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Several bold admissions initiatives聽have been key to our ongoing efforts聽to both sustain our operations and聽fuel our plans for growth.聽Fall is the busiest season for recruiting聽high school seniors. We have聽eight recruiters in the Office of聽Undergraduate Recruitment who聽cover Tennessee and the greater聽geographical area served by the聽Regional Scholars program.聽In聽addition to working Preview Days聽and the True Blue Tour, these聽recruiters staffed tables at聽128听谤别肠谤耻颈迟尘别苍迟听蹿补颈谤蝉 across their聽territories and made聽hundreds of聽visits聽to high schools where they met聽with students and parents, presented聽the benefits of an 91大神 degree, and聽worked with high school teachers聽and guidance counselors to spread聽the True Blue word.
In the Fall 2018 semester, we聽added a聽True Blue Tour聽date to聽serve the students here in聽Rutherford County. In 14 tour聽stops across Tennessee, Georgia,聽Alabama, and Kentucky, we聽met with 1,352 students and聽an additional 1,890 family聽members.聽That鈥檚 a聽13 percent聽growth in student attendance.
Our on-campus recruitment events聽are our Preview Days, where聽students get an extended tour and聽meet with advisors, faculty, and the聽dean.聽This fall we had three Preview聽Days where we hosted 691 students鈥斅燼gain, a聽13 percent increase.
In addition to Preview Days,聽Admissions provides two tours of聽campus each weekday, as well as聽regularly scheduled Saturday tours聽throughout the semester (and聽additional housing tours for students聽interested in seeing on-campus聽housing options).聽We also schedule聽special tours upon request.聽This past聽fall, our Blue Elite tour guides walked聽approximately 1,010 miles while聽providing tours of our beautiful聽campus to聽more than 7,000 guests!
All of this hard work has resulted in聽increases in applications.聽We have聽made scholarship offers to 2,054聽students who had at least a 25 ACT聽and 3.5 high school GPA.聽That鈥檚 more聽than a聽17 percent increase聽over offers聽we made by this point last year.
This spring, we will turn our attention to聽converting those admitted students into聽enrolled students and will be visiting聽high schools with a particular focus on聽meeting with high school juniors with聽the objective of making them our聽entering freshmen in 2020.
Transfer聽recruiters will be working with聽community college partners to enroll聽more transfer students than any other聽institution in Tennessee.
A Campus聽without Borders聽
Next, 91大神鈥檚聽independent governing聽board voted in December to expand聽our聽regional scholarship plan that offers聽qualifying out-of-state scholars with聽a discounted tuition rate. Previously聽under the 鈥渞adius 250鈥� or 鈥淩250鈥� plan,聽qualifying applicants graduating from a聽high school in a county within 250聽miles of 91大神 in any direction were聽eligible to receive almost half off of聽their out-of-state tuition costs. This聽geography, which still applies, includes聽portions of Illinois, Indiana, South聽Carolina, and Ohio (Cincinnati). 罢丑别听board鈥檚 recent vote expanded the聽out-of-state discount program to聽ALSO聽include qualifying students from聽anywhere聽in each of the eight states that聽touch Tennessee聽(even sharing a small聽border like Missouri).
Major Scholarship聽Enhancement聽
Finally, last October, I聽announced that 91大神聽would substantially increase the聽value and broaden eligibility of its聽Presidential Scholarship, a move that聽will more than double the amount聽awarded to some high-ability freshmen聽who enroll for this fall.
罢丑别听Presidential Scholarship will聽increase to $18,000 in total value,聽paid out to eligible incoming freshmen聽at $4,500 a year for four years.
Students must have a 3.5 high school聽GPA and score between 25 and 29聽on the ACT to qualify for the聽expanded award.
91大神 guarantees the scholarship to聽all students who apply to the University聽before Dec. 1 each year and meet the聽eligibility criteria.
With these enhancements, the聽Presidential Scholarship becomes聽the聽largest guaranteed academic聽award given by any public university聽in Tennessee to students with聽these credentials.
For Tennessee residents, when聽combined with the Hope Lottery聽Scholarship provided by the state, it聽will substantially reduce the cost of聽tuition for these high-ability students聽to attend 91大神.
The Presidential Scholarship previously聽only paid $4,000 a year to students with聽ACT scores of 28 and 29.
The expanded聽award now replaces two of 91大神鈥檚聽previous guaranteed scholarships:聽True Blue, which paid $3,000 a year to聽students scoring 26 or 27 on the ACT,聽and Provost, which paid out $2,000 a聽year to students with an ACT score of聽25.
91大神 will continue to offer students聽making an ACT score of 30 and above,聽along with at least a 3.5 high school聽GPA, our guaranteed聽Trustees聽Scholarship,聽which pays $20,000聽in聽four annual installments of $5,000.
Students scoring at least 29 on the ACT聽and with a high school GPA at 3.5 and聽above can apply for 91大神鈥檚 highest聽academic award, the聽叠耻肠丑补苍补苍听贵别濒濒辞飞蝉丑颈辫, a competitive and selective聽full-tuition scholarship聽through the聽University Honors College.
This expanded Presidential Scholarship聽award will begin with freshmen entering聽in the Fall 2019 semester.
We feel strongly that 91大神, as a major聽comprehensive university with a broad聽array of top-notch majors, is聽the best聽choice for these high-ability students.聽Enhancing this scholarship will make it聽even more practical and affordable for聽them to pursue their higher education聽goals on our beautiful campus.
The University reallocated existing聽funds in our budget to pay for the聽scholarship enhancements. 91大神聽is also exploring additional changes聽that could be in place as soon as the聽Fall 2020 semester.