TGSAS: Collegiate Experiential Learning for High School Students.

The State of Tennessee offers twelve summer programs for exceptional high school students. The programs have been developed to provide concentrated and rigorous learning experiences in various disciplines: Science, International Studies, Arts, Humanities, Engineering, Prospective Teachers, Information Technology Leadership, Scientific Exploration of Tennessee Heritage, and Agricultural Science. The Tennessee Governor’s School for the Agricultural Sciences (TGSAS) offers a unique learning experience in agriculture and natural resources to high school students by providing collegiate-level classes and experiential learning opportunities. This summer UT Martin will host its sixth TGSAS class. The program has been a great recruiting tool for not only the agricultural and natural resources but also UTM as 44 students (nearly 25% of our Governor’s School attendees) have chosen to pursue their college degrees here at UT Martin. This presentation will describe our experience with developing course offerings and experiential opportunities for this program.