New Purdue program could make 'first year free,' guarantee admission for Hoosier students

Hoosiers will have a chance to earn up to a full year’s worth of college credits for free starting this fall, thanks to a new initiative from Purdue University aimed at raising the state’s educational attainment rate and broadening the pipeline from Indiana high schools to the university.

Purdue is partnering with Modern States Education Alliance, which already offers more than 30 college courses — in subjects like calculus, chemistry and psychology — online tuition-free, to launch the Purdue Fast Start program.

The Modern States courses are aligned with exams offered by the College Board – called the College Level Examination Program, or CLEP — and accepted for credit at nearly 3,000 colleges and universities nationwide.

By allowing students to earn up to a year's worth of credits, tuition-free, while still in high school, Purdue is hoping to offer an "on-ramp" to students who may not have considered college a viable option.

"Too many students are not choosing to pursue higher education," said Mitch Daniels, president of Purdue. "Sometimes it's a matter of money. Sometimes it's simply a matter of doubt that they have what it takes."

Free college for credit

Since launching several years ago, more than 200,000 people have registered to take Modern States courses, making it the largest "free college for credit" program in the country. Steve Klinsky, the CEO and founder, said pass rates on CLEP exams for Modern States students who go on to take them are above 70%, higher than the national average.

"People who pass a CLEP are more likely to finish college," Klinsky said, "and are more likely to do well on a follow-up course."

While the online courses are always free through Modern States, the CLEP exams cost $89 each. Through its partnership with Purdue, Modern States will cover the cost of up to 10,000 CLEP exams taken by Hoosiers enrolled in the new program, making it possible to earn college credit for free.

Passing five CLEP exams is equivalent to completing a semester’s worth of college; 10 exams equates to one year of free college.

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Fast Start participants who complete five courses, pass the corresponding CLEP exams and meet Purdue’s standard admission requirements will be guaranteed admission at one of Purdue University’s campuses.

Fast Start students who accept admission into Purdue will be known as Klinsky Scholars. Klinsky and his wife Maureen Sherry Klinsky, who serves as a trustee of Modern States, are providing a $1 million gift to cover the cost of the exam fees for Indiana students.

The Fast Start program launches in the fall, with the first students being granted admission to Purdue through it starting in the fall of 2021.

New avenues to higher education

Daniels said the Fast Start program is another way the university is seeking to open up new avenues to college for Hoosier students that have traditionally been underrepresented on Purdue campuses – like those from rural communities where high school students may not have access to a robust portfolio of Advanced Placement or Dual Enrollment courses.

The College Board recently reported that the greatest shortage of AP courses is in rural America.

Chris Lagoni, executive director of the Indiana Small and Rural Schools Association, applauded the program. Lagoni said the organization has been advocating for the use of Modern States courses for several years.

“We’re excited,” Lagoni said. “We think this is a powerful tool.”

While the courses can be accessed online anywhere, students will have to travel to a testing center to take the CLEP exam. Representatives from Modern States said it’s easy to set up a testing center and suggested most high schools could easily be enabled to administer the exams.

For several years, Purdue has worked to broaden its reach in low-income and minority communities living in the state’s urban centers with a network of charter schools. There are two locations of Purdue Polytechnic High Schools in Indianapolis and Daniels said the university is looking to open a third location in northern Indiana.

Still, there are plenty of urban, low-income students who don’t have access to a Purdue Polytechnic High School campus. Fast Start can help lower the barrier to college, Daniels said, by making it more affordable.

Students who enter college with 10 completed CLEP exams could graduate a full year early and save themselves about $21,000 – the cost of attendance for a year at Purdue.

Not just for high school students

While current high school students are the target of Fast Start, Daniels said the program is open to all Hoosiers and could be a good opportunity for adults looking to finish a degree or go back to school. The admission guarantee for students who complete five CLEP exams extends to Purdue Global, the university’s new online “campus,” which Daniels said could be particularly well-suited for busy adults.

Indiana has more than 700,000 adults that started college but didn’t finish – a population that could also benefit from Purdue’s new program and has been the target of other initiatives as the state works toward a goal of having at least 60% of Hoosier adults with some sort of post-secondary degree or credential.

“Given that 99% of jobs created since the last recession have required at least some education beyond high school,” said Jason Bearce, vice president of education and workforce development for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, "we welcome efforts – like Purdue Fast Start – that offer students affordable pathways to earn post-secondary credentials aligned with Indiana’s workforce needs."

Daniels said the new program is another way the university is looking to make higher education more affordable for students and their families. The university is about to enter its eighth year of a tuition freeze and has been recognized nationally as a leader in looking for innovative ways to increase affordability and access.

Not all of those efforts have been universally heralded, though. The 2018 launch of Purdue Global, its online campus created through the purchase of for-profit online education giant Kaplan University, was controversial.

It launched over the protest of some in the Purdue community. During the Fast Start announcement Tuesday, Daniels framed both initiatives the same way: modern extensions of the university's mission as a land-grant institution.

"Schools like ours were created to open the gates of higher education beyond the few privileged and elite young people who were going a century and a half ago," Daniels said. "That's still very close to our heart."

Learn more about the program at https://www.admissions.purdue.edu/purduefaststart.

Call IndyStar education reporter Arika Herron at (317) 201-5620 or email her at Arika.Herron@indystar.com. Follow her on Twitter: @ArikaHerron.