Drury University reports jump in local students tied to Springfield Promise program – Springfield News-Leader
Fueled by a new scholarship program, the number of Springfield area students who enrolled in Drury University this year was up by 23%.
The private liberal arts institution provided an update Oct. 15 on its Drury Springfield Promise program. Announced a year ago, it launched in August.
Nearly 200 students from more than 40 high schools were among the first recipients. More than half of enrollees who started in August are from the immediate Springfield area.
Created by Drury President Jeff Frederick and his leadership team, the program aims to make the campus an affordable option for local students. Annual tuition hovers at $36,700.
“We came up with this enrollment strategy called the Drury Springfield Promise. We wanted to be particularly relevant right here, in our backyard,” said Frederick, in an Oct. 14 interview with the News-Leader. “We had some numbers that indicated we hadn’t performed as well as we could have.”
The program offers a $2,000 scholarship to any admitted student within an eight-county area — roughly within a one-hour drive of campus — to entice students to take a closer look at what Drury offers.
In announcing the program a year ago, Frederick said: “If you think you can’t afford Drury, think again.”
The program also significantly limits out-of-pocket expenses — to $3,000 a year or less — for eligible students from the designated area who qualify for the federal Pell Grant, which is reserved for those with exceptional financial need.
“We’ve been here for 152 years now and we’re not going anywhere, and we’ve been part of the fabric of this community for so long,” Frederick said. “We have produced so many people who have gone on to lead this town.”
Frederick said the university wanted to “attract the next generation of students.”
“The impression for some people is either Drury wasn’t particularly interested in making connections here in our backyard or that people just couldn’t afford us,” he said.
The Drury Springfield Promise is available to students from Greene, Christian, Dallas, Polk, Taney, Stone, Webster and Lawrence counties plus the communities of Ava, Lebanon and Monett.
The eligibility extends to homeschool and transfer students from the area plus graduates from the Drury GO program and Ozarks Technical Community College.
Beyond scholarships, the program offers dedicated commuter parking, lounges and storage areas. Qualified students also receive a laptop or tablet.
In some cases, the university provides a meal plan swipe card for students who need to eat while on campus. There are also “excess dorm rooms” available for commuter students who may be on campus late and have an early class but do not want to drive the 30 to 60 minutes home.
“We want students to come here and stay here all day and just be a part of it,” Frederick said.
Frederick said Drury’s “recommitment” to Springfield and the Ozarks is not limited to the scholarship program. For example, the university engages with the community in a variety of ways including partnerships, internships, and service projects.
He said the university will continue to reach out to students outside of Missouri and internationally.
“For too long, hard-working, thoughtful students may have thought a signature Drury University experience with small classes in a welcoming environment was unaffordable,” he said, as part of the update. “Now a growing number of Springfield area families know that Drury is within reach.”
