You must be the change you wish to see in the world.
Mahatma Gandhi
Are you looking for a better workforce? Did you know you could influence the workforce of the future?
Consider getting involved in creating that pool of employees you will see in the future. Become a tnAchieves Mentor and help this year’s high school seniors be successful in their path to a community college degree or vocational certification.
Tennessee Promise is the name of the program that provides any 2016 high school graduate – that meets all the requirements – free tuition to a community college or vocational school. tnAchieves administers the non-financial components of the program for students in our area. tnAchieves mentors are the resource to students to eliminate the barriers of accessing post-secondary education.
Of the 431 seniors that graduated in Cumberland County in 2015, the inaugural year of Tennessee Promise, 176 completed all their requirements – 41%. The number of those that actually enrolled in a post-secondary program are not yet available. For 2016 there are 558 Cumberland County high school seniors eligible for the program. That number of graduates requires 80 mentors, each assigned a group of mentees. As of last week there are 39 mentors still needed in Cumberland County. The deadline to submit a mentor application is November 20th.
The timing for mentor involvement has changed based on mentor feedback from the initial year. Students will be assigned to their mentors this year after completing two steps – 1) attending their initial meeting and 2) submission of their FAFSA. Another change is mentor teams so that mentors support each other to ensure all the mentees are contacted in time to meet their deadlines.
Mentor commitments include:
- Completing a training session by February 15th. Crossville trainings options are:
- December 3rd at 5:30pm at Roane State Community College
- January 21st at 12:00 noon at Roane State Community College
- Attending the initial mentor/student meeting during March/April timeframe
- Communicating with your mentees to ensure they meet all the deadlines, including community service hours and enrollment in the school of their choice
- Attending the second mentor/student meeting during September/October timeframe
A total of 12 hours of your time. Create a better workforce. Change a life.
Learn more and find the Mentor Application under the Volunteer tab at:
https://tnachieves.org/a-mentor
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I look forward to seeing you at the mentor meetings!
