Tennessee sees boost in college-going rates for class of 2023, report shows

The percentage of Tennessee public high school graduates heading directly to college just marked its largest year-over-year increase in nearly a decade, according to the Tennessee Higher Education Commission.

The class of 2023 has a 56.7% college-going rate, which is a 2.4 percentage point bump from the previous year. That gain is the largest since the state implemented its tuition-free Tennessee Promise scholarship in 2015, the commission announced in a report released Tuesday. The state has steadily recovered from lows driven by disruptions during the coronavirus pandemic. The college-going rate dipped to a low of 52.8% in 2021.

Here are the yearly rates from 2014-2023, according to the report:

• 2014: 58.6%
• 2015: 64.4%
• 2016: 63.3%
• 2017: 63.7%
• 2018: 62.5%
• 2019: 61.7%
• 2020: 56.8%
• 2021: 52.8%
• 2022: 54.3%
• 2023: 56.7%

While that falls short of the state's goal to increase the college-going rate to 60% for the class of 2023, it's still something to celebrate, according to commission director Steven Gentile. He hailed it as a "momentum year" and said it reflects a statewide partnership to coordinate education and workforce training. Gentile also praised the work of the Tennessee Reconnect program, which provides scholarships for adults who want to pursue an associate degree, technical degree or technical diploma at a Tennessee community college or technical college.

"It is gratifying to see those efforts pay off in helping even more Tennessee students and adult learners pursue their dreams and careers with college degrees and workforce credentials beyond high school," Gentile said in the release.

Delays and glitches have plagued the rollout of a revamped Free Application for Federal Student Aid this year. It's not yet clear how that will affect college-going rates for the class of 2024. Colleges and universities statewide said they will have a clearer picture once the fall semester gets underway.

"We know there is still so much more work to do to help ensure every Tennessean has the opportunity for college access and success, which is why we are doubling down on FAFSA completion with the class of 2024 this summer to help more students maximize free financial aid," Gentile said.

Here are a few other key takeaways from the commission's report on the class of 2023 and their college plans.

FAFSA delays:Tennessee colleges uncertain of impact on enrollment, finances

Disparities in race, gender continue

While the college-going rate increased across all races and genders, increases were greatest for white females, Hispanic and Latino males, and females categorized as "other" for race and ethnicity. This suggests that gains were concentrated among populations who have historically enrolled in college, the report said.

"While this is a positive outcome, more opportunities remain to focus college access efforts on those student groups that are less likely to enroll in college," the report stated.

Here's a look at the rates across gender, race and ethnicity ranked from highest to lowest.

Gender

• Female: 63.6%
• Male: 49.9%

Race/ethnicity

• White: 62%
• Other: 61.6%
• Black or African American: 48.5%
• Hispanic/Latino: 39.4%

Race/ethnicity and gender

• White females: 69.5%
• Other race/ethnicity females: 67.4%
• Other race/ethnicity males: 55.1%
• Black or African American females: 54.8%
• White males: 54.7%
• Hispanic/Latino females: 45.1%
• Black or African American males: 41.8%
• Hispanic/Latino males: 33.6%

New data on economically disadvantaged students

This year's report included socioeconomic data for the first time. By definition, the term "economically disadvantaged" includes K-12 students who are in foster care, homeless, migrants or runaways, along with students who participate in federal or state income and nutrition programs.

Economically disadvantaged students had a 39.3% college-going rate for the class of 2023, marking a slight increase from 36.3% the year before. Those who are not economically disadvantaged saw a rate of 65.3%, up from 63.6%.

Here's a look at the college-going rates for those two groups from 2019-2023.

Economically disadvantaged

• 2019: 45.5%
• 2020: 38.8%
• 2021: 34.5%
• 2022: 36.3%
• 2023: 39.3%

Not economically disadvantaged

• 2019: 71.1%
• 2020: 67%
• 2021: 62.7%
• 2022: 63.6%
• 2023: 65.3%

See the report for yourself

The full report on the class of 2023, along with other reports and data, can be found at tn.gov/thec/research/college-going-reports.

Reach children's reporter Rachel Wegner at RAwegner@tennessean.com or follow her on Twitter, Threads and Bluesky @RachelAnnWegner.