Early Promise in early stages
Published Feb. 2, 2007
MU might soon look for prospective freshmen amid the construction paper and long division tables of some of Missouri's fourth-grade classrooms.
Although still in the drafting stages, the Early Promise Scholarship Program, the brainchild of Chancellor Brady Deaton, would provide the necessary funds for all fourth-graders in the Kansas City, Missouri Public School District to attend MU.
Vice Provost for Enrollment Management Ann Korschgen said Deaton wanted to "provide an incentive for youngsters to start thinking early in their academic careers about the possibility of college."
According to a preliminary draft of the proposal for the scholarship released Dec. 8, all fourth-graders in the Kansas City, Missouri School District are automatically eligible for the scholarship.
To reap the benefits of the scholarship, students must graduate from a Missouri high school, meet MU admission requirements and be eligible for the Pell Grant, which involves certain economic needs. Students must also remain in good academic standing while at MU to maintain qualification for the program.
According to the draft, the program would accept new fourth-graders from 2007 until 2016. Initial budget estimates indicate that administrative costs for the program could total up to $22,000 annually.
The draft stated that the program wouldn't establish quotas for racial or ethnic provisions.
MU spokesman Christian Basi said though the program is still in the "planning" stages, Deaton's idea is "fantastic."
"It's very important to us from an educational standpoint," Basi said. "We want to make sure of two things: that it's accessible and that it's affordable."
The program is yet to be finalized and still has not been proposed to the Kansas City, Missouri School District.
Jeffrey Williams, director of MU Access and Urban Outreach, said the program aims "to foster a college-going culture" for students.
Williams' department would shoulder the responsibility of the Early Promise Scholarship.