COLUMBIA -- Updated, 5:30 p.m.:

Stephens College administrators want to sell two properties to a foundation that plans to build a new college-preparatory academy.

After three years of researching the best and highest use of the properties, leaders of the private Columbia campus said the Hagan Scholarship Foundation is the best choice as their newest neighbor.

That organization supports students from rural communities.

The agreement between Stephens College and Columbia real estate developer Dan Hagan hinges on a rezoning request.

Stephens College President Dianne Lynch said she wants to sell Hillcrest Hall and the Stephens Auditorium Complex to the Hagan Scholarship Foundation.  If the city council rezones the two properties, Hagan wants to tear down the old buildings and build a new college-preparatory academy for rural high school students.  Lynch said the proposed agreement benefits the entire Mid-Missouri community.

Lynch said, “We have restricted the use of the properties so that they can only be used for the purposes of the educational foundation, the academy and professional office buildings.  Those uses seem to us to be the best kind of neighbor.”

Hagan’s college prep school would be an extension of his existing $45 million foundation that provides financial help for low-income, high-achieving students who attend public schools in counties with fewer than 50,000 residents.  That means students from Boone, Cole and Callaway counties do not qualify.

Hagan Scholarship Foundation spokesman Mark Farnen said, “There are a lot of people who just don’t have a chance.  It’s not really a hand out.  It’s a hand up.  It also provides them a way to qualify for additional scholarship funding for the college of their choice when they move on.”

The new academy would only serve junior and senior high school students.  No one is saying how much the deal is worth.  Once it’s finalized, the dollar amount will be public record.

Both parties hope the city council approves their rezoning request within the next month or so.  They hope to have the new college prep school on the Stephens College campus up and running within the next two years.

If the rezoning request is approved, the proposed academy would accept about 60 students during the first year of operations.

Original Story:

Stephens College in Columbia will sell two properties to a foundation that plans to build a new college-preparatory academy.

The private college announced Monday that it planned to sell the properties to the Hagan Scholarship Foundation, which supports students from rural communities.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that the cost of the transaction was not disclosed.

The Hagan Scholarship Foundation was founded in 2009 by Columbia real estate developer Dan Hagan. He endowed it with $45 million to provide financial help for high-achieving students who attend public schools in counties with fewer than 50,000 residents.

The deal is contingent on Columbia rezoning the properties to restrict future use to match the agreement between Hagan and Stephens College.