Current News

The Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) congratulates Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Upper Cumberland on becoming only the second college campus in Tennessee to earn the VETS Bravo designation and the first Tennessee Board of Regents institution and Tennessee College of Applied Technology to receive the honor.

The designation recognizes TCAT Upper Cumberland’s outstanding commitment to serving military-connected students through enhanced support services, workforce engagement, and student success initiatives.

Supported by Tennessee’s pioneering Dual Enrollment Grants, 42,532 high school students enrolled in college courses at the state’s community and technical colleges last fall. Earlier last year, 824 members of the Class of 2025 earned college credentials by the time of their high school graduation – associate degrees and workforce certificates at community colleges, and diplomas and certificates at Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology (TCATs).

TBR - the College System of Tennessee recently honored the Walters State Community College (WSCC) Men's and Women's basketball and baseball teams, as well as the Volunteer State Community College (VSCC) softball team, for their athletic achievements.

TBR - the College System of Tennessee had much to celebrate at three different technical college campuses over the last several weeks. On May 12, the College System joined Gov. Bill Lee and First Lady Maria Lee to celebrate the opening of two new buildings on the TCAT Oneida/Huntsville campus; these spaces will help more students learn the skills they need for successful careers.

TBR - The College System of Tennessee continues to identify and develop scalable solutions to address workforce development gaps across Tennessee. Recently, the College System announced the launch of a new Tile Manufacturing Operator program at three of its technical colleges in the fall of 2026: Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Dickson, TCAT Hohenwald and TCAT Upper Cumberland.

The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) approved tuition and fees for the next academic year, capital budget requests for college construction projects, a new academic program, new and revised policies, compensation plans, faculty promotion and tenure recommendations, and more during its quarterly meeting Friday, June 12.

The Tennessee Board of Regents will hold its next regular quarterly meeting June 11-12, 2026, at Nashville State Community College. The agenda includes, but is not limited to, consideration of tuition and fees, capital budget requests, a proposed new academic program, new and revised policies, compensation plans, faculty promotion and tenure recommendations, and more.

The Tennessee Board of Regents committee chairs will meet Wednesday, May 27, 2026, to receive informational updates in advance of the full board’s next quarterly meeting in June, including a preliminary presentation of proposed tuition and fees for academic year 2026-27. The board’s Personnel and Compensation Committee and Audit Committee will hold business meetings following the committee chairs meeting.

In a special called meeting Aprl 30, the Tennessee Board of Regents appointed Dr. John M. Davis as the next president of Cleveland State Community College and Timothy Smith as the next president of Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Oneida/Huntsville. Both are expected to assume their new duties in June.

After deliberative search processes at both institutions, Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Flora W. Tydings is recommending the appointments of Dr. John M. Davis as the next president of Cleveland State Community College and Timothy Smith as the next president of Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Oneida/Huntsville.

The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) will hold a special called meeting April 30, 2026, to receive and consider acting on the chancellor’s recommendations for the next presidents of Cleveland State Community College and Tennessee College of Applied Technology Oneida/Huntsville.

The College System of Tennessee today announced the 12 members of the Chancellor’s Fellowship Class of 2026-27, representing faculty and staff from community and technical colleges across the state.

A Tennessee Board of Regents search advisory committee has selected three finalists for the next president of Cleveland State Community College. They will participate in public interviews with the campus community April 17, 20, and 21, the next step in the selection process.

The finalists are:

The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) has been selected as one of 10 recipients of a national grant from Lumina Foundation’s Great Admissions Redesign initiative, which is investing more than $3.5 million to simplify the college admissions process and expand student access across the country.

Two finalists have been selected for the next president of Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Oneida/Huntsville. Both will participate in public interviews on the campus in Oneida on April 9, the next step in the selection process.

The finalists are: 

The Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) today announced that the Tennessee Promise application is now open for the high school Class of 2027. For the first time, high school juniors can apply beginning April 1, giving students earlier access than ever before to the state’s last-dollar scholarship.

The earlier application timeline allows students and families to begin planning for college sooner, including gaining earlier insight into admissions and financial aid opportunities early in their senior year.

What This Means for Students:

The American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) announced that the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) Office of Academic Affairs is the recipient of the 2026 Terrel L. Rhodes Game Changer Award, recognizing its leadership in redesigning general education across Tennessee’s community college system.

SkillsUSA Tennessee’s high school and college/postsecondary divisions co-hosted the 2026 State Leadership and Skills Conference (SLSC) in Chattanooga, bringing together more than 2,000 high school and 1,000 postsecondary SkillsUSA student members and their advisors from across the state to compete, lead, and grow as the next generation of skilled professionals in high-demand careers.

TBR - The College System of Tennessee honored outstanding students, faculty, staff, philanthropists, partners and volunteers of the year in the Eighth Annual Statewide Outstanding Achievement Recognition (SOAR) Awards in Nashville.

In addition to individual SOAR Award winners, Jackson State Community College and Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Knoxville took home College of the Year honors in their respective college sectors.

The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) heard updates on the successful launches of its student digital credential record initiative and the Tennessee Higher Education Commission’s Direct Admissions project during its March quarterly meeting. The board governs the College System of Tennessee – the state’s public community colleges and colleges of applied technology.