Bill would double 'Bright Flight'
Jan. 26, 2007
When the Missouri Department of Education's "Bright Flight" scholarship was first created in 1986, it was intended to pay for all tuition expenses.
More than 20 years later, the Bright Flight stipend remains at $2,000. The scholarship is awarded to all Missouri students who score in the top 3 percent on the ACT or SAT.
Rep. Ed Robb, R-Columbia, filed a bill in the House that would double the value of the scholarship to $4,000 each year.
"The intent of Bright Flight from the state was to prevent a brain drain, to keep bright students in the state of Missouri," MU Admissions Director Barbara Rupp said.
But the weight that $2,000 carries is considerably less than it used to be.
"Over a period of time, we need to try to restore the value of the scholarship for what it was intended to do," Robb said.
Robb, along with Jason Crowell, R-Cape Girardeau, proposed the same bill last year. Robb said the political climate this year makes the bill's passage more likely.
"Higher education and scholarships in general are a priority issue of the legislature this year," Robb said. "We didn't do anything with higher education last year except a two percent increase in appropriations."
He said there was no chance for an increase in merit-based scholarships unless a considerable amount of need-based financial aid was awarded as well.
Gov. Matt Blunt pledged to increase need-based assistance from $27.5 million to $72.5 million in his State of the State address.
Robb said he hopes to eventually restore the value of the scholarship to pay for all tuition and fees for Missouri students.
"It's like eating an elephant one bite at a time," Robb said.
Rupp said any increase in Bright Flight would help MU to attract a larger selection of intelligent students.
"I think, honestly, there was a time when it was more effective than it is now because Bright Flight hasn't increased in many years," Rupp said.
According to the MU Admissions Web site, the annual tuition and fees at MU total $7,308, and the average cost of books per academic year is $950. Room and board for a double-occupancy room with 21 meals per week is $7,000.
UM System President Elson Floyd addressed the Bright Flight value in a Senate Interim Committee on the Cost of a College Education in October.
Floyd said the UM system supports any measures to increase Bright Flight.
"(Two thousand dollars) covered full tuition plus books at the University of Missouri when it was passed, but it doesn't even capture a third of that cost in today's dollars," Floyd said.
In Fall 2006, there were 578 freshmen and 2,367 total students at MU receiving the scholarship.
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