Counselor Resources

Jayhawk Blueprint Program Overview and Benefits

Jayhawk Blueprint is a partnership between The University of Kansas and Lawrence Public Schools to offer college courses at a discounted rate in the high schools taught by qualified high school instructors. Upon successfully completing the course, students earn both high school and college credit that can be applied to a KU degree or transferred to other institutions, depending on the other college’s requirements.

High school students who enroll in the program will have the opportunity to:

• Take college courses while still in high school. Courses are taught at Lawrence High School and Free State High School by qualified high school teachers. Upon successfully completing the course, students earn both high school and college credit.
• Earn transferable college credit. For each course a student successfully completes, they will earn college credit from KU. All courses are transferable to Kansas public 2-year and 4-year institutions of higher education and may transfer to other colleges, depending on transfer requirements.
• Experience college-level coursework and learning. Jayhawk Blueprint courses are taught similarly to how they are taught on the KU campus, giving students experience with college-level courses and helping ease the future transition to college.
• Access KU courses at a discounted rate. Jayhawk Blueprint courses are offered at a rate more than 60% lower than traditional KU courses, and course textbooks are provided without charge.  In addition, there is need-based funding available for those on free & reduced lunch through their high school.

Enrollment Process and Required Forms

To enroll in a Jayhawk Blueprint course(s), student need to first talk to their high school counselor and enroll within their high school. Then they need to complete the required enrollment form.

Students Must Complete the Required Enrollment Form

If a student is new to Jayhawk Blueprint OR did not take a Jayhawk Blueprint course the previous semester, they will have to apply to KU as a non-degree seeking student—the $40 application fee is waived! This application requires a signature from both the student and parent/guardian.

If a student completed a Jayhawk Blueprint course the previous semester, they will need to complete the brief Jayhawk Blueprint sign-up form. The information will help the Jayhawk Blueprint team gather important information, including consent and contact information for the student. 

Enrollment in KU Classes

This step does not require any action on the part of the student (or parent/guardian). If they are enrolled at their high school and have completed the required sign-up form or non-degree seeking application (see above), the Jayhawk Blueprint team will take care of enrolling students each semester, as long as the student does not have an outstanding balance. A zero tuition and fees balance must exist for enrollment to be processed at KU. If a student cannot be enrolled at KU, they will not earn college credit.

Dropping a Course

Any student who decides (with their counselor’s input) that they want to drop a Jayhawk Blueprint course at KUMUSTcomplete a drop form. Students need to do this as soon as possible for both semester and year-long courses, as the date stamped on the drop form dictates whether a student will receive a full or partial refund or receive a “W” on their transcript. Please make sure students and parents are aware of the penalties for dropping a course.

Potential ramifications of dropping a Jayhawk Blueprint course:

• Depending on the drop date, students may only receive a partial or no refund for tuition/fees
• Depending on the drop date, students may receive a permanent “W” for “withdraw” on their transcript
• Note: if students have not paid their Jayhawk Blueprint bill and they drop after the 100% refund deadline, they will still be responsible for all or part of the course cost depending when they drop the course. 

Email Communication

When students complete the Jayhawk Blueprint sign-up form or non-degree seeking student application, encourage students to include an email address they will check regularly; important information from KU and USD 497 will be sent to that email. We also recommend that students forward their KU email address to a personal email address that they will check regularly, such as a Gmail or Outlook address to avoid missing valuable communication.

Parents must complete a portion of the Jayhawk Blueprint sign-up form or non-degree seeking student application to acknowledge participation and financial commitments. Be sure to add your email address to the form to receive limited, but important, correspondence from the Jayhawk Blueprint program regarding timelines, bills, deadlines, etc. Check your email spam/junk folder regularly as communication may end up there.

Tuition & Bill Payment Process

Tuition

Jayhawk Blueprint students receive a discounted tuition rate, set at one-third of KU's current undergraduate tuition (currently it is $103 per credit hour). To calculate total tuition for a semester, take the total number of credits and multiply that number by $103. For example, a 3-credit hour course costs $309. Thanks to Truity Credit Union, students who are eligible for free/reduced meals are eligible to receive full or partial tuition waivers for Jayhawk Blueprint courses. Refer interested students to Pam Fraley (pfraley@usd497.org) for more information.

Notice: MATH 101 and BIOL 100/102 are year-long courses taught throughout the fall and spring semesters; therefore, tuition for these courses are only applied in the fall.

Bills

After a student is officially enrolled in a Jayhawk Blueprint course by KU staff members, tuition will be applied to their financial statement in Enroll & Pay. The payment is due on the 15th day of the month following the date of enrollment, typically October 15th for the fall and March 15th for the spring. Emails from KU regarding tuition, due dates, etc. will be sent to students and guardians once enrollment has been processed.Information on paying bills can be accessed online at: https://blueprint.ku.edu/paying-your-bill.

Late Fees

KU will apply a non-refundable $100 late payment fee for the first and second month of the fall and spring terms for any unpaid tuition and fee balances and, thereafter, a 1.5% monthly assessment if a bill still is not paid. Bills must be paid on-time, or late fees will be applied.

Unpaid Bills

Until a bill is paid, the following may occur:

• Students will not be able to enroll in future Jayhawk Blueprint courses or any other courses at KU.
• Non-refundable late fees will continue to be applied to the student's account.
• The bill may be sent to a collection agency, which could impact the student's credit.

Delegate Access for Parents/Guardians

A delegate is a person your student allows access to certain information protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). With delegate status, you can access information in Enroll & Pay and talk to KU staff members via phone, email, or in-person about such topics as enrollment, course schedules, bills, grades, etc.

Because of FERPA regulations, ALL communication from KU will go directly to your student. For example, when a bill is generated, your student will receive notification about the bill, payment process, and deadline in their KU email account. Within KU operations and systems, a Jayhawk Blueprint student receives communication in the same way any other KU student does.

We strongly encourage students to set up delegate access for their parent/guardian once they have a KU ID number.

Academic Support Services

Academic Accommodations: The Lawrence Public School District and the University of Kansas will work together to provide reasonable academic accommodations for students completing Jayhawk Blueprint courses.

The following are examples of reasonable academic accommodations that are available for USD 497 high school students participating in the Jayhawk Blueprint Program.

• Extended time on exams (1.5x & 2x)
• Reduced distraction room for exams
• Readers/scribes/assistive technology on exams
• Note taking in the classroom
• Audio recording lectures
• Preferred seating
• American Sign Language interpreting services
• Computer Aided Real-Time Transcription (CART)
• Textbooks/course reading materials available in accessible formats (e-text, Braille, large print, etc.)

Certain academic accommodation requests require additional information to determine if the accommodation is reasonable. Below are some examples that require additional discussion with faculty and program administrators.

• Use of notes on exams
• Reduced number of choices on multiple choice exams
• Reduced number of written pages on out of class writing assignments
• Extended time on out of class assignments
• Exempt from giving a speech in front of the class

Students interested in using these accommodations need to start the process by completing an online application with the Student Access Center and uploading a copy of their IEP or 504 Plan, along with any other supporting documentation they may have. Have students select "Jayhawk Blueprint Student" under the "Affiliations" menu to indicate they are part of the Jayhawk Blueprint program.

If you or your student has any questions about accommodations, please have them contact either Lori Stithem (lstithem@usd497.org), Director of Special Education (6-12) at USD 497 or Arika Sprecker (arikas@ku.edu), Associate Director of the KU Student Access Center.

Tutoring at KU: Tutoring Services in the Center for Learning and Writing Support at KU provides students enrolled in Jayhawk Blueprint courses free course-specific tutoring support through 1-on-1 appointments. Students can schedule a meeting with a tutor to help them understand course concepts and problems covered in the course. Course availability may vary by semester, but typically includes MATH 101 and BIOL 100/102. Students may visit their website for more information and to schedule an appointment.

• https://learningandwriting.ku.edu/individual-tutoring
• https://learningandwriting.ku.edu/academic-coaching 
• https://learningandwriting.ku.edu/success-guides-coaching   

Writing Support at KU: The KU Writing Center offers free writing tutoring services to all students enrolled in a Jayhawk Blueprint course. The peer writing consultants can help students with writing for any class at any stage of the process from brainstorming to revision. This is a great support option for students taking ENGL 101 or 102 as well as COMS 130. They offer three different types of writing consultation appointments: face-to-face consultations, videoconferencing appointments, and etutoring appointments. Students may visit their website for more information and to schedule an appointment.

• https://writing.ku.edu/how-consultations-work.