Three Rivers suit of little concern to many students

Forget the legalities and the battle of right and wrong. A simple matter of distance prompted 18-year-old Daniel Lance to show up for a registration session for Three Rivers Community College on Monday.

"It's closer to home. I don't have to travel so far," said Lance, a senior at Scott City High School. "I don't really know anything about the lawsuit."

Like Lance, many of the students who attended the registration at the high school -- the first of several such opportunities that will take place over the next few months -- said the location of classes in Scott City led them to enroll at Three Rivers for summer and fall semesters.

Twelve students officially registered Monday, although more attended the session to get information on classes.

A few of the students, like 20-year-old Allison Johnson, said they were simply confused over the ongoing legal battle between the Poplar Bluff-based community college and Southeast Missouri State University.

"It's crazy right now," said Johnson, who has attended the Sikeston Area Bootheel Education Center for two years. "I can sign up for classes now, but they told me they won't know where I'll be taking the classes at."

Johnson is interested in the nursing program at Southeast, but prefers taking classes off campus because of parking and other issues. Now she isn't sure where she'll go for the fall semester.

Three Rivers filed a lawsuit against Southeast earlier this month after the Cape Girardeau university terminated an agreement with the community college for courses at three Bootheel education centers beginning this summer. The suit alleges Southeast committed a breach of contract when it decided to eliminate the community college's classes at centers in Kennett, Sikeston and Malden. The lawsuit also seeks a court injunction to block such a move.

Southeast officials have insisted that the move was legal and needed so the university could recover operating expenses and better serve students.

Students at those centers who were enrolled at Three Rivers now have a choice to make: stay with the community college but attend classes somewhere else, or transfer to Southeast and continue taking courses at the centers.

In response to the situation, Three Rivers has made arrangements with local high schools such as Scott City to offer classes closer to home for those students.

For some students in Scott City Monday, money is also a factor in choosing which college to attend. Judy DeMarsh of Chaffee, Mo., said she preferred Three Rivers because of the cheaper tuition. She was working on her associate's degree in social work at the Sikeston center but hopes to take advantage of the classes offered in Scott City rather than transferring to Southeast.

"I received a letter from TRCC asking me to be patient, to wait to register," DeMarsh said. "I'm not really sure what the problem is between the two schools, though."

cmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 128