MSU quickly expands dual-credit program

Photo provided by Missouri State University

Missouri State University President Clif Smart signs a dual-credit agreement with Blue Springs Public Schools Superintendent Paul Kinder.

After announcing a new dual-credit scholarship program late last month, Missouri State University signed agreements with four more school districts.

With Springfield Public Schools on board as the first participant, MSU announced yesterday the Blue Springs, Liberty, Smithville and North Kansas City school districts also signed agreements, according to a news release. The program allows high school students who qualify for free and reduced-price lunches to take dual-credit high school and college courses at no charge.

“We are very appreciative of Missouri State University’s vision of making post-secondary credit a possibility for all students,” Smithville Superintendent Todd Schuetz said in the release. “Eliminating finances as a barrier to education is a philosophy that is consistent with our founding fathers and the Smithville School District is pleased to be a partner.”

An MSU spokesperson previously told Springfield Business Journal that high school students typically pay $70 per credit hour for dual-credit courses through MSU.