Social media feeds are like a highlight reel but not every day is a Facebook post. These are overwhelming times. For those of us directly serving young people, some of the work is messy and heart wrenching. Periodically, the need for GRAD’s K through 16 (elementary through postsecondary) continuum of college/career access & success support […]

An extended blog post by Vrondelia Chandler, Project GRAD Knoxville Executive Director Over in Tennessee, in the City of Knoxville/County of Knox, in the midst of a historic COVID19 pandemic, an explosion was heard. It was the sound of uncontainable love and support for young people from two inner city Knox County Schools public high […]

Better is Coming! GRAD “2019 Yearbook” and Celebrating the Class of 2020 2020 has certainly taken an unusual turn for us all but better days will come again! We know this because the work we do together has a positive impact on the lives of amazing young people and on the world. An army of […]

As our campus partners made the very difficult decision to extend online-only instruction through the summer in anticipation of moving toward the return of a more normal, healthy fall semester, the on-campus Project GRAD Summer Institutes (commuter and residential) have also been impacted. On campus summer group activities, institutes and camps will not be held […]

The Project GRAD Team stands with our public school system and our community as we move forward through this present moment. We WILL get through this together. Thank you to the many heroes working in amazing ways to provide for the needs of everyone. Because many of the families we support look to GRAD staff […]

Get ready! WATE/GRAD Laptop Telethon returns THURSDAY/MARCH 26, 2020 Because of generous community response to the annual WATE/GRAD Laptop Telethon established in 2018 under the leadership of WATE-TV Anchor Lori Tucker, Project GRAD Knoxville scholarship recipients graduating from Austin-East and Fulton high schools (with proof of enrollment in higher education), can start that journey with […]

Strong Women, Strong Futures. That is the name for the Women’s Fund of East Tennessee Network of partners who are working together to help create a new narrative to change negative messages girls and young women sometimes receive about pursuing more education beyond high school. Project GRAD is one of eight foundational members of the […]

During the Knox County School Board Workshop (12/4/19), Project GRAD Knoxville announced that it exceeded every Year One metric established under its 5-Year Memorandum of Agreement with Knox County Schools. Graduation rates went up at Austin-East and Fulton last school year. More of our graduates have gone on to pursue post-secondary education and more students […]

Participating in the National College Access Network (NCAN) annual meeting always results in a great learning experience. The annual conference attracts outstanding plenary speakers and more than 1100 attendees. The 2019 conference areas of emphasis provided more than 100 workshops that included diversity/equity/inclusion, serving students of color well, empowering students from low income/foster care circumstances, […]

Just after students left the buildings and before Project GRAD summer institutes began, the GRAD leadership team gathered to reflect on efforts during the 2018-19 school year to meet organizational metrics. Pulling away off-site for the day provided an opportunity to perform an uninterrupted quadrant analysis of whether actions and activities closely aligned with metrics, […]