The number of veterans enrolled in college in Missouri who are receiving the post-Sept. 11 education benefit grew from 7,512 in 2010 to 11,592 in 2011, making Missouri ninth in the percentage of growth among all states. The numbers are expected to swell as troops withdraw from the Middle East.

Only the states of Iowa, West Virginia, Vermont, Oregon, Georgia, New Hampshire, Maryland and North Carolina had higher rates of post-Sept. 11 GI enrollment growth.

The Department of Veterans Affairs, which funds the post-Sept. 11 veterans benefits program, has paid out nearly $18 billion to fund the program, which has attracted 435,000 participants since it went into effect August 1, 2009.

Returning veterans can face difficult transitions from active duty to a college campus. Most Missouri institutions of higher education have special services to help them adjust to college life and find the support they need to succeed in college.

Missouri State University at West Plains provides a "one-stop shop" for veterans called the VIP (for Veterans Incentive Program) Center. Coordinator Mark White says the center provides tutoring and counseling for the veterans. "We try to make them feel like they're part of a family," White said.

The veterans face numerous obstacles, particularly those who were exposed to mortar fire and explosives. "The classroom environment is important to them," White explained. "For example, some need to have two escape routes visible at all times. We help them determine a physical placement in the class where they can relax and concentrate on studies."

White said the center helps veterans acclimate to civilian and campus life, providing counseling for such challenges as short term memory loss, post-traumatic stress disorder and anger management. "Their lives have changed. There are new demands on them," White said. "We provide academic and personal counseling, or refer them to the VA or other groups that can help."

Missouri institutions of higher education are rising to the challenge of meeting the special needs of veterans, according to Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell. "We can expect to see more and more post-Sept. 11 veterans on college campuses as troops withdraw from military engagement," Russell said. "Colleges and universities are welcoming returning veterans with unique support systems, ranging from tutoring to counseling to formal events that recognize their contributions to the country. We welcome the veterans to campus and look forward to their academic success."

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Note to reporters:

Information on programs and contacts for quotes about veterans programs at colleges and universities in Missouri include:

Columbia College, Information for Veterans, Keith Glindemann, kaglindemann@ccis.edu

Crowder College, Shirley Burns, shirleyburns@crowder.edu

East Central College, Lorrie Baird, labaird@eastcentral.edu

Jefferson College, Information for Veterans, Betty Dye, bdye@jeffco.edu

Lincoln University, Information for Veterans, Craig Galbreath galbreath@lincolnu.edu

Linn State Technical College, Cheryl Probst, cheryl.probst@linnstate.edu

Maryville University, Information for Veterans, Martha Harbaugh, mharbaugh@maryville.edu

Missouri Southern State University, Information for Veterans, Denise Vigil, vigil-d@mssu.edu

Missouri State University, Information for Veterans, Jenifer Kautzman, JKautzman@missouristate.edu

Missouri State University- West Plains, Information for Veterans, Mark White, MWhite@missouristate.edu 

Missouri University of Science and Technology, Information for Veterans

North Central Missouri College, Information for Veterans, Megan Stout, mstout@mail.ncmissouri.edu

Northwest Missouri State University, Information for Veterans, Marge Stoner, mstoner@nwmissouri.edu

Ozarks Technical Community College, Dennis Peters, petersd@otc.edu

Southeast Missouri State University, Chris Seyer, cseyer@semo.edu

Southwest Baptist University, John Credille

St. Charles Community College, Information for Veterans, Tomi Schwandt, tschwandt@stchas.edu<mailto:tschwandt@stchas.edu

St. Louis Community College:

• Meramec: Mike Cundiff, mcundiff@stlcc.edu
• Florissant Valley campus: Leslie Wright, lwright@stlcc.edu
• Forest Park: Glenda Doss, gdoss8@stlcc.edu
• Wildwood: Karen Wengler, kwengler@stlcc.edu

Three Rivers College, John Fuller, 573-840-9606

University of Central Missouri, Information for Veterans, Delilah Nichols, Nichols@ucmo.edu  

University of Missouri-Columbia, Information for Veterans, Carol Fleisher, fleishercw@missouri.edu

University of Missouri-St. Louis, Information for Veterans

Westminster College, Tom Dobbins, Tom.Dobbins@westminster-mo.edu

William Jewell College, Information for Veterans, Karen S. Weatherford, weatherfordk@william.jewell.edu

"Education takes you places you could never go without it," says Morey. "It is important because it stays with you forever, and no one can take it away."

This week the Missouri Department of Higher Education awarded Morey and his group a $100,000 College Access Challenge Grant to apply his philosophy in a two-county area hard hit by unemployment and the recession.

The historic mining areas of Vernon and Barton counties have lost 5,300 jobs since 2007. The child poverty rate is 42 percent, almost twice as high as the state average.

Students struggle economically and academically. Almost two-thirds of the students in the school districts targeted by About Our Kids failed to meet the state standard in reading; more than half did not meet the standards for math.

Morey says students in these situations need targeted interventions to put them on a path to completing high school and embarking on postsecondary education. With funds from the grant, About Our Kids will launch the Higher Education Access Route for Teens - HEART - to provide academic enrichment to 250 students.

College Access Challenge Grants were created by Congress in 2007 to increase the number of low-income students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. This year the Missouri Department of Higher Education awarded $1.5 million in federal funds to 17 groups to reach underserved students.

Other grant recipients are:

College Bound - St. Louis -- $100,000

College Access Challenge Grant funds will assist College Bound with implementing a seven-year action plan for low-income, first-generation students and families.

College Summit - St. Louis -- $100,000

College Summit builds the capacity of partner high schools to help transition students to college.

De La Salle Middle School - St. Louis -- $99,902

De La Salle Middle School will provide effective information to students and families on postsecondary education benefits, opportunities, planning and career preparation.

Drury University-Springfield -- $84,511

Drury University, in close partnership with the Springfield Public Schools, conducts the Drury Scholars Program, a yearlong mentoring and tutoring initiative.

Full Employment Council, Inc.-Kansas City -- $100,000

Full Employment Council, Inc. will provide career awareness, counseling, planning, financial literacy training, financial aid assistance and mentoring to 16- to 24-year-olds who are economically disadvantaged and underrepresented.

Infinite Scholars Program of Missouri - St. Louis -- $93,920

The Infinite Scholars Program provides a combination of comprehensive early college access activities and career opportunity awareness activities to students and their families.

Missouri College Advising Corps - Columbia -- $100,000

The Missouri College Advising Corps will provide "near-peer advisers" to high school students in Potosi, Salem, St. Clair, St. James and Sullivan to help them plan and prepare for college.

Missouri State University - Springfield -- $100,000

Missouri State University will serve underrepresented students through the Missouri Innovation Academy, a program to foster sound financial and business practices, creativity, science, technology and career awareness.

Missouri State University - West Plains -- $100,000

College Access Challenge Grant funds will be used to support and sustain Project Threshold, a program created to reach middle and high school students with information and resources for college preparation.

Northside Community Center - St. Louis -- $92,061

Northside Community Center will partner with Washington University to provide college information, assistance, guidance and support for Beaumont High School and Confluence Preparatory Academy students.

St. Charles Community College - St. Charles -- $98,675

St. Charles Community College will implement the PATH Project to target at-risk and/or underserved students in the areas of St. Charles, Lincoln, Montgomery, Pike and Warren counties.

St. Louis Internship Program - St. Louis -- $42,116

St. Louis Internship Program helps at-risk students connect academics to the world of work, envision a future, complete high school and prepare for postsecondary education.

State Fair Community College - Sedalia -- $100,000

State Fair Community College will use College Access Challenge Grant funds for their A.C.E Program -- Advantages of College Education -- to increase the number of underserved Missourians in their 14-county service area.

The University of Missouri 4-H Extension - Columbia -- $100,000

The University of Missouri Extension 4-H Center for youth development will make college an obtainable goal for high school youth in St. Louis, Kansas City and southeast Missouri.

Wyman Center, Inc. - St. Louis -- $99,959

Wyman Center, Inc. implements programs that inspire and enable teens from economically disadvantaged circumstances to develop the confidence and skills they need to achieve a lifetime of success.

FAFSA Frenzy, a program of College Goal Sunday, is offered in Missouri through partnerships between the Missouri Department of Higher Education with the Missouri Association of Student Financial Aid Personnel, the Lumina Foundation for Education, and the YMCA. To assist students and parents with the FAFSA process, financial aid professionals will be on hand at 36 FAFSA Frenzy events on the main event date, Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012.

Thirteen additional FAFSA Frenzy events will be held throughout January, February and March. Dates, times and locations for all events are available at www.dhe.mo.gov or www.masfap.org/showmetocollege.

Eight $500 scholarships will be drawn for students attending the event in Missouri. Winners will receive their scholarships upon receipt of enrollment verification for the 2012 fall semester at a Missouri postsecondary institution.

Families will be able to complete the 2012-13 FAFSA on-site and obtain valuable information.

2012 FAFSA Frenzy events will mark the ninth year that Missouri has participated in the CGS program. In the past eight years, CGS/FAFSA Frenzy has helped more than 7,300 Missouri students obtain financial aid.

After a long career in banking, Fogle is currently president and CEO of the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. An Aurora native, Fogle obtained bachelor's and master's degrees in banking and finance from the University of Mississippi. He spent two decades developing innovative loan programs for under-served populations and helping to revitalize city centers in Springfield, Joplin, Carthage and Neosho.

In 2007, Fogle helped organize the "Teacher on the Block" employee housing assistance initiative to encourage teachers to live in Title I school neighborhoods. He received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Drury University in 2011, and serves on an advisory committee and the President's Committee on Diversity for Missouri State University.

Fogle said his background in community development convinces him education is the key to economic success. "What strengthens communities is quality education," Fogle said. "Areas with higher education attainment also have higher rates of economic growth. Helping to improve higher education is congruent with my belief that in order to compete globally we must improve education attainment in Missouri."

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell said Fogle's extensive experience in banking and finance and his long-time commitment to education will make him an asset to the Coordinating Board.

"The higher education community will benefit from Mr. Fogle's knowledge, experience and ideas in these difficult budget times," Russell said.

Fogle joins Coordinating Board members Kathy Swan (chair, Cape Girardeau), Doris Carter (Florissant), Lowell Kruse (St. Joseph), Betty Simms (Ladue), Mary Beth Luna Wolf (St. Louis) and Dalton Wright (Conway).

Jefferson City - Five Missouri colleges and universities are taking part in an international study to measure what students know and can do after completing requirements for a bachelor's degree. Study findings will be used by educators to develop an assessment tool that can be used in academic institutions around the world.

The Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO) recruited 16 nations and 150 higher education institutions to participate in the study. Missouri institutions make up half of the 10 U.S. institutions participating in the global initiative. Missouri was tapped to participate in the study because of its strong leadership in the area of learning assessments.

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell said that developing a way to measure student learning makes sense given the internationalization of higher education.

"Right now we have no way of comparing academic programs or college-level learning throughout the world," Russell said. "Developing a common assessment of college graduates' performance across a range of tasks will create consistency so we can begin to compare apples with apples. It will be beneficial for students, institutions and employers."

The Missouri institutions that are participating in AHELO are Central Methodist University, Missouri State University, Truman State University, the University of Central Missouri and Webster University. Their role is to administer the assessment tool that measures generic skills common to all students, such as critical thinking, analytical reasoning, problem-solving and written communication. Universities in other participating countries will administer the same assessment.

Rusty Monhollon, assistant commissioner for academic affairs at the Missouri Department of Higher Education, coordinates state participation. He said the current focus is on the feasibility of comparing student success across national borders. Test results will be anonymous during the feasibility study.

"The end result isn't about ranking schools, states or nations," Monhollon said. "It is about trying to develop an assessment tool that gets beyond cultural biases and achieves a common yardstick for measuring student learning worldwide. It's gratifying that our participating institutions represent both the public and independent sectors. I'm very excited that Missouri is taking a leading role in this important work."

A prototype test will be administered next semester to students randomly selected from participating Missouri institutions. The results will be analyzed and presented in a forum for further discussion and analysis at the end of 2012. Based on the results of the feasibility study, a full-scale AHELO could be launched by 2016.

AHELO was initiated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Institutional contacts:

Nancy Asher, Coordinator of Testing and Reporting and Associate Budget Director, Truman State University nasher@truman.edu

Rachelle Darabi, Associate Provost for Student Development and Public Affairs and Professor of English, Missouri State University Rdarabi@missouristate.edu

Amy Dykens, Dean of Assessment and Institutional Research, Central Methodist University amydykens@centralmethodist.edu

 Mike Grelle, Vice Provost for Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment, University of Central Missouri grelle@ucmo.edu

 Julie Weissman, Director of Institutional Effectiveness, Webster University julieweissman22@webster.edu

The CBHE also accepted a report on the Performance Funding Task Force, and learned which colleges and universities earned Nursing Incentive Grants.

The proposed legislation is intended to increase the number of Missourians with degrees and high quality certificates by making their progress through higher education more efficient. The bills would:

• require institutions to use best practices in remedial coursework, so students master the basic concepts they need to do college-level work
• require institutions to adopt a "core transfer library" of at least 25 courses that are transferable among all public higher education institutions
• require the CBHE to develop a policy to foster reverse transfer between a two-year and a four-year public institution for students who have accumulated enough hours to be awarded an associate's degree
• require the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to maintain alignment of assessments with entry level college requirements

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell said the sponsors of the proposed legislation want colleges and universities to make it simpler for more students to complete their degrees faster and at less expense.

"Many students need remedial coursework upon entering college," Russell said, "and students who transfer encounter problems that can delay their progress through college. Under the proposed legislation, the Department of Higher Education would develop policy solutions to improve remediation and transfer."

Russell appointed the Performance Funding Task Force last February to implement one of Gov. Nixon's key strategies for higher education. Paul Wagner, deputy commissioner of higher education, chaired the task force. He said performance funding is gaining traction nationally because it focuses on results.

"The concept of performance funding rewards institutions that show results using agreed upon measurements and reliable data," Wagner said. "There's nearly universal agreement that state funding for higher education is inadequate, but if and when new funding becomes available, it makes sense that all or part of the new funding would be awarded based on how institutions perform and if they demonstrate improvement."

The task force's recommendations focus on five key areas: student success and progress, degree attainment, quality of student learning, financial responsibility and efficiency, and support of institution-specific measures.

The Coordinating Board accepted the report of the task force and will act on the recommendations when it submits a budget request for fiscal year 2014 next September.

Wagner also announced the recipients of Nursing Incentive Grants, intended to increase institutions' capacity to educate new nurses. The recipients are University of Missouri-St. Louis, Ozarks Technical College, Mineral Area College, Cox College, University of Missouri-Columbia, University of Missouri-Kansas City and William Jewell College.

The number of international students here grew 13 percent, up from 13,360 in 2010. The national rate of increase was 5 percent.

More than a quarter of international students studying in Missouri are from China, followed by India, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Taiwan.

The University of Missouri-Columbia enrolled almost 2,000 international students in the 2010-2011 academic year, followed by Washington University (1,909), University of Missouri-Kansas City (1,229), St. Louis University (1,058) and Lindenwood University (1,023), according to the report.

Most international students pay full tuition at Missouri institutions. Their total expenditures in Missouri are estimated to be $383 million.

The number of Missouri students who studied abroad also increased slightly, from 5,054 to 5,070.

Study Missouri, a consortium of 39 public and private colleges and universities, markets the state's diverse academic offerings to students in other countries, and promotes study abroad opportunities for Missouri students.

Chad Stebbins, Study Missouri chair-elect and director of the Institute of International Studies at Missouri Southern State University, says international students bring more than financial assets to Missouri.

"International students are crucial to all Missouri colleges and universities for the global exposure they provide to Missouri students and communities," Stebbins said. "They bring new ideas and perspectives into the classrooms, and they share their cultures and beliefs with individuals in the school and beyond. They also help facilitate study abroad by encouraging our students to step out of their comfort zones and study in another country."

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell credits Study Missouri with much of the growth in international students here. "Study Missouri promotes the excellence of the state's academic programs, diverse opportunities and low cost of living to attract international students," Russell said. "The consortium shows that institutions working together can make Missouri a national leader."

International students will come together at the Missouri Capitol to celebrate International Education Day Feb. 29, 2012.

The College Access Challenge Grant program, administered by the Missouri Department of Higher Education, was passed by Congress in 2007. In 2012, MDHE will distribute about $1.5 million. Maximum grant amounts will be $100,000.

Not-for-profit organizations or consortia may apply for the grants, which must be matched with nonfederal funds (one dollar of matching funds for every two dollars of grant funds). The grants are intended to pay for projects that provide information and outreach to students who may be at risk of not enrolling in or completing college.

Derrick Haulenbeek, grant administrator, said the grants help students and families realize that a college education is a realistic goal for low income, first generation or minority students. "Grant recipients provide a network of services to students and families as they prepare for college, whether it is from a financial planning standpoint or from an academic support standpoint," Haulenbeek said. "These grants are serving a wide range of students and families throughout the state of Missouri."

More information and application forms may be obtained on the Missouri Department of Higher Education Website at www.dhe.mo.gov/collegeaccess.shtml

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell says the grants are intended to attract high-achieving students to math and science.

"We know that high-paying jobs are available in math, science and technology fields," Russell said, "but Missouri and the U.S. lag behind other countries in the production of graduates in these disciplines. Much as we stepped up growth in the number of scientists following Russia's launch of Sputnik in 1957, we must look to the technological needs of the future and prepare our students to successfully compete in a global economy."

To be eligible for the grant, students must:

• Achieve two grades of three or higher on Advanced Placement exams in the fields of math and/or science while attending a Missouri public high school.
• Receive an award under the Access Missouri Student Financial Assistance Program or the A+ Scholarship Program in the academic year in which the Advanced Placement Incentive Grant is awarded. Students who are eligible for the Access Missouri or A+ Scholarship programs but have a calculated award amount of zero are eligible for the Advanced Placement Incentive Grant.
• Submit a complete application for the Advanced Placement Incentive Grant.

Students must submit an Advanced Placement Incentive Grant application by June 1, 2012 for the 2011-2012 academic year. The application must include:

• Certification of eligibility from the postsecondary school the student is attending.
• A copy of the Advanced Placement Score Report from the College Board.

Awards are made directly to the postsecondary institution on the student's behalf.

Additional information on applying for the grants can be found on the MDHE website, www.dhe.mo.gov

The Missouri Department of Higher Education has announced that work on criteria that describe what it means to be college-ready has been completed by a higher education task force. The department worked closely with faculty and academic officers from public and private colleges and universities, as well as representatives from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and local school districts, to identify entry-level competencies for college-bound students.

Curriculum alignment was mandated by the Omnibus Higher Education Act, enacted by the Missouri General Assembly in 2007. The completed work on college entry-level competencies is expected to improve the alignment between high school and college, and among colleges and universities, and help students who aspire to go on to postsecondary education.

The competencies align with the Common Core State Standards for language arts and mathematics adopted by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education last year. The release of the college-ready competencies was delayed until the higher education sector could analyze the Common Core State Standards to ensure the standards were consistent with the expectations of the state's public colleges and universities.

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell said the effort to create the college entry-level competencies builds on the common core standards for high school students adopted by the State Board of Education.

"The alignment of the Common Core State Standards developed by DESE and the entry-level competencies established by higher education will make the transition from high school to college more efficient," Russell said. "Now students and their families will have a clearer understanding of the knowledge and skills needed in order to succeed in postsecondary education."

Competencies are defined in six areas of study: English and communications, science, mathematics, social science, foreign language, and arts and humanities. Workgroups comprised of experts from higher education and secondary schools developed the criteria for each of the areas of study. The competencies went through several revisions and reviews, including a period of public comment, before being approved by the Coordinating Board for Higher Education.

In addition to the entry-level competencies in the six study areas, the same process set exit-level competencies in 16 specific general education fields for students who have completed entry-level college courses.

Identifying college-level competencies is only part of the challenge for college administrators. Colleges and universities have lacked reliable tools to assess the level of knowledge college-bound students have acquired in high school. Missouri is participating in the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium to develop tests that will measure college readiness before students leave high school. Those assessments are scheduled to be in place by the 2014-15 school year.

MDHE shared the criteria for college readiness developed for Missouri institutions with the national College Readiness Partnership. The partnership was created to ensure that higher education is involved in the implementation of the Common Core State Standards. Russell said the Missouri college entry-level competencies should prove useful to the partnership as it continues to develop national standards for student readiness in the six key areas of study.

The information released by the U.S. Department of Education summarizes the default rates for borrowers whose first loan repayments came due between Oct. 1, 2008 and Sept. 30, 2009, and who stopped making payments before Sept. 30, 2010.

The student loan default rate measures the percentage of borrowers who have stopped repaying student loans.

The national student loan default rate rose from 7 percent in 2008 to 8.8 percent in 2009. Missouri's overall rate increased from 5.8 percent to 7.6 percent. The default rate for loans guaranteed by MDHE declined from 6.6 percent in 2008 to 6.3 percent in 2009.

While national student loan default rates have steadily risen from 2007 to 2009, the default rates for loans guaranteed by MDHE have declined each year. Overall state rates declined slightly from 2007 to 2008, but increased the next year.

The Missouri Department of Higher Education acts as a guaranty agency for about 40 percent of all student loans in Missouri that were disbursed before July 1, 2010. Loan guaranty agencies insure student loans against default. If the borrower defaults, the guaranty agency reimburses the lender and attempts to recover the funds from the borrower.

MDHE helps delinquent borrowers become financially responsible by offering free financial counseling. Default prevention grants, distributed by MDHE to Missouri colleges and universities, enable the schools to set up programs for students that encourage smart borrowing, financial literacy and academic success.

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell says MDHE's success as a guaranty agency is largely due to its aggressive approach to default prevention.

"The recent data on student loan default rates show that MDHE's default prevention grants to institutions have been highly effective," Russell says. "Institutions use the grants to help educate student borrowers on ways to minimize their debts and live within a budget."

The average default rate of colleges and universities that received MDHE grants was significantly lower than the average rate of Missouri schools that were eligible for the grants but did not participate.

Missouri's student loan default rate of 7.6 percent was lower than Arkansas (11.6 percent), Illinois (9.1 percent), Iowa (11.5 percent), Kentucky (10.2 percent) and Oklahoma (10.7 percent). Only Kansas (6.8 percent) and Nebraska (5.6 percent) posted lower rates in the region. Missouri had 84,096 students in repayment and 6,462 defaulted borrowers during the reporting period.

MDHE also publishes free "Smart About Spending" portfolios and "Planning for Financial Success" calendars that guide students through the process of managing money. The free publications can be ordered through the agency's website.

To ensure the downward trend continues, the Missouri Department of Higher Education will use a $10,000 grant from the Council for Economic Education to expand materials that teach high school students how to manage money.

MDHE Assistant Commissioner Leanne Cardwell said some college students tend to borrow more money than they need for college expenses. "All of a sudden, a freshman in college may have $20,000 to manage and little or no experience in setting up a budget," Cardwell said. "We're trying to put materials in the hands of high school teachers so students enter college prepared to be wise money managers."

Since 2001, MDHE has been providing default prevention grants to colleges and universities to help them develop programs that guide students to lower debt loads and better money management.

Legislation passed in 2006 required high school students to take a personal finance course, beginning with the graduating class of 2010. MDHE developed student materials called "Smart About Spending" for use in the personal finance classes. The materials focus on income, money management, spending and credit, and saving and investing.

The new "Smart About Spending" teachers' guide is expected to be used by 518 personal finance teachers in Missouri.                       ###

The Undereducated American from the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce says the U.S. has fallen behind in the production of college-educated workers. The authors write, "The data are clear. The demand for college-educated workers is growing much faster than the supply. In recession and recovery, we remain fixated on the high school jobs that are lost and not coming back. We are hurtling into a future dominated by college-level jobs, unprepared."

The study notes that 20 million more workers with postsecondary education will be needed by 2025. Even workers in occupations that don't require college degrees benefit economically from having them. A college education prepares them to do higher level work, get jobs with better wages and benefits, and open their own businesses, according to the study.

The Brookings Institution compared returns on investments in college and the stock market in the study, Where is the Best Place to Invest $102,000 -- In Stocks, Bonds, or a College Degree?

The study notes, " The $102,000 investment in a four-year college yields a rate of return of 15.2 percent per year-more than double the average return over the last 60 years experienced in the stock market (6.8 percent), and more than five times the return to investments in corporate bonds (2.9 percent), gold (2.3 percent), long-term government bonds (2.2 percent), or housing (0.4 percent)." 

 Missouri Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell says the findings in these two studies align with the state's goal of increasing degree attainment to 60 percent of the adult population by 2025, up from 39 percent today.

"We know from history and from studies such as these that postsecondary education provides enormous economic benefits to individuals and their communities," Russell says. "We need to graduate 4,000 more students each year if we are to meet our state's future for workforce needs. To do this will take commitment from families, Missouri's education system, business leaders and elected officials." 

To be eligible for financial aid, students must file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA. This is the first time the two agencies have merged data to create a map showing areas of the state where twelfth graders have filed FAFSAs.

"One of our goals as an agency is to help students overcome the obstacles that might prevent them from enrolling in and graduating from college," said Leroy Wade, assistant commissioner for financial aid (MDHE). "Student financial aid is available from a variety of programs. The first step for almost all of them is to file a FAFSA."

Research shows that students who complete a FAFSA by May and are accepted into a four-year college are more than 50 percent more likely to enroll in college than students who did not complete a FAFSA. Nationally, more than 1.7 million students fail to apply for student aid each year because they think they will be ineligible.

"We want students to not only plan and prepare academically for continuing their education and training beyond high school, but to complete the FAFSA to ensure financial support can be accessed when needed," said Leigh Ann Grant-Engle, assistant commissioner of data system management (DESE).

"FAFSA Frenzy" events held around the state encourage students to file by April 1 to be considered for the state's primary need-based financial aid program, Access Missouri. The U.S. Department of Education also uses FAFSA information to determine eligibility for Pell Grants, and colleges and universities use FAFSA results to award need-based grants and scholarships.

Missouri officials collect the filing data to estimate how many people will be eligible for state financial aid and to determine potential award amounts. Wade says it is still too early to say what award amounts will be for the coming academic year, but the map helps identify pockets of the state where financial aid applications are high, and areas where they are low.

The number of students in Missouri eligible for need-based financial aid has increased 15 to 20 percent each year since 2003.

Public colleges and universities across the country are coping with higher enrollments and shrinking state support. But 48 other states have balanced their higher education budgets by passing costs along to students. The average national increase in spending per student was 3.4 percent over the past five years. In Missouri, spending per student decreased by 12 percent.

Missouri's enrollment increase was 17^th highest in the nation from 2005 to 2010, growing by 17.7 percent. (In the fall 2010 semester, 256,527 students were enrolled in public colleges and universities in Missouri.) Appropriations for higher education per student in Missouri declined 10 percent over the same time period.

Commissioner of Higher Education David Russell says the report reflects economic reality. "The desire to adequately fund higher education exists, but the means to do it is lacking," Russell says. "Institutions are educating more students with fewer resources and that is likely to continue to be the case until new sources of revenue are identified or the economy recovers."

The report also tracks the national historical trend to shift more of the cost of higher education to students. In 1985, colleges received about 23 percent of their revenue from tuition; in 2010, the percentage rose to 40 percent. In Missouri, revenue from tuition rose from 32 percent of institutions' budgets in 2001 to 46 percent in 2009.