our future, priceless.”
The governor’s office released figures revealing that Tennessee Promise would cost the state about $34 million a year, but the governor predicted that estimate could be earned by moving most of the lottery’s $400 million-plus reserve fund into a dedicated endowment. The plan would still leave $110 million in the lottery fund, which would be enough to pay for Hope scholarships in the future.
But there could be criticism because at the same time Haslam made the Tennessee Promise proposal, his plan also calls for cutting Hope scholarships for freshmen and sophomores at four-year universities from $4,000 to $3,000. Juniors and seniors would see their scholarships rise to $5,000.
Lowering money for four-year students — when attrition rates are the greatest in the first two years when students tend to drop out the most, rather than as juniors or seniors — could draw criticism and conclusions that his proposal is geared toward a more technical sector of education and the workforce following graduation.
His plan could drive high school graduates into two-year schools but would that translate into pushing them forward on to four-year colleges, where competition becomes more difficult. And graduates with degrees from four-year institutions have more opportunities than those with degrees from two-year schools.
Tennessee has 13 degree-granting community colleges, along with one of the nation’s strongest systems of vocational schools, the 27 Colleges of Applied Technology, which are a national leader in graduation rates. The governor’s tuition-free plan includes those technical schools.
A call made to the governor’s office on Wednesday was not immediately returned.