This qualitative phenomenological study sought answers about how first-year Tennessee Promise students viewed their experiences with the scholarship program. The Tennessee Promise scholarship was designed to allow more high school graduates to attend community college or technical school tuition-free. This statewide program was the first of its kind, and it has had a profound effect on higher education in Tennessee. Vincent Tinto (1993) developed his Theory of Student Departure and Retention to explain why students drop out of college and what might be done about the problem. He believed that the first semester of a student's freshman year of college was the most critical at-risk time for student departure. Tinto (1993) stated that educational institutions needed to meet three crucial areas of support to students to minimize dropout rates. These areas were financial, academic, and community support (Tinto, 1993). Most of the research on the Tennessee Promise scholarship program has been from a quantitative perspective, not qualitative. In this qualitative study, ten students who attended a southern middle Tennessee community college on the Tennessee Promise scholarship were interviewed. These volunteer participants answered how the scholarship program supported them in financial, academic, and community support. The results suggested that economic benefits were a primary factor for receiving the scholarship. The mentorship aspects of Tennessee Promise were highly effective as well. Some modifications and applications for future study were discovered in areas of academic and community support. Finally, the COVID-19 and social distancing restrictions during the time of this study made a significant impact on several of the respondents' experiences. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]