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Courier-Journal
October 5, 2003
Art + Design building gets top honor from architects
Making what amounts to a round peg fit into a square hole is what earned the
new Kentucky Museum of Art + Design the top Honor Award at the annual convention
of the Kentucky Society of Architects. It was among six awards presented last
Friday at the Seelbach Hilton Hotel in Louisville. Thirty-six entries were received
for the competition.
The adaptive reuse of two 19th-century buildings to form a larger home for
the museum on Louisville's Main Street was applauded by a jury of Seattle architects:
"The flowing plan organization contrasting the orthogonal constraints of
the existing structure mirrors the craft artist exhibits," wrote jurors
Norman Strong, Lee Copeland and Evett J. Ruffcorn. The designers were Chu +
Gooding Architects of Los Angeles, working with Michael Koch and Associates
Architects and Planners of Louisville.
Merit Awards were presented to the Southeast Postsecondary Education Facility
in London, Ky., designed by Omni Architects of Lexington for Kentucky's community
and technical college system, and to the residence of Johanna and Bill Rice
of Lexington for a contemporary rural house designed by Guyon Architects of
Lexington.
The postsecondary school was selected for its use of multiple materials and
integration of interior details with the "expression" of the exterior.
The Rice residence was selected because it accomplished the architect's goal:
"to reconcile the tough beauty of a barn with the intricacy of modern architecture"
in a utilitarian building that jurors described as "strong, simple and
direct."
Citations went to the renovation of Louisville's YMCA Building for St. Francis
High School and other owners Holly Wiedemann and AU Associates by Potter &
Cox Architects of Louisville; the pediatric floor renovation at TJ Samson Community
Hospital in Glasgow by GBBN Architects of Lexington; and, by the same firm,
the renovation of the Talcott Kentucky Residence Hall and Annex at Berea College.
These individuals and firms also received awards:
Bravura of Louisville, Distinguished Firm Award.
Architect Thomas G. Fernandez of Fort Thomas, Distinguished Service Award.
Business First President and Publisher Tom Monahan, Citizens Laureate Award
for advocacy of quality architecture.
Former Louisville Mayor Dave Armstrong, Honorary Membership Award for promotion
of quality architecture.
Southbank Partners of Newport, Ky. (a nonprofit group working for the improvement
of Northern Kentucky riverfront communities), the Allied Professional Award
for harmonious work with architects.
The Messenger
October 5, 2003
MCC internal fund-raising is successful
More than $117,000 in donations has been pledged in Madisonville Community
College's second internal fund-raising campaign.
College officials said the campaign was intended to demonstrate the importance
of private support in keeping academic programs strong and growing.
"Our family campaign is intended to raise funds for specific academic
programs and for existing and new endowments," said Dr. Judy Rhoads, MCC
president. "As I have said many times, the difference in a good college
and a great one is private giving."
All college employees and members of the college's board of directors were
solicited in the campaign. About 190 people - or 92 percent of the college "family"
- will have participated when all pledges and direct gifts are secured.
History instructor Dr. Bill Winstead, respiratory care program coordinator
David Pennaman and board member Bonita Hatfield of Marion chaired the effort.
Of the $117,000 that has been pledged in direct cash gifts or multi-year pledges,
about $76,000 is in endowment investments.
College officials list several successes of the campaign:
* $20,000 pledged to the college's quality endowment, which supports equipment
replacement and professional development support for employees.
* $19,000 pledged to the Libby & Frank Bacon Family Endowment, which provides
scholarship support for students in applied technology course work.
* $21,000 pledged to support programs at the Glema Mahr Center for the Arts.
* More than $40,000 pledged to other permanent scholarship programs.
Both Winstead and Pennaman see the internal campaign as having long-term benefits.
"The absolute increase in endowment dollars alone makes this a worthwhile
effort," said Pennaman. "We now have an additional $2,300 to $2,700
in interest that can be devoted each year to scholarship or faculty development,
and that amount will continue to increase each year."
Winstead said, "Employee support of their own college exemplifies dedication
of the highest order to what we believe in most - our students. If we offer
opportunities to our students, we are all the ultimate beneficiary."
Once the family campaign is completed, Rhoads and the MCC administration will
decide what type of community effort is warranted.
"Our communities have always given, and given generously," said Rhoads.
"Our development plans are focused on priorities that will add stability
and permanence to the types of programs and services the college provides best.
"Endowment and program dollars for priorities such as the arts center,
technology, and a comprehensive scholarship program continue to serve a broad
spectrum of people on a continuing basis, and to a degree of excellence that
benefits all of western Kentucky," she said. "The college is dedicated
not only to its current students, but also the next generation."
Leader-News
September 24, 2003
Legislator's Log by Rep. Brent Yonts
The autonomy given to our community and technical colleges five years ago after
the Kentucky General Assembly created KCTCS (Kentucky Community and Technical
College System) has led to the creation of an impressive two-year college system.
KCTCS President Dr. Michael B. McCall's report to the system's Board of Regents
in July highlights the progress Kentucky's community and technical colleges
have made since they were joined together under one system in 1998. Students,
faculty and staff of Madisonville Community College (MCC) have reaped these
benefits in both tangible and intangible ways.
First, it has benefited MCC's students who attend classes at the college's
campus in Muhlenberg County. The Muhlenberg campus was the result of the language
I had inserted in the 1997 law that created KCTCS. Since the passage of the
law, the Muhlenberg campus has been funded by the state and is now up and running.
This campus is a testament to the importance of education to our county's citizens
and the public's demand for a strong community and technical college system.
In the year 2000, our community and technical colleges benefited again when
the General Assembly granted KCTCS its request for funding to improve faculty
and staff salaries. The Legislature increased base level funding from 2.4 percent
for each year of the biennium to 2.7 percent in 2000-01 and 3.7 percent in 2001-02
to help accomplish this goal. This was a great help to the fledgling system.
The education that students receive through KCTCS will benefit them far into
the future. The two-year college system lets students earn an associate degree
and use those credits, if they wish, toward baccalaureate degrees at any of
Kentucky's public universities. An estimated 22 percent of KCTCS degree-seeking
students were enrolled in liberal arts/baccalaureate transfer programs in 2001-02,
the report says.
Kentucky's employers are also profiting from KCTCS. Based on report data, more
than 44,000 people and 1,500 businesses benefited from KCTCS' courses in 2001-02
through economic development programs. Students are now able to earn an associate
degree in General Occupational/Technical Studies that the report says "allows
students to use life experiences to earn credit toward credentials."
KCTCS also provides adult literacy help and GED preparation to an estimated
20,000 adults a year, and manages the state's fire and rescue training programs.
The report states that KCTCS trained an estimated 69,000 fire and rescue personnel
in 2001-02.
The system's success can also be proven by its overall growth. KCTCS has increased
enrollment in credit programs by 50 percent in five years, according to the
report.
It is clear to me that KCTCS is meeting the goals set for it by the General
Assembly in 1997. The state's press has taken notice as well. A May 29, 2002
Herald-Leader editorial stated "Interestingly, (Gov.) Patton's most difficult
political triumph, separating the community colleges from the University of
Kentucky, is the most unqualified success." And the Courier-Journal wrote
on June 11, 2000, "They said Kentucky's vast, politically sensitive collection
of community colleges and vocational-technical schools could not be combined
and rationalized. But KCTCS is doing it.
"As a result, postsecondary education for the first time has a coordinated
focus on workforce development. It exists because KCTCS exists."
With our state's continued support, KCTCS shall remain one of Kentucky's great
success stories. Have a good week.
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