Students enrolled in any of Missouri’s 110 Project Lead The Way (PLTW) computer science high school programs may now earn dual credit in information science and technology (IST) courses through Missouri S&T.

The new program, effective June 1, means that PLTW students who take any of four high school computer science courses are eligible for up to 12 hours of college credit in Missouri S&T’s IST degree program. S&T currently offers similar college credit to high school students who take certain engineering or biomedical courses through PLTW.

“Missouri S&T continues to be a leading university partner with Project Lead The Way,” says Dr. Glade T. Montgomery, senior vice president of partnerships for PLTW. “By offering dual credit for students taking PLTW computer science courses, S&T now offers opportunities in all three pathways including PLTW engineering and PLTW biomedical science. The impact S&T has on students, their communities and the STEM field continues to expand and grow as a result of our robust partnership.”

“Project Lead The Way is the leader in providing transformative learning focused on filling gaps in the fields of engineering, biomedical science and computer science,” says Dave Hosick, senior program director of PLTW at Missouri S&T. “Each of these fields is critically important to our nation’s future economic and social viability. The addition of these new dual-credit opportunities for Missouri high school students will further enhance our ability to prepare today’s students for our state’s future technology-focused workforce.”

The new program with IST allows students who complete any of the following four high school computer science courses with a B average or better to receive college credit:

• Computer Science Essentials, which transfers to the S&T course Exposure to Computer Experience.
• Computer Science Principles, which transfers to the S&T course Exposures to Computing Principles.
• Computer Science Applications, which transfers to the S&T course Computer Programming Exposure.
• Cybersecurity, which transfers to the S&T course Exposure to Cybersecurity.

PLTW is a national nonprofit organization that aims to generate interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) among pre-college students. The state’s PLTW effort is coordinated through Missouri S&T.

PLTW now serves 165 of Missouri’s public and private school districts, 689 schools, and 930 programs, and is found in 85 of the 114 counties in Missouri.

For more information about Project Lead The Way in Missouri, visit pltw.mst.edu or email pltw@mst.edu.