Economic Growth, The Goals of Today's Dual Credit CEO Program to Produce Business Leaders

MACOMB (WGEM) – This academic year is the fourth class to pass the McDonagh County CEO Program, but the first to receive dual credit through Western Illinois University.

CEO is a program that allows a select number of high school sophomores and juniors to meet for 90 minutes a day, five days a week. Class facilitator Allison Jefferson said students will have the opportunity to meet local business owners while also gaining hands-on experience with what it takes to build a startup.

Jefferson also said students who join CEOs are more likely to give back their skills to the community.

“They become more appreciative of what we have in the community,” said Jefferson. “We found that if students were away for a while to attend school, they were more likely to say they wanted to go home or stay here and start a business at some point in the future.”

46 students have taken the program since the class was introduced in McDonough County in the 2019-2020 school year. There are currently 16 of her students in this grade class.

Macomb Jr. Ivy Chapla said the skills she learned at CEO are nothing compared to a regular classroom.

“Leadership, learning how to communicate and speak up, and getting out of your comfort zone are the three core things you learn in this class,” Chapra said. “I feel like I’m touching it in class, but I don’t get the hands-on experience I do here.”

Chapla, who is heavily involved with FFA, said the extracurricular activities provide leadership training but lack the business aspect. So she said it was time for the CEO program.

“That’s how it felt [FFA] I will touch on leadership, but I will not take up the business field, so I would like to gain experience in that here. [CEO] It will help me in the long run,” Chapra said.

For Macomb Jr. Tyler Shannon, he described the CEO program as an escape from the standard classroom.

“It’s a great place to learn without going to school,” Shannon said. “We try to think of this as a team, not as a class.”

Shannon said having the program listed as a double-credit class may motivate more students to attend the program.

In addition to the original 2 credit hours that the CEO program offers high schools, the dual credit option allows students to earn 3 credit hours from WIU.

Craig Conrad, dean of the College of Business and Technology, said the program gives students an early advantage before they enter college classrooms.

“We have learned a lot about this program and the benefits it brings to our students,” said Conrad. “Here he sees the WIU double-credit program as an excellent way for students to take their first steps into a university education.”

Craig said the McDonagh County CEO is the only regional program that the WIU offers dual credit for, but there are active efforts to provide the same credit to CEO programs in other regions. said there is.

“We have been in contact with several counties to expand the program,” added Conrad.

Other counties with CEO programs include Schuyler and Brown counties, which recruit students to form Brown Schuyler CEOs.

The first Brown Schuyler CEO class took place during the 2020-2021 academic year.

CEO operates through the Midland Institute for Entrepreneurship and has access to 288 schools nationwide.

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