Officials with Southeast Missouri State University and Mineral Area College will have about a month to settle their differences with regard to higher education offerings in Cape Girardeau County, and if they cannot hammer out an agreement, a state panel will do so for them.

The Coordinating Board of Higher Education of the state Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development unanimously voted Tuesday to compel the schools to work with a mediator in May on issues relating to Mineral Area's request to expand its course offerings at Cape College Center.

Joe Gilgour

Mineral Area, based in Park Hills, Missouri, asked the department to approve 46 credentials (certificate and associate of arts), including a number of programs it had not previously offered in Cape Girardeau County after the school had acquired the county in a "voluntary service" deal with Three Rivers College. In exchange for the expanded geography, the school is paying a fee to Three Rivers.

Carlos Vargas

SEMO objected to the request, citing an existing agreement involving the center giving the university the right of first refusal with regard to course offerings and saying Mineral Area's request violated the department's "routine review" process.

Zora Mulligan, Higher Education and Workforce Development commissioner, told board members the situation meets parameters to implement the state's dispute resolution law. Among those "triggers" are a situation involving tensions reaching "critical mass," potentially detrimental effects on the delivery of academic programs and all reasonable informal attempts to resolve the dispute failing.

During the two-hour meeting, Mineral Area president Joe Gilgour and SEMO president Carlos Vargas each had 10 minutes to present their position.

Gilgour lobbied against the formal dispute resolution process, saying doing so would "change the rules in the middle of the game." Instead, he suggested the commissioner grant conditional approval to the new programs for five years. He also pointed to an "unprecedented" number of public comments offered on Mineral Area's proposed new offerings, saying 141 were supportive while only one was not.

Vargas contended the "routine review" of the new programs would be inappropriate and Mineral Area, as Three Rivers, must "collaborate" with SEMO as part of its College Center agreement. He accused Mineral Area officials of "going behind SEMO's back" in their efforts to offer the additional courses.

Board members noted time pressure to resolve the issue, and rather than approving the staff's recommendation of implementing the official dispute resolution process, they voted for a compressed mediation process to end no later than May 31 with a special board meeting to follow after the mediator submits a final report.

Board vice chairman Gary Nodler endorsed the plan.

"It would give the parties another chance to try to find common ground," he said.