by State Rep. Mike Sparks

It is no surprise that Motlow State Community College is the fastest growing college in our state with 2500 spring semester students much to the credit of Governor Bill Haslam's Tennessee Promise.

Governor Bill Haslam made history on Wednesday when he visited the Smyrna Motlow Campus as he signed the Tennessee Reconnect Act, making Tennessee the first state in the nation to offer all citizens - both high school graduates and adults the opportunity to earn a postsecondary degree or certificate free of tuition and fees and at no cost to taxpayers.

Haslam's Tennessee Promise educational initiative has been a resounding success. Under his leadership Tennessee's average student retention rate has increased to 81 percent; Motlow State has improved its retention rate to almost 85 percent, which is one of the highest in Tennessee. The higher retention rate for Tennessee Promise students is a significant indicator they are on pathways to success in higher education.

With Smyrna Motlow's success brings with it a few challenges, those challenges include where to find seats for the growing student body. The need for additional classrooms, office space, study areas and more is greater now than ever before. The rapid enrollment at the Smyrna Campus has led to the Tennessee Higher Education Commission and Board of Regents both prioritizing the Smyrna Motlow's third building as the No. 1 building project for Tennessee Higher Education.

The cost of the new 79,443 sq. ft. 3-story building is $27 million; the college is required to raise $2.7 million or ten percent from local sources such as nonprofits, local county and municipal governments. "After we build the new 79,000 sq. ft. building we will soon be in need of the fourth and fifth building, many great things are happening here at Motlow State," said Motlow State Community College President Dr. Tony Kinkel. "The word is getting out that Tennessee is doing great things in higher education. There is no state in the country, none, that's going to be doing more."

The new building includes 22 new classrooms, a one stop shop for financial aid and recruiting, a Student Success Center, bookstore, student lounge, cyber café, computer lab, physics lab, general biology lab, chemistry lab, mechatronics lab, nursing lab, medical lab, art lab, a student lounge, a new 8000 sq. ft. library which will host 60 computers and eight study rooms, over a dozen faculty offices and more.

"The additional space is greatly needed. The students and I are very excited about the new building," said Motlow Campus librarian Paige Hendrickson. "I'm especially pleased with the new much larger library."

In 2014, Tennessee was the only state offering a wide-reaching program that gave recent high school graduates the chance to go to community college without paying tuition. With the ever-increasing cost of a college education, Tennessee Promise came as a relief to many struggling families and students. College tuition debt has amassed to $1.4 trillion today, leaving the average college graduate with roughly $37,000 in student debt, up six-percent from last year, according to a recent Federal Reserve study.

Educational experts say Tennessee's example as a higher education trailblazer could help shape higher education policy for years as students move through the education pipeline. Tennessee Promise is an increasingly popular model as Tennessee plays an important role in the education debate.

Haslam's 'Drive to 55' initiative sets the goal to increase the percentage of Tennesseans with a post-secondary credential in order to meet Tennessee's current and future workforce and economic needs. Haslam has championed both his tuition-free college and the Drive to 55 initiatives.

For more information on Motlow State Community College, Tennessee Promise or Drive to 55: visit www.mscc.edu, www.TnPromise.gov or www.Driveto55.org.