IW launching military scholarship program

Iowa Wesleyan University is offering a new military scholarship program for active service members and veterans enrolling in online degree programs.

The scholarship program starts January 2019 and is available for students actively in the military, veterans and military family members. The scholarship is a partnership with Military Tuition Assistance benefits with IW covering the remaining online tuition. The university is also including a free laptop, the last two terms of tuition free and a free tablet.

'From my perspective, I wanted to make sure we re-engaged with the military,” IW provost Dr. DeWayne Frazier said.

The scholarship opportunity was announced following two weeks of IW's uncertain financial future in November. At a news conference on Nov. 15, when President Steve Titus announced that the university would remain open for the foreseeable future, he stressed the importance of increasing IW's enrollment in the undergraduate, graduate and online programs.

Titus also said the university wants to make sure the 'financial profile” of the students is better balanced. While Titus said the university would not turn away lower income students, they hope to attract more students with a 'higher ability to pay.”

Frazier said that the military scholarship program will 'cut into our profit margins largely.” However, he said the university is putting their money where their mouth is.

'There's a lot of people out there who say if you support the military, we'll support you,” Frazier said.

Teaching students online is also less expensive than traditional undergrad programs, Frazier said.

Frazier said the military scholarship program will be a good marketing tool for the university, giving military members stationed around the world the opportunity to pursue higher education while attracting other students to the university who see they are military-friendly.

When brainstorming ideas to increase online enrollment and attract students, Frazier said he asked himself what would set IW apart from other universities.

Frazier said that the online program is not large yet, and they are looking for ways to invest in and strengthen the numbers enrolled online.

IW has online undergraduate degrees in business administration, criminal justice, human services and RN to BSN nursing. Programs are 120 credit hours with eight-week courses.

Frazier said that the military scholarship program is just another way IW is continuing to support Mt. Pleasant and all out southeast Iowa through educational opportunities.

'The new IW military scholarship recognizes and honors our active duty military, veterans and family members and is an important element of our online expansion,” Frazier said.