Midwestern Higher Education Compact
Encyclopedia
The Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC) is a regional interstate compact
devoted to advancing cooperation and resource sharing in higher education
. The member states of the Compact are Illinois
, Indiana
, Iowa
, Kansas
, Minnesota
, Michigan
, Missouri
, Nebraska
, North Dakota
, Ohio
, South Dakota
, and Wisconsin
.
The Compact is one of four regional compacts in the United States dedicated to advancing higher education.
MHEC is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota
.
or the governor's designee, a member of each chamber of the state legislature, and two at-large members, one of whom must come from post-secondary education.
MHEC is funded through appropriations from each of its member states and through foundation grants. It is designated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Interstate compact
An interstate compact is an agreement between two or more states of the United States of America. Article I, Section 10 of the United States Constitution provides that "no state shall enter into an agreement or compact with another state" without the consent of Congress...
devoted to advancing cooperation and resource sharing in higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
. The member states of the Compact are Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, and Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
.
The Compact is one of four regional compacts in the United States dedicated to advancing higher education.
MHEC is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
.
Mission
The compact seeks to achieve its mission in higher education through initiatives in cost savings, student access, and policy research. In these three areas, MHEC attempts to reduce administrative costs, encourage student access, facilitate public policy analysis and information analysis, increase regional academic cooperation, promote educational programs, and encourage innovation in the field of higher education.Organization
The MHEC Executive Committee is the MHEC's governing body. Each of the member states appoint five commissioners to the executive committee. These commissioners consist of the governorGovernor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
or the governor's designee, a member of each chamber of the state legislature, and two at-large members, one of whom must come from post-secondary education.
MHEC is funded through appropriations from each of its member states and through foundation grants. It is designated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.