Five Kansas Colleges Announce “Educate the State” Partnership to Address State Teacher Shortage

A group of five area colleges have announced a new partnership called Educate the State aimed at positively impacting the current teacher shortage in Kansas.

The new public-private agreement brings together Butler Community College, Cowley College, Friends University, Newman University and Southwestern College. By working together, the institutions have created a seamless and more affordable transfer option for Secondary Education majors.

In 2022, the Kansas Independent Colleges Association (KICA) announced a global transfer for any Kansas community college graduate earning an Associate of Arts (A.A.) or Associate of Science (A.S.) degree to seamlessly transfer with junior status to any Kansas private university.  

Educate the State takes it a step further as these institutions also guarantee a lower tuition rate at the private university level for those wanting to become Secondary Education teachers.

Tuition is discounted to $300 per credit hour at the university level for Educate the State students, aka Butler and Cowley Secondary Education graduates. That equates, for example, to a $22,000 scholarship at Friends University.

How to Access Educate the State:

• Earn a Secondary Education associate degree from Butler or Cowley with a 2.75 minimum GPA.
• Transfer to Friends, Newman or Southwestern based on subject matter emphasis as a full-time Secondary Education major.
• Receive the discounted $300 tuition rate for final two years regardless of the four-year institution selected.

Butler Community College students can enroll in the following Secondary Education Pathways:

Friends University

• Earned Associates of Arts (A.A.) or Associates of Science (A.S.) degree pathway in:
  • Secondary Education (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Math (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Science (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Social Studies (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Language Arts (AA)

Newman University

• Earned Associates of Arts (A.A.) or Associates of Science (A.S.) degree pathway in:
  • Secondary Education (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Math (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Science (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Social Studies (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Language Arts (AA)

Southwestern College

• Earned Associates of Arts (A.A.) or Associates of Science (A.S.) degree pathway in:
  • Secondary Education – Math (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Science (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Language Arts (AA)

Cowley College students can enroll in the following Secondary Education Pathways:

Friends University

• Earned Associates of Arts (A.A.) or Associates of Science (A.S.) degree pathway in:
  • Secondary Education (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Math (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Science (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Social Studies (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Language Arts (AA)

Newman University

• Earned Associates of Arts (A.A.) or Associates of Science (A.S.) degree pathway in:
  • Secondary Education (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Math (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Science (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Social Studies (AA)
  • Secondary Education – Language Arts (AA)

Southwestern College

• Earned Associates of Arts (A.A.) or Associates of Science (A.S.) degree pathway in:
  • Secondary Education – Math (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Science (AS)
  • Secondary Education – Language Arts (AA)

Learn more on the Secondary Education page of Butler's website.

Quotes From Presidents:

Friends University

"This new partnership allows Friends University and other area colleges to collaborate together and work toward a solution for the teacher shortage," said Dr. Amy Bragg Carey, president of Friends University. "Today's young minds are tomorrow's leaders, so we are changing the landscape for teachers to pursue a degree, earn their teaching license, and begin impacting students as soon as possible.”

Butler Community College

Dr. Kim Krull, Butler president, says Educate the State is a great example of how Butler fulfills its mission to contribute to the vitality of its surrounding communities and the workforce of Kansas.

"Educate the State is a partnership that speaks to Butler's long-standing commitment to education through our 2+2 agreements with several public and private universities. We're celebrating 20 years of BEST this year which is our Butler to Emporia Students to Teachers program for elementary education teachers. It's fitting we launch this next great partnership through Educate the State to help meet the demand for secondary education teachers and we’re honored to be working with these educational partners,” said Krull.

Cowley College

“Educate the State gives Cowley College students an affordable option to pursue a degree in secondary education at one of three high-quality private institutions,” Cowley College president Dr. Michelle Schoon said. “This partnership provides opportunities for our students to stay local and fill the shortage of educators in our region.”

Newman University

President Dr. Kathleen Jagger believes Educate the State perfectly aligns with Newman University’s mission and the role it has historically played in the region.

“We are proud to join this innovative partnership to make teaching degrees more affordable and accessible, directly addressing Kansas' critical teacher shortage. Newman was founded nearly a century ago to meet the need for teachers and we embrace this new opportunity to collaborate with these outstanding institutions. Together, we can inspire and empower the next generation of exceptional teachers to shape young minds across our state."

Southwestern College

“Since our founding in 1885, Southwestern College has proudly prepared and educated teachers who have gone on to serve students and communities all across Kansas,” said Elizabeth Frombgen, president of Southwestern College. “Through cooperative initiatives such as Educate the State we will leverage incentives and partnerships to attract more young people to the vocation of teaching and in doing so we will better serve our communities, and more broadly, Kansas.”