Winter 2024 Newsletter
REFLECTIONS ON 2024 AND LOOKING AHEAD TO 2025!
The holidays signal an exciting season at tnAchieves - mandatory TN Promise meetings! This annual tradition marks our first opportunity to meet the newest class of TN Promise students at their high schools. There is something special about the collective energy at a mandatory meeting when students, parents, mentors and our team gather to talk about the opportunities that await after high school. For 17 seasons, these meetings have given students and families the opportunity to learn, engage and set goals that lead to college enrollment. We are excited to begin working with the Class of 2025 - 67,000+ strong and the largest class yet. We already met with thousands of you in December and cannot wait to meet the rest in 2025!
Fall at tnAchieves was full of exciting programs and planning. We hosted another round of job shadowing events - the most yet. We are incredibly grateful to the partners who open their doors to our students to give first-hand experiences in the workforce. COMPLETE Coaches connected with more than 8,000 students and distributed $1.6M+ in COMPLETE Grants addressing critical needs as they completed the fall semester. More than 5,000 volunteers said YES! to supporting students in 2025 and helped us exceed our mentor recruitment goal. And finally, many of you participated in our first Giving Tuesday fundraising campaign, helping to advance the mission of tnAchieves and continue building Tennessee’s future workforce.
All of these exciting programs and milestones leave me feeling extremely grateful for the support and investment you make to ensure tnAchieves is the best it can be. We continue to grow and think BIG about how we can continue to shape the college experience for students and ensure Tennessee communities thrive. 2025 is going to be our best year yet, and I am excited to have you play a part.
In the spirit of gratefulness and inspiration, I am delighted to share the short film Big Slate Media produced for us this year. This project highlights tnAchieves scope and impact while telling an amazing student/coach success story. Check it out below!
I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!
Krissy DeAlejandro
President & CEO
Program Updates
Workforce survey & Job Shadowing
tnAchieves is dedicated to connecting Tennessee students with post-secondary pathways that lead to impactful careers. In a recent workforce survey, we discovered the mark that tnAchieves graduates are making in Tennessee’s economy. Among respondents, 74% are employed full-time, and 91% of those full-time workers are employed within the state. Additionally, 88% of respondents are either employed full-time or continuing their education. Graduates are thriving across diverse industries, with business, healthcare, government and skilled trades leading the way. Notable employers include Amazon (9 graduates), UT Medical (7), and Metro Nashville Government (5), among many others. The largest employer overall is the State of Tennessee, reflecting the broad contributions of our alumni to public service. These results demonstrate the success of tnAchieves students as they transition from education to meaningful careers, strengthening Tennessee communities.
2024 Job Shadow Days
This fall, tnAchieves Job Shadow Days connected hundreds of students across Tennessee with local professionals, offering them a glimpse into the working world. From hospitals and colleges to Fortune 500 companies and the State Capitol, students had the opportunity to explore careers, ask questions and dream big about their futures.
Many students walked away with more than just career insights—they also gained valuable life lessons. A highlight from this year was a Job Shadow Day hosted at Nissan in Middle Tennessee. Students saw advanced manufacturing in action and also had a chance to meet employees who began their careers through apprenticeships and technical programs, proving there are many pathways to success.
Meanwhile, in West Tennessee, students had a chance to visit the University of Tennessee at Martin to learn about the wide variety of career pathways offered at our state’s colleges and universities.
A Thank You to Our Partners
The success of fall 2024 Job Shadow Days wouldn’t have been possible without the generosity of our business and community partners, who welcomed students into their workplaces and provided mentorship. Your support inspires the next generation to dream boldly and work hard to achieve their goals.
As we celebrate the success of this season, we’re already planning for even more opportunities in the future. If you or your organization would like to host students for a Job Shadow Day, we’d love to hear from you! Email Baylor Williamson to get on our list next year.
Inaugural Giving Tuesday
On December 3, tnAchieves joined nonprofit organizations around the country for Giving Tuesday. This was our first time participating in this global day of giving, and we had no idea how many of you would show up to support us financially.
Thank you to those of you gave so generously! We know there are many organizations worthy of your financial support, and we’re beyond grateful you chose tnAchieves as a worthwhile recipient. We can’t thank you enough for showing up to support the students and programs that make tnAchieves so impactful. Each donation will help us continue to pave pathways for students to access and complete a high-impact post-secondary credential. Thank you also to our board members Randy Boyd and Tim Williams who generously offered to match each donation on Giving Tuesday, thus stretching our supports for students even further.
As part of our Giving Tuesday campaign, we launched our brand new mini documentary. This video was produced by Big Slate Media, and they captured our mission beautifully: to empower Tennessee students with the tools and guidance they need to achieve their college and career goals while helping build a stronger future workforce for our state. If you have not seen the video yet, you can find it below; we encourage you to take a few short minutes out of your day to see it!
Again, we are deeply grateful for the money generously provided on Giving Tuesday. It will directly impact Tennessee’s future workforce and help ensure students have a full supported pathway to a college degree or credential. If you would still like to support tnAchieves this holiday season, it’s not too late! Please visit, tnAchieves.org/giving to do so.
5,000 Mentor Goal Achieved
The holidays are a time to celebrate, and tnAchieves would like to add one more reason for a joyous season—we not only met our goal of 5,000 mentors, we surpassed it!
Nearly 5,300 volunteers have raised their hands to serve as a resource and encourager for local high school seniors as they navigate the process of applying to college. More than 67,000 students in the Class of 2025 applied for TN Promise—our largest group of applicants yet! As a team of 50, tnAchieves works hard to meet each student where they are. We couldn’t do this without our volunteer mentors. You are an unwavering piece in ensuring Tennessee can support 21st century workforce demands.
Thank you for saying YES! to ensure this group of high school seniors feel supported along their college-going journey. Students working with a tnAchieves mentor are 3.5X more likely to graduate from college than their peers. You are making an impact.
We are thrilled to be meeting each of our mentors in-person at our mandatory TN Promise meetings! From December to February, we will host these meetings at more than 400 high schools across the state. We love seeing the excitement as students learn about the next steps they can take after their high school graduation, and the support they will have along the way. We have already witnessed our mentors hopping in with both feet at these meetings to have valuable conversations with students, and we can’t thank you enough!
Stakeholder Spotlight
Mark Your Calendar
Mandatory TN Promise Meetings
Class of 2025 sudents and mentors will attend Mandatory TN Promise Meetings through February. Visit tnAchieves.org/mandatory-meetings to learn more and find your meeting date!
2025-2026 FAFSA
Filing the 2025-2026 FAFSA by April 15 is crucial to ensure eligibility for financial aid opportunities like the TN Promise Scholarship and to maximize access to federal and state funding for college. Learn more here.