“On the Invasive Influence of Politics, Business, and Economics on an Innovative Education Initiative: A Longitudinal Case Study”
Thomas P. Dunn, Manfred F. Meine

Abstract
This paper chronicles the establishment of a unique, high school, dual enrollment program emanating from a partnership between the Okaloosa County (Florida, USA) School Board and Troy (Alabama, USA) University with a view toward illuminating, via a longitudinal analysis, the political and business/economic issues that led to the unfortunate demise of a highly successful educational initiative during which some 1600 students earned in excess of 20,000 college credit hours, without leaving their high school campuses, at no cost to parents, and saving families in excess of 2.3 million dollars in tuition alone over a two year period.. Ironically, however, the short-lived “University School” subsequently served to provide the impetus for the proliferation of high school dual enrollment initiatives throughout the state of Florida; which, to date, have resulted in over 100,000 high school students having earned higher education credits as well as numerous national industry certifications.

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