MEMPHIS, Tenn. — On February 15, all high school seniors must turn in the final paperwork to qualify for the Tennessee Promise.
The programs pays tuition at a community college or technical school.
Tuesday, the state officials leading the charge spoke to a handful of students at Carver High School to get feedback on the application process.
Mike Krause is Governor Bill Haslam’s pick to run the Promise program.
Krause told the students, “When Memphis succeeds, Tennessee succeeds.”
Krause is on a mission. He wants to see all 8,000 students in Shelby County who applied for the Tennessee Promise follow through with the final piece of paperwork, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA.
“If we get it right, other places will look to Memphis and Shelby County Schools as an example,” Krause said.
Four Carver High Students asked Krause pointed questions about college.
One of the main focuses was money.
Krause told them if they don’t go to college, their average income will be $9,000 a year.
Seiko Hines, a senior, said, “That’s something I worry about, trying to make my own income and support my family when I graduate.”
Hines wants to study audio production and already has his acceptance letter from Middle Tennessee State. He said the FAFSA form only took him ten minutes to fill out.
Every single senior at Carver applied for the Tennessee Promise, but only half of them have finished their paperwork.
Hines said, “A lot of students want to go to college, but they don’t know what to do. I think it would be better off it helps push them in the right direction.”
Krause said he believes these grassroots round table discussions do more than any big assembly can accomplish.
“We ultimately take that feedback and shape the program,” he said.
Hopefully the kids with whom he met will be the motivating force behind the rest of their classmates to finish their college applications so they can chase their dreams.
If you need help filling out your FAFSA form, click here.
