A+ Scholarship Program

BACKGROUND

The A+ Scholarship Program was created as a part of the Outstanding Schools Act of 1993 as an incentive for improving Missouri's high schools. The primary goal of the A+ Scholarship Program is to ensure that all students who graduate from Missouri high schools are well prepared to pursue advanced education and/or employment.

The A+ Scholarship Program is designed to accomplish that imperative. "The A+ Scholarship Program will mobilize an intensive partnership among high schools, community colleges, students, teachers, parents, labor, businesses, and communities to give these students the motivation, skills and knowledge to graduate from high school. It will create an innovative and well-designed path from high school to high skill, high wage jobs."


A+ CONTACT

District Director:
Melissa Steerman
[email protected]
(660) 563-2283 ext. 5503


A+ ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Students who complete A+ are eligible for 2-years tuition* at any MO vocational/technical school or community college. Many Missouri 4-year universities offer scholarships based on A+ criteria as well. Students must meet all 10 requirements below to receive the A+ scholarship.

  1. Be a US citizen or permanent resident in the US
  2. Enter into a written agreement with your high school prior to graduation (sign a written A+ Letter of Intent agreement)
  3. Attend an A+ designated school for at least 3 years prior to graduation (military exemption clause - see A+ Coordinator for details)
  4. Graduate from an A+ designated high school with an overall GPA of 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale
  5. Have at least a 95% attendance record overall for grades 9-12
  6. Perform at least 50 hours of unpaid tutoring or mentoring, of which up to 25% may include job shadowing prior to graduation
  7. Maintain a record of good citizenship and avoidance of the unlawful use of drugs (students may not accumulate 10 days OSS for any reason)
  8. Have achieved a high score of proficient or advanced on the Algebra I End-of-Course Exam or higher level DESE approved end-of-course exam in the field of mathematics.

2019 High School Seniors - If you meet all of the eligibility requirements except the end of course exam requirement, you may establish eligibility by achieving a combined ACT math sub score and high school GPA in accordance with the following scale. You may achieve the qualifying score as a high school or postsecondary student. If you achieve the score as a postsecondary student, you may be eligible for an award in the same term that you take the test.

ACT Math Score   High School GPA
 17 or greater and 2.5 or greater
16 and 2.8 or greater
15 and 3.0 or greater


*In addition to the above requirements, students must also complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid).

**All funding and requirements for the A+ Scholarship Program are contingent upon yearly renewal and appropriations by the Missouri General Assembly.


DOCUMENTS

A+ Program Guide
A+ Student/Parent Agreement
A+ Tutoring Handbook
Job Shadowing Handbook
Frequently Asked Questions


MDHE (MO Department Of Higher Education) A+ WEBSITE

For more information, visit the DESE A+ website.