26 Apr 2010 School Counts! Movement growing in Conway County

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, only 14.5 percent of Conway County residents had received an associate’s degree or higher, compared with 20.6 percent for the state and 30.7 percent for the nation. Recognizing the integral relationship between higher education and economic development, a group of county leaders soon began a program which formed a clear partnership between local businesses and industries, K-12 schools in the county and the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton (UACCM).

The intent of the Conway County School Counts! Initiative is to make a positive impact on economic development, quality of life and education to help move Conway County forward by promoting the value of higher education to area youth.

School Counts! steering committee member Dr. Thomas Flowers believes “high school graduates need to be encouraged to continue their education beyond high school to acquire the skills and education needed to become gainfully employed and productive members of society.”

Since the inception of School Counts!, approximately half of a $1 million endowment goal has been raised through numerous business partners and private donors in Conway County. Some of the largest investors include local business partners such as Petit Jean State Bank, the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute, Green Bay Packaging, the Walton Family Foundation, Conway County Legal Beverage Association and the Morrilton High School Class of 1959 along with dozens of other organizations and individual contributors.

Support for School Counts! continues to be strong, with the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation recently announcing UACCM as the recipient of a $125,000 grant to be used to support the initiative. The three-year grant is similar in scope to the initiative itself, with the goal of encouraging high school graduates to recognize the need for post-secondary education, begin higher education at UACCM and remain in Conway County as employees. Grant funds will be used to fund a full-time counselor to promote and manage the initiative’s progress by working with area school counselors and students.

In reference to the grant, Flowers said, “We imagine being able to reach more students, with a better job tracking them and anticipate positive movement in Conway County’s educational system.”

School Counts! is open to all Conway County high school students in grades nine through 12, and by design promotes four core values essential to success in the workforce: quality, attendance, persistence and goal-setting. To instill these core values, eligible high school students can obtain no transcript grade lower than a “C,” must achieve a 95 percent attendance record, must complete high school in four consecutive years and must take more than the minimum number of credits required for graduation.

Successful students are eligible for a scholarship to attend UACCM. When the idea for the initiative was conceived, the intent was to provide $1,000 in college tuition assistance per semester to all completers who were receiving no other scholarships or grants. With the establishment of funding from the Arkansas Lottery Scholarship, the decision was made to provide all initiative completers a $250 book scholarship for the fall 2010 semester, with students ineligible for lottery scholarship funds still receiving the original $1,000 per semester award.

While scholarship details have changed, the overall goals of School Counts! have stayed the same. “Increasing our educational levels will make this area more attractive for businesses and industries interested in locating here and also for existing businesses to expand. Beyond that, we want to improve the standard of living and quality of life for our youth and for every resident of Conway County,” Flowers said.

More information on School Counts! can be found at www.ccschoolcounts.org .