Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research
Education
Tennessee’s Navigate Reconnect
Since 2019, Navigate Reconnect has been Tennessee’s primary model of college coaching and advising for independent and over-25 students in Tennessee. Navigate Reconnect focuses on prospective students who are not yet enrolled in college, and who are either financially independent from their parents or over age 25. For the first annual Navigate Reconnect report, we combined program records with state administrative data to understand the rate at which Reconnectors enroll and persist in college and complete credentials.
College Coaching and Completion Grants in Tennessee: Estimated Effects on Persistence
Every high school graduate in Tennessee has been eligible for tuition-free community college through Tennessee Promise since 2015. Starting in 2019, tnAchieves provided supplemental support to Tennessee Promise students from Knox County. The additional aid fell under the umbrella term “Knox Promise” and came in two forms: completion coaches and completion grants, and we studied the outcomes.
Going Beyond Free College: Initial Findings
We examine the relationship between short-term college success and use of supplemental coaching and financial aid. These supports were available to some students in Tennessee’s free community college program starting in 2018. We use residence, income, and other eligibility criteria to understand how coaching and additional grants are associated with college persistence or an early college credential.
College Outcomes for Knox Promise
Knox Promise provides coaching and need-based financial aid to Knox County high school graduates who enroll in community and technical colleges as Tennessee Promise students. We reviewed college persistence and credential completion for the first three cohorts of students participating in Knox Promise.
College Outcomes for Nashville GRAD
Nashville GRAD is a similar program for Davidson County students enrolling in Nashville State Community College and TCAT Nashville. In this report, we review college persistence, credit completion, and grade point averages for the first two cohorts of students participating in Knox Promise and Nashville GRAD.
The Value of a College Education in Tennessee
The labor market and broader economy remain in flux as the U.S. unevenly rebounds from COVID-19 disruptions to health, education, work, prices, and every aspect of life. For job seekers, one silver lining of these disruptions has been an exceptionally tight labor market with rising wages and expanding job opportunities. Is college still “worth it” in this environment?
Reclaiming Momentum, Understanding Value: Tennessee College-Going in 2022
On June 15, 2023, the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research partnered with the Howard H. Baker Jr. School Public Policy and Public Affairs, SCORE, Tennessee Achieves and Tennessee Higher Education Commission to release THEC’s report on college-going in 2022. State education leaders and experts, including the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research’s Dr. Celeste Carruthers, reviewed data from the report and assessed recent evidence on the value of higher education for Tennessee students.
Tennessee’s Post-Pandemic Workforce: Implications for the Value of Going to College
The impacts of COVID-19 created an environment that is more favorable for workers without a college degree than it has been for generations. A tight labor market, high college costs, student loan defaults, and growth in job opportunities for workers without college have led many to question whether college is still worth the cost. What is the average long-term payoff from enrolling in college?
The College Pipeline In East Tennessee: Where We Are, Where We’re Going, and Policy Options
The COVID-19 pandemic may have fundamentally altered the trajectory of college-going, retention, and completion rates for students nationwide and the Drive to 55 in Tennessee. During a forum in May 2022—co-sponsored by the Boyd Center, the Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs, and Tennessee Achieves—we reviewed the data on key student metrics for East Tennessee, examined the evidence on the causes of shifting student behavior, and evaluated possible policy options with key stakeholders.
Education Policy Research
The Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research produces research on various facets of education policy on both the revenue and expenditure sides of the budget. In cooperation with the Tennessee Department of Education, the Tennessee Higher Education Commission and other state agencies and funded by a grant under the federal Race to the Top program, we also developed the P20 Connect Tennessee Longitudinal Data System on education.
Economic Benefits of Postsecondary Credentials
How much does Tennessee’s economy benefit from the Tennessee higher education graduates working in the state? The Boyd Center, working with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission and the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, has undertaken research to answer this and other related questions.
Education Crossroads
Education Crossroads is a unique report that looks at economic prosperity and the positive impact education has on family, society and quality of life. The collaborative report looks at how individuals have the power to influence the future through investing in education as students, individuals, parents and community members.
Fiscal Capacity (Ability to Pay)
Under the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA), the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research calculates each county’s fiscal capacity, which shows each county’s ability to fund K-12 education from its sales tax and property tax base. The Tennessee Department of Education averages these calculations by the Boyd Center with those by the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR) to determine each county’s fiscal capacity index, which shows as a percentage each county’s ability to pay for K-12 education.