Missouri Scholars Academy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Missouri Scholars Academy, or MSA, is a three-week residential summer program held on the University of Missouri's Columbia (MU) campus 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."
Contents |
[edit] 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.
- 1985 -
- 1986 -
- 1987 -
- 1988 - Orange and white
- 1989 - Green and white
- 1990 - Blue and white
- 1991 - Teal and white
- 1992 - Fuchsia and white
- 1993 - Purple and white
- 1994 - Green and gold
- 1995 - White and crimson
- 1996 - Grey and blue
- 1997 - Green and tan
- 1998 - Black and white
- 1999 - Navy blue and putty
- 2000 - Lime and cerulean
- 2001 - Yellow and white
- 2002 - Silver and red
- 2003 - Orange and blue
- 2004 - Green and silver
- 2005 - Red and gold ("ketchup and mustard")
- 2006 - Khaki and brown ("chocolate chip")
[edit] Coordinating Staff
Co-Directors
- Dr. Ted Tarkow (MU, Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences)
- David Welch (Missouri Dept. of Elem. and Secondary Ed., Chairman of Gifted Education)
Community Service Coordinator
- Laura Baty
Program Coordinator
- Chris Young
Technology Coordinator
- Vince Foley
PSD Coordinator
- Dave Buck
Residential Life Coordinators
- Silas Allard
- Shannon Ferguson
MSA Alumni Association
- Travis Thornhill, Executive Secretary
[edit] 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 Japanese language and culture, Game Theory, time travel, education, philosophy, The Constitution and art.
[edit] 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.
[edit] 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, and motivational speakers.
There is also an annual scholars' talent show, which in 2006, featured such acts as the Monty Python "Lumberjack Song", "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and many other acts in varied categories such as dance, music and performance art.
[edit] Traditions and Customs
[edit] The MSA Greeting
Traditionally, the MSA greeting is a secret revealed to those attending MSA. Those who have been know the greeting. Those who will or may be attending will be told at the opening ceremonies.
[edit] The Name Tag
For safety reasons, scholars are required to wear their name tag at all times when they are not on their floor of the residence hall. Therefore, some scholars have become what they call "addicted" to their name tag, and continue to wear it after MSA is over.
[edit] Playfair
The opening icebreaker for MSA is Playfair, usually held the first night of the Academy. Scholars participate in crazy dance maneuvers, meet other people with similar interests, and relieve the tension of meeting other scholars from around the state. Out of Playfair grows the custom of standing ovations. At any point during the Academy, any scholar can announce "I want a standing ovation," and the two people closest to him or her lift that scholar onto their shoulders as everyone else in the area claps.
[edit] Funding
Missouri Scholars Academy is supported by grants from the Missouri General Assembly, and is kept free for the scholars in order to ensure an equal opportunity basis.
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.
[edit] Other MSAs
The Missouri Scholars Academy should not be confused with a University of Missouri student group, the Missouri Student Association, which shares the acronym MSA with the academy.
