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The Cincinnati Enquirer
October 21, 2003
Toyota pledges $500K for schools
Fund-raising campaign to benefit community colleges, tech programs
ERLANGER - Toyota Motor Manufacturing pledged $500,000 Monday to a fund-raising
campaign that will benefit the state's community colleges and technical schools.
Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) president Michael B.
McCall kicked off the "Fulfilling the Promise" campaign Monday. McCall
did not announce a fund-raising goal but said the five-year campaign, which
will target private donors, is expected to eclipse the $43 million that Kentucky's
community college system raised in the mid-1990s.
McCall said raising the money is crucial, because the system's funding has
been cut by $7 million over the last two years as Kentucky lawmakers have struggled
with balancing the state budget. The money would be used for scholarship endowments,
program support, new technology and equipment, faculty and new facilities.
"KCTCS plays a pivotal role in addressing many of the challenges facing
Kentucky, but only if we stay ahead of the curve and capitalize on the exciting
opportunities that lie ahead," McCall said.
Toyota's North American manufacturing headquarters is in Erlanger and it has
a vehicle factory in Georgetown. Its contribution will be used to "enhance
the skill levels of automobile-industry employees and increase the viability
of automotive manufacturing in Kentucky," KCTCS said in a statement.
About 5.7 percent of Kentucky's workforce is directly or indirectly employed
in an automotive-related industry, which generates $5.5 billion a year in wages
and benefits, according to the statement.
Gateway Community and Technical College in Boone County will be among the first
to implement the automotive training and skills classes. The program will include:
• Aligning courses and programs with specific training needs of automotive
manufacturing.
• Enhancing co-op and internship opportunities between students and automotive
employers.
• Helping employers retain or replace retiring employees and shortening
the training gap between new hires and production capabilities through curriculum
and training strategies.
More training is needed in Kentucky because of "historically low levels
of educational attainment and technological sophistication of our citizens who
comprise our current and future workforce," KCTCS said in the statement.
About 71,000 students are enrolled in KCTCS schools, which includes 62 campuses
open or preparing to open across the state.
The Messenger
October 21, 2003
KCTCS launches fund-raising effort
Kentucky Community and Technical College system kicked off its multi-million
dollar fund-raising campaign, “Fulfilling the Promise,” Monday.
The five-year campaign is intended to expand access to postsecondary education
and work force training across the state by funding initiatives that address
community and economic development needs, officials said.
When finished, it is expected to rank as the largest private fund-raising effort
ever undertaken by a system of two-year colleges in the nation, according to
a news release.
The fund-raising goal was not announced publicly.
The largest such campaign to date - totaling $43 million - was conducted by
the Kentucky community college system in the mid-1990s before the merger of
the technical and community college systems.
“KCTCS plays a pivotal role in addressing many of the challenges facing
Kentucky, but only if we stay ahead of the curve and capitalize on the exciting
opportunities that lie ahead,” KCTCS President Dr. Michael B. McCall said.
“For the motto ‘Education Pays’ to be true for every citizen,
business and industry must thrive in the globally competitive, information-based
economy of the 21st century,” he said. “As a state-assisted institution,
KCTCS must supplement its public funds with support from the private sector
to fully meet the demands of students and our business, industry and community
partners.”
A technical glitch prevented the planned telecast of Monday’s announcement
to the statewide system of community and technical colleges via interactive
television.
“It was a silent ceremony and we did enjoy talking with each other,”
said Dr. Judy Rhoads, Madisonville Community College president. “The cookies
were very good.”
A campaign video featuring Walter Cronkite, longtime CBS Evening News anchor,
was played for the MCC group. It features a statewide segment narrated by Cronkite
as well as a local segment.
The video generated excitement at one local gathering where it was recently
shown, Rhoads said.
“When Walter Cronkite came on and said, ‘This is Walter Cronkite
for Madisonville Community College, and that’s the way it is,’ everybody
was like, ‘Ahh, he said Madisonville Community College,’” Rhoads
said, with a laugh.
A public announcement about the start of MCC’s fund-raising campaign is
expected in December or January.
Priorities will be quality endowment, scholarships, arts endowment and academic
program support.
“We’re still in the planning phases of our external campaign,”
said Development Director John Peters. “Our campaign, without being announced
yet, has already gone over the million dollar mark.”
That’s because of a successful “family” - or internal - campaign
and increased donations to the arts endowment, Peters said.
The Paducah Sun
October 18, 2003
Families, students to log on with grant
About $100,000 each will go to Paducah Tilghman, Reidland and Fulton City high
schools for computer centers and educational software.
Paducah Tilghman, Reidland and Fulton City high schools will receive portions
of a $398,000 federal grant to establish computer labs for below-proficiency
students and their families.
Each school will receive around $100,000. The "Project Rescue" grant,
funded by the U.S. Department of Education, will establish three Community Technology
Centers, labs with 30 computers equipped with PLATO educational software.
PLATO is an individual tutorial that focuses on reading, math, science, social
studies and language arts and is tailored to the Kentucky Core Content. Students
who score below proficiency on standardized tests will be able to use the software
to recover academic credits they've missed. Their families will be able to use
the labs to prepare for the high school equivalency exam or earn credit from
West Kentucky Community and Technical College at no cost.
The Paducah Chamber of Commerce's Business Education Partnership will serve
as the financial administrator for the grant. The money, available immediately,
will provide equipment, software and staff to run the labs. Administrators met
Friday morning to discuss how they will establish the labs. Both Reidland High
Principal Glenn Ringstaff and Paducah instructional supervisor Vickie Maley
said their schools have not made final plans on where the labs will be located
or when they will open.
This schools qualified for the grant through economic and performance requirements,
such as high numbers of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch programs.
Maley said city schools would purchase the equipment as soon as next week and
start professional development for staff using the software. The lab will be
used for after-school and summer school programs for up to 100 students and
50 adults. Students will be chosen through teacher recommendations and test
scores.
Ringstaff said the money will expand Reidland's use of PLATO software, which
is used throughout McCracken County's middle and high schools. Reidland has
had the software for two years, but use was limited because of licensing and
equipment costs.
"That won't be a factor anymore," he said.
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