By Dustin Shipman

dshipman@joplinglobe.com

Missouri Southern State University held a signing ceremony Friday to recognize 39 high-school students who have been accepted into its honors program this fall.

Blake McDonald, from Fayetteville (Ark.) High School, said he had a similar signing event when he was accepted into the football program at MSSU. Being a part of the honors program will make attending the university more affordable.

“When I found out that I was accepted into the program I was ecstatic. It is going to be a big help financially,” McDonald said. “I also play football for Coach (Bart) Tatum and have a scholarship from that, which isn’t a lot of money but it is a big help.”

Bruce Speck, MSSU president, said the event was an auspicious occasion for the university and the students.

“This is a great opportunity to welcome these students to our campus. We think they bring great hope and promise and we know that they have excelled so far and that means they will be adding to the intellectual capital of this university,” Speck said. “We think that these are the people who are really going to be stellar students and they are going to add a great deal to the overall campus.”

The students chosen for the program received scholarships of varying amounts. Many received a renewable four-year full-tuition scholarship. Those with an ACT composite of 31 also received the Evens Scholarship to cover on-campus room and board.

Entrance into the program was by invitation and required a composite score of 28 or better on the ACT or a grade point average of 3.5 or better.

“There is a minimum grade point average and ACT requirement but the students were also chosen through an interview process and by letter of recommendation from their teachers,” said Michael Garoutte, director of the honors program. “The students who come into the honors program are committing to the honors curriculum, special classes, an international study occurrence, a senior thesis and community service, so we think that they are getting the best and most challenging education that Missouri Southern has to offer.”

Donna Heart attended the event in support of her daughter Kylie Fischer, who attends Neosho High School and was accepted into the program.

“I am very proud to see my daughter up there,” Heart said. “We were looking at the University of Arkansas and Springfield (Missouri State University), but once we came to the campus and took a tour we were very impressed. We loved the size and there were so many advantages at this school. I was very glad that she applied for this. We are really happy with this.”

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