A-Plus Program Benefits NCMC Students

The A-Plus program has helped thousands of Missouri students obtain their education at community colleges and this year was no exception.
With the General Assembly adding $2 million into the fund, North Central Missouri College A-Plus students were able to receive the full scholarship amount for the 2014-2015 academic year.
With A-Plus, students can attend a community college with the cost of tuition and fees covered, which makes their education significantly more affordable. For this reason, more and more high school students are seeing the value in utilizing their A-Plus funding by beginning their education at a community college.
According to Missouri Department of Higher Education, about 14,000 Missouri students were awarded A-Plus funding for the 2014-2015 school year compared to 12,500 during the 2013-2014 year.
Allocation for the A-Plus program is higher than it’s ever been. The program received more funding this year while other state scholarship programs did not, highlighting the importance of this program at the legislative level. With the continued growth, great efforts are being made to improve the A-Plus program. More structured requirements have been set and the Missouri Community College Association is working hard with legislators for A-Plus improvements to make sure shortcomings are not a problem for future generations.
As well as funding from the A-Plus program, NCMC and its foundation also give scholarships each year to NCMC students. The NCMC Foundation awards over $60,000 in scholarships each year to their students, with that amount expected to increase to over $100,000 for the 2015-2016 academic year.
Director of Development Teresa Cross expressed the importance and value of scholarships.
“Each year, we help students who are working toward their higher education goals in an effort to better their quality of life and many of them are struggling with financial responsibilities,” Mrs. Cross said. “Scholarships are, often times, what allows these individuals to be successful.”
The A-Plus program is a Missouri scholarship program that covers the cost of tuition and fees at Missouri community colleges to all qualified high school graduates. For more information on the A-Plus program, persons can visit the NCMC financial aid site at www.ncmissouri.edu/financial_aid