Tennessee
Promise

What is Tennessee Promise?

The Tennessee Promise Scholarship is a last-dollar scholarship that will allow students to attend an eligible institution the semester following their high school graduation free of tuition and mandatory fees. If a student graduates high school early, during the fall semester, they could enroll in the spring semester immediately following high school graduation and receive the TN Promise Scholarship award.

The Tennessee Promise Scholarship will pay the tuition and mandatory fees on a student’s bill after the Federal Pell Grant, Hope Scholarship (TELS), and Tennessee Student Assistance Award (TSAA) has been applied. Please see the TN Promise Covered Fees for more information regarding what the Tennessee Promise Scholarship will cover.

What are the eligibility requirements?

In order to receive the Tennessee Promise Scholarship, student must:

• • Complete an initial application by November 1 of their senior year in high school.

• • File the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) by the deadline at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa.

• • Attend one mandatory meeting with your Partnering Organization prior to graduating high school.

• • Graduate from a Tennessee high school or boarding high school and enroll at an eligible Tennessee community or technical college.

• • Complete 16 hours of community service for each year, 32 hours for the entire 2-year program. Complete and submit community service hours to your Partnering Organization before August 1 each year.

• • Apply to DSCC and complete all admissions requirements.

• • Complete Financial Aid Verification, if applicable.

• • Enroll and attend at least 12 credit hours per semester.
    • Exceptions to the 12 hour rule can be made if it is the last semester prior to graduation, there is a documented disability on file, enrolled full time in the Nursing Program, or in the only class available for a particular semester. Please contact financialaid@dscc.edu if one of these exceptions applies.
    • Any approved less-than-full-time semester will not count toward a student’s 5 semester limit.

• • Be continuously enrolled in fall and spring semesters.
    • Summers are optional, but TN Promise will cover the tuition for summer semester, regardless of the amount of hours enrolled in, as long as community hours for the summer semester are submitted.
    • The summer semester, regardless of hours, will not count toward a student’s 5 semester limit.

Students graduating early must meet the requirements on the Early Grad Checklist.

Need a semester off?

If a student cannot enroll in school for a semester due to extenuating circumstances, then the student will need to request a leave of absence. The IRP (Institutional Review Panel) will review the request, like an appeal, and approve or deny the leave of absence. Allowable reasons may include, but are not limited to,

1. • Illness of recipient, illness or death of immediate family member, extreme financial hardship of the student or student’s immediate family, to fulfill a religious commitment encouraged of members of that faith, or other extraordinary circumstances beyond the student’s control.

1. • Members of the United States National Guard or Armed Forces Reserves required to attend initial active-duty training or mobilized shall be granted a leave of absence. Such student must provide the appropriate office with a copy of the military orders and complete a leave of absence request form.

1. • If a student’s leave of absence is denied, the student may appeal and seek relief from the THEC Appeals Panel.

Requests for a leave of absence need to be submitted by the appeal priority dates of July 15 for fall, December 1 for spring, and May 1 for summer semesters. To complete a leave of absence request, complete the TN Promise appeal form.