Rising MRH junior Elliot Storm spent most of June looking quite collegiate. Elliot attended the 39th Missouri Scholars Academy (MSA) on the campus of the University of Missouri-Columbia.  

Founded in 1985, MSA is a three-week residential program for 330 of Missouri’s academically gifted students who are ready to begin their junior year of high school. The program is based on the premise that gifted youth must be provided with special opportunities for learning and personal development in order for them to realize their full potential.

Participants are nominated by their schools and selected on the basis of grade point average, test scores, essays, letters of recommendation and evidence of leadership, creativity, problem-solving ability and initiative.

Educators who serve as faculty members - including MRH Board member Brian Matz - have used this experience to benefit students in their local schools. Matz returned to MSA for a third year. Outside of this academy, he is a professor of Roman and medieval history. 

Funding for the Academy comes from the University of Missouri, the Missouri Legislature, a scholar activity fee for those attending, and through tax-deductible contributions made by alumni and parents of MSA participants.