At Scale: The tnAchieves Podcast

A Great Idea with Randy Boyd

February 4th, 2020  |  44 mins 29 secs

college, college student, education, learn, non-profit, self-help, student, thrive

A conversation between Randy Boyd and Knox County Mayor Mike Ragsdale became an idea in 2008. Their idea was a program that would result in more low-income, first-generation students enrolling in college. With Randy's support, Knox Achieves launched with the Class of 2009, became tnAchieves in 2012 and transitioned to its current role as a partnering organization to TN Promise in 2015. Without Randy, tnAchieves would not exist, and his leadership as our chairmen has been transformative. Learn more about Randy's journey, his impact on tnAchieves and his goals for the future on Episode 4.

Thriving (Surviving?) First Semester with Emma and Timari

January 21st, 2020  |  37 mins 35 secs

college, college student, education, learn, non-profit, self-help, student, thrive

The third installment of the tnAchieves Podcast features two current TN Promise students, Timari and Emma, as they discuss the ups and downs of their first semester of college. Timari and Emma share different perspectives and experiences, offering something for every student as they work to thrive as college students. We know the first semester can be the hardest, often feeling more like surviving than thriving. Take a page out of Timari or Emma's playbook and start thriving!

Audio Issue: At 14:49 a technical issue affected Timari's mic; however, her answer was too good not to share! We apologize for the audio quality on a couple of Timari's answers.

College Presidents Aren't That Scary with Dr. Anthony Wise

December 17th, 2019  |  44 mins

college, education, nonprofit, president self-help, scary

The second episode of the tnAchieves Podcast features Dr. Anthony Wise, President of Pellissippi State Community College. For more than a decade, Pellissippi State has welcomed new programs and been a vital partner to our work. Dr. Wise’s leadership has been invaluable as we try new things and keep what works. Learn about how he started his journey at Pellissippi and his tips on being a successful student on a community college campus! We think you’ll find that college presidents aren’t all that scary.

Being Brave with Ben Sterling

November 20th, 2019  |  26 mins 41 secs

bravery, college, education, nonprofit, self-help

Our very first episode welcomes Ben Sterling, a graduate of the first knoxAchieves class and a current member of the tnAchieves team.