(AP) – Government, business and education leaders will meet this week to discuss a Missouri program that helps students complete their degrees sooner and land jobs in high-demand fields.

The meeting, called the National Convening on Higher Education Innovation, is scheduled Wednesday and Thursday in Kansas City. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon and acting U.S. Education Department Deputy Secretary James Shelton are expected to attend.

The meeting will examine ways to expand and replicate “Innovation Campuses,” which allow businesses to employ students as apprentices and help pay the cost of their education – either by paying them or contributing money for their tuition.