Missouri Scholars Academy
Encyclopedia
Missouri Scholars Academy, or MSA, is a three-week residential summer program held on the University of Missouri
campus in Columbia, Missouri
for 330 of Missouri
's top rising high school
juniors. The official MSA website describes the goals of the Academy to be as such: "The academy reflects Missouri's desire to strive for excellence in education at all levels. The program is based on the premise that Missouri's gifted youth must be provided with special opportunities for learning and personal development in order for them to realize their full potential."
MSA Alumni Association
ese language and culture, Intelligence & Counterintelligence, Game Theory
, Time Travel
, Terrorism & Counterterrorism, Education
, Philosophy
, Biology
, Physics
, The Constitution, current events, spelunking, creative writing, and art
.
.
There is also an annual scholars' talent show
.
at all times when they are not on their floor of the residence hall.
, and was kept free for the scholars throughout the 2009 Academy in order to ensure an equal opportunity basis. However, due to the economic crisis, funding was limited to partial state funding for the 2010 Missouri Scholars Academy. A complete funding plan for MSA XXVI is still, however, being finalized. Despite the cutback of funds, the same number of scholars (330) will be accepted into the Academy. However, the past policy of free attendance has been changed to include a "Student Activity Fee" of $500 per scholar. The cost of attendance being contrary to the spirit of MSA, the Academy said in a statement that "MSA expects that for some scholars, schools or civic clubs will cover this fee" and that "In situations where neither schools nor civic clubs can cover the fee for a student from a family with economic hardship, steps will be taken so that the fee is covered or reduced."
In 2011, the Student Activity Fee mentioned above was raised to $700, due to complete loss of state funding.
The academy also benefits from support of the Gifted Association of Missouri, the Missouri Scholars Academy Alumni Association, and tax-deductible contributions made by alumni and parents to the Missouri Scholars Academy Development Fund.
student group, the Missouri Student Association, which shares the acronym MSA with the academy.
Missouri Scholars Academy is one of many summer academies hosted for residents of individual states in the National Conference of Governor's Schools
.
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
campus in Columbia, Missouri
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is the fifth-largest city in Missouri, and the largest city in Mid-Missouri. With a population of 108,500 as of the 2010 Census, it is the principal municipality of the Columbia Metropolitan Area, a region of 164,283 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Boone County and as the...
for 330 of Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
's top rising high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
juniors. The official MSA website describes the goals of the Academy to be as such: "The academy reflects Missouri's desire to strive for excellence in education at all levels. The program is based on the premise that Missouri's gifted youth must be provided with special opportunities for learning and personal development in order for them to realize their full potential."
History
The Academy started in 1985, and has been held every year since. Each year has had a different set of two colors to uniquely identify its participants. Many of the colors have acquired informal nicknames, often inspired by comments made by director Ted Tarkow.- 1985 - White and maroon
- 1986 - White and navy
- 1987 - Teal and white
- 1988 - Red and white
- 1989 - Green and white
- 1990 - Blue and white
- 1991 - Teal and white
- 1992 - Fuchsia and white ("a sea of Pepto Bismol")
- 1993 - Purple and white
- 1994 - Green and gold
- 1995 - White and crimson
- 1996 - Grey and blue
- 1997 - Ecru and green
- 1998 - Black and grey
- 1999 - Navy blue and putty ("putty is pretty")
- 2000 - Lime and cerulean
- 2001 - Yellow and grey ("goat milk and slate")
- 2002 - Silver and red (not from the color, but was known as "the year of the palindrome")
- 2003 - Orange and blue
- 2004 - Green and silver
- 2005 - Red and gold ("ketchup and mustard")
- 2006 - Khaki and brown ("chocolate chip cookie")
- 2007 - Pink and teal ("bubble gum and watermelon", "pepto-bismol and watermelon")
- 2008 - Light blue and navy blue ("Facebook colors")
- 2009 - Maroon and silver (maroon to honor the first year, and silver for the 25th anniversary)
- 2010 - Green and light green ("Go Green")
- 2011 - Purple and light purple
Coordinating Staff
Director- Dr. Ted Tarkow (Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences)
MSA Alumni Association
- Travis Thornhill, Executive Secretary
Classes
Participating scholars attend a "major" and "minor" class for three hours and one hour per day, respectively, during the program. These classes are usually college level or experimental, and meant to stimulate gifted students. Past MSAs have featured unique classes dealing with JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese language and culture, Intelligence & Counterintelligence, Game Theory
Game theory
Game theory is a mathematical method for analyzing calculated circumstances, such as in games, where a person’s success is based upon the choices of others...
, Time Travel
Time travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
, Terrorism & Counterterrorism, Education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, The Constitution, current events, spelunking, creative writing, and art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
.
Residency
Participating scholars stay in assigned rooms at the Mark Twain Residence Hall. Scholars are separated by gender to different floors and given a room mate. An Residential Assistant is also assigned to monitor and work with Scholars (About 20 scholars per Residential Assistant). Nightly meetings occure every night between Residential Assistants and Scholars to discuss upcoming events and general questions scholars may have.PSD Program
Another vital part of the Missouri Scholars Academy is Personal and Social Dynamics, or 'PSD'. PSD takes place for one hour with the "minor" class, and focuses on helping scholars build social skills, forge friendships with others, and express themselves artistically, verbally, and emotionally.Other Offerings
In addition to classes, scholars attend numerous informational, educational, social, and entertainment programs, including swing dance lessons, current events debates, college fairs, seminars, performances, and motivational speakersMotivational speaking
A motivational speaker or inspirational speaker is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. In a business context, they are employed to communicate company strategy with clarity and help employees to see the future in a positive light and inspire workers to pull...
.
There is also an annual scholars' talent show
Talent show
A talent show is an event where participants perform their talent or talents of acting, singing, dancing, acrobatics, drumming, martial arts, playing an instrument, and other activities to showcase a unique form of talent, sometimes for a reward, trophy or prize...
.
The Name Tag
For safety reasons, scholars are required to wear their name tagName tag
A name tag is a badge or sticker worn on the outermost clothing as a means of displaying the wearer's name for others to view.Name tags may be temporary or permanent. Temporary ones typically can be written upon so that the wearer's name may be handwritten or printed...
at all times when they are not on their floor of the residence hall.
Playfair
The opening icebreaker for MSA is Playfair, usually held the first night of the Academy. Students are grouped off where they introduce each other and play memory games to help memorize names.A Chance to Soar
The official MSA anthem is entitled "A Chance to Soar" and was written by scholars in 1988.Funding
Missouri Scholars Academy is supported by grants from the Missouri General AssemblyMissouri General Assembly
The Missouri General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bicameral General Assembly is composed of a 34-member Senate, and a 163-member House of Representatives. Members of both houses of the General Assembly are subject to term limits...
, and was kept free for the scholars throughout the 2009 Academy in order to ensure an equal opportunity basis. However, due to the economic crisis, funding was limited to partial state funding for the 2010 Missouri Scholars Academy. A complete funding plan for MSA XXVI is still, however, being finalized. Despite the cutback of funds, the same number of scholars (330) will be accepted into the Academy. However, the past policy of free attendance has been changed to include a "Student Activity Fee" of $500 per scholar. The cost of attendance being contrary to the spirit of MSA, the Academy said in a statement that "MSA expects that for some scholars, schools or civic clubs will cover this fee" and that "In situations where neither schools nor civic clubs can cover the fee for a student from a family with economic hardship, steps will be taken so that the fee is covered or reduced."
The academy also benefits from support of the Gifted Association of Missouri, the Missouri Scholars Academy Alumni Association, and tax-deductible contributions made by alumni and parents to the Missouri Scholars Academy Development Fund.
Other MSAs
The Missouri Scholars Academy should not be confused with a University of MissouriUniversity of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
student group, the Missouri Student Association, which shares the acronym MSA with the academy.
Missouri Scholars Academy is one of many summer academies hosted for residents of individual states in the National Conference of Governor's Schools
National Conference of Governor's Schools
The National Conference of Governor's Schools is a United States national organization committed to establishing, supporting, and enriching summer residential governor's school programs...
.