Nashville State, Tractor Supply Company Partnership Yields Successful Outcomes

Nashville State and Tractor Supply Company recently celebrated a 5-year anniversary of their workforce partnership.

The partnership, called the “Learn and Earn” program, allows Nashville State students studying Information Technology (IT) to complete a paid internship as  part of Tractor Supply’s IT support teams, while earning their degree.

“We have a great partnership with Tractor Supply,” said Rob Tudor, director of IT partnership and student placement at Nashville State.

Kenny Frank is one of the alum to have participated in the program and now works as an IT professional for Tractor Supply. Kenny is a business analyst.

“Nashville State really gave me the space to learn, and they gave me the flexibility to figure out what I wanted to do,” Frank said.

At a recent event highlighting the partnership. Frank, who was a 2023 computer science graduate, said he sought out Nashville State President Shanna Jackson to thank her for supporting and nurturing this program.

The paid learn and earn internship first began in 2019 has continued into 2025, with multiple students participating each semester.

“My hope is that a student’s life can be changed,” Tudor said, who was a former Tractor Supply IT leader himself before moving to Nashville State.

“Our goal is to help students get industry experience and develop a well-rounded IT individual.  We crafted the learn and earn program with Tractor as a unique talent pipeline that is providing relevant work for the students and ultimately building a career pathway.”

That attitude of pairing education and experience does not just extend to one side of the partnership.

In a recent podcast Tractor Supply Company’s Rob Mills, executive vice president, chief technology, digital and corporate strategy officer, talked about the importance of creating lasting and meaningful partnerships with the community.

“The success from the program has just been tremendous,” Mills said.

“The students we have brought into this organization who now over the years have continued to grow and do some amazing stuff is really powerful.”

As the program moves into its sixth year, the experience for both the program organizers, company partners, and student participants continues to pay dividends for all involved. 

“I still look up and think this is what I get to do for work now, I get paid to do this,” Nathan Yardley, another of the Nashville State graduates who participated in the program and now works as a site reliability contractor at Tractor Supply, said.

“I feel thankful every day for Nashville State and the ‘Learn and Earn’ program. I can’t sing their praises enough. Tractor Supply has been great, and it’s been a fortunate experience for me all around.”

The partnership between Nashville State and Tractor Supply is a continuation of Nashville State’s philosophy of serving as a community hub of education and career readiness.

“We’re building something where students can take an internship and make it a career pathway,” Tudor said. “We are building bridges and changing lives, thanks to great industry partners like Tractor Supply.”