The Daily Independent
April 4, 2005
A lower increase
Schools hold the line on tuition
An influx of state tax dollars means most students at Kentucky's state universities
and community and technical colleges will be facing less of an increase in tuition
than they incurred in recent years. That's as it should be. More state dollars
should require less money from students and their parents.
The University of Kentucky had expected a 14.5 percent increase in tuition
for the fall semester, but that amount was lowered to the still-high 12.45 percent
after legislators included an additional $13.5 million in appropriations for
UK in the budget. It marked the first increase after several years of substantial
cuts.
Students attending the state's community and technical colleges - including
Ashland Community and Technical College - will face a much lower increase in
tuition next fall. The KCTC board of regents recently approved a 6.5 percent
hike in tuition. The means classes that cost $92 per credit hour for the current
semester will cost $98 per hour this fall. It marks the first time in several
years, community and technical college students have not faced double-digit
increases in tuition.
Not all the state universities are holding the line on tuition increases. Western
Kentucky University's board recently hiked tuition for the fall semester by
a whopping 17.5 percent.
By holding the line on taxes and decreasing state higher education spending,
legislators in recent years essentially have favored increasing "user fees"
- a.k.a. tuition - instead of increasing taxes. Now that universities and community
and technical colleges have received an increase in state dollars, they should
hold the line on tuition increases. The community and technical colleges have
done just that, while U or L and UK have at least approved lower increases than
expected. As far at WKU is concerned, well, that's another matter.
Kentucky Post
April 2, 2005
All college job fair slots are filled
Good news for NKU, Gateway
A Northern Kentucky college job fair next week will attract a capacity lineup
of 100 employers, a sign the job market is brightening for college students.
Some 1,000 students from Northern Kentucky University and Gateway Community
and Technical College are expected to attend the Job Expo from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
on Tuesday at Regents Hall on NKU's Highland Heights campus.
"We have a waiting list of employers, just as we did last year for this
event," said Bill Lamb, director of NKU's career development center. "It's
a continuing indicator of a positive job market. It started about this time
last year and it has continued."
The job market for college students boomed in the mid-1990s, but tailed off
several years ago when the nation's economy slowed.
"If you only watched the network news and saw stories about layoffs, you
might get the impression the economy is still lagging and that jobs aren't there,"
said Lamb. "But the transportation industry is the first to know about
changes in the economy based on the amount of products being shipped and a transportation
official recently told me the economy is improving."
Organizations which track employer interest in hiring new college graduates
are reporting good news after several years of bad news. The Collegiate Employment
Research Institute at Michigan State University reported that "the economy
has finally begun to generate enough jobs to push the college labor market forward."
"Not all employers feel the economy is performing strongly, but they feel
compelled to add workers after 3½ years of very limited hiring,"
the institute reported. "Hiring is expected to increase by a robust 20
percent for associates, bachelors and masters graduates."
CollegeGrad.com, an Internet entry level job site, said its survey of 500 entry
level employers showed they had plans to hire 14.2 percent more college graduates
this year than last.
Employers surveyed by the National Association of Colleges and Employers said
they planned to hire 13.1 percent more college grads than a year ago.
NKU student Michael Tobergta said that's welcome news.
"For the past 15 or 20 years, there's been a growing emphasis in society
that you have to go to college to get a good job," said Tobergta, a junior
from the Cincinnati suburb of Eastgate. "But too many kids who have come
out of college and expected to find a job and do well have wound up flipping
burgers."
Lamb said Job Expo will include a wide variety of employers like Cinergy, Coca-Cola,
the Federal Reserve Bank, the Red Cross and Hertz rental cars.
The job fair is not just for NKU and Gateway students who will graduate this
year, but for all students of the two schools interested in part-time, summer
and co-op jobs, as well as full-time jobs.
NKU holds a separate job fair for students planning to be teachers. The most
recent teaching job fair attracted 160 NKU College of Education students and
25 school systems, which Lamb said were high numbers.
The Messenger
April 7, 2005
MCC starts online registration
Madisonville Community College students no longer have to sign up for classes
during regular office hours. Instead, they can just log onto the Internet and
register at any time.
“I think a few stayed up that first night and logged on at midnight,”
said Registrar Jay Parrent.
Internet registration, which started Monday with the beginning of priority
registration, is available to continuing, degree-seeking students.
College officials aren’t sure yet if new students will be allowed to use
the same procedures. But they will take part in a new summer advising program,
which requires applications from incoming students be received by Aug. 1.
So far, Parrent said, Internet registration is working “better than anticipated.”
Melissa Kelley, a second-year student seeking a business degree with a real
estate emphasis, signed up for classes Tuesday using a campus computer lab.
“I don’t know if I’m doing this right,” she said.
Parrent looked at the screen, told her it was correct and to click the “submit”
button.
“It was pretty easy if you read the instructions,” Kelley said.
Online registration is just the newest service the college provides using the
Internet. Earlier, it added Web mail, let students pull up their grades and
class schedule, and allowed them to pay their tuition bills over the Internet.
“A piece that will be coming in about another year, hopefully, is a degree
audit program,” Parrent said. The software, knowing which classes a student
has taken, will provide a list of additional classes needed for a specific degree.
As of Tuesday, 302 students had registered for the fall semester and 194 for
summer classes.
“Those numbers are a lot higher than our regular priority registration
numbers, so we really feel like students are ready for this technology,”
Parrent said. “I think students are more excited about registration for
the fall because they can do it themselves.”
Students who aren’t tech-savvy will be allowed to register the traditional
way. After meeting with an adviser and planning their classes, they bring the
list to the office for staff to enter the class numbers into the computer.
In the past, priority registration lasted just two weeks. Students who register
online will have access to the system to drop and add classes until Aug. 5.
“It’s just a real good service for students,” Parrent said.
“It helps them manage their academic career more effectively and they don’t
have to wait on us.
“It frees up our time to help students with problems and questions,”
he said. “We can do more to help people instead of the data entry part.
I think it’s going to make us more efficient and student friendly.”
A new advising program will soon start for incoming students.
Instead of having new student orientation and registration in August, faculty
members acting as “master advisers” will meet with groups of about
15 to 20 students during the summer.
A new application deadline of Aug. 1 has been set so the advising/registration
can be completed during the summer.
“We’re trying to get the word out on that,” Parrent said.
Research shows that working with new students in smaller groups helps improve
retention, he said.
“They’re going to work with these small groups and ease their transition
to college,” Parrent said. “One of the most important things is to
integrate a student into the college and help them feel connected.”
Hazard Herald
April 6, 2005
HCTC forming professional music program
Hazard Community and Technical College is planning a professional music program
based in Hyden. The new program’s National Advisory Council met for the
first time Jan. 12 – 14 and during that three-day retreat at the new Kentucky
Community and Technical College System offices in Versailles, the National Advisory
Council began formation of a program that will be unlike any in the nation.
The group will meet again this May.
“This is the ideal location to offer such a music program,” noted
Dr. Jay K. Box, HCTC president/CEO. “This region is so rich in the heritage
of Appalachian music and Bluegrass music. What better place to learn about traditional
music than in the region where it is so much an integral part of life,”
he said.
Besides classes on vocals, banjo, guitar, and other traditional instruments,
students will learn about contracts, working with agents, copyrights for songs,
and other parts of the business side of music. In addition, technological advances
have a major impact on the music industry and students enrolled will be learning
the latest technology. “Computer programs are used to write music, arrange
music, and record music,” noted Deronda Mobelini, who is working with the
planning of the new program. “Our classes will include instruction on using
this technology.”
The National Advisory Council’s next meeting is planned for May 18-20,
so committee members can tour the campuses and talk with individuals in the
community about the vision for creation of the new program. The creation of
the new program is being modeled after the Kentucky School of Craft in Hindman,
which involved finding the right person to serve as the founding dean, Tim Glotzbach.
Likewise, a search will be underway to find the ideal person to lead the program.
A sub-group of the national advisory committee is currently working on identifying
the qualifications needed for such a demanding job.
“We expect the program to draw students from the region, as well as the
rest of the nation and other countries,” noted Professor Mobelini. “The
advisory council has already pointed out that countries, such as Germany and
Japan, have similarities to and an interest in the music of this region, so
we believe our new program will be attractive to international students,”
she said.
Students completing the program will graduate with an associate degree in
applied science, although some students may enroll in just a few classes to
enhance their quality of life or to address continuing education needs. A curriculum
committee (consisting of national advisory council members and HCTC faculty)
will develop a list of classes to be offered, with the program beginning in
Fall 2007. Before that time, the location of the music program in Hyden will
be determined. “We are working on a location that will provide a space
for musicians to play informally—when they are out of the classroom,”
Dr. Box said. “We know that kind of immersion into playing and performing
will enhance their learning experience, as well as making the Hyden area a very
enjoyable place for the community to come out and be in the evenings,”
he said.
Hazard Herald
April 6, 2005
Drug forum address issues in area
More than 150 people participated in the Third Annual Drug Forum held at Hazard
Community and Technical College showing their concern and support for battling
the drug problem in the area. “We can’t just ignore problems and hope
they will go away,” noted Cindy Plummer, faculty member with Human Services,
who helped to organize the event. “We have to meet this devastating situation
head on so we can do something about it,” Plummer said.
Speakers for the event included: Ron Daley, University Center of the Mountains
director; David Chaltas, Letcher County Alternative School; Cathy Stout, Treatment
and Education director with UNITE; Michelle Kilgore, social worker with Kentucky
River Community Care; Rev. Doug Abner and Rev. Ken Bolin, both of Clay County;
Doreen Cornelius, Fifth Congressional District drug court coordinator; Judy
Cattoi, Social Worker with Kentucky River Community Care; Dr. Angelia Bryant
of Lindsey Wilson College; Teresa Barton, Substance Abuse Task Force with Gov.
Ernie Fletcher; Lt. Dwayne Depp with Kentucky State Police; Lt. Darian Williams,
Hazard Police Department; and Pat Wooten, Perry County Sheriff.
Joan Enochs, advisor to the Human Services and Social Work Association, is
pleased with the attendance, which was an increase over the previous year. “Participants
got a good overview of what is going on in the community. They saw the solutions
that are being implemented in the community from various organizations. I think
folks left with a sense that they are not alone in their concern,” Mrs.
Enochs said.
Kentucky State Police Lt. Dwayne Depp, in his keynote address, noted that
each person must take responsibility to try to do something about the drug problem
and so they should never give up. “If you give up,” Depp said, “then
a person dies.”
Displays were contributed by Perry Distributors, Cabinet for Health and Families,
and the Perry County Cooperative Extension Service.
The event was organized by HCTC students in the following organizations: Human
Services and Social Association; Phi Theta Kappa; and Student Government Association.
The corporate sponsors were Perry Distributors and American Woodmark. Pepsi
also made a donation for the event.
“Every week I had a student in my office saying another friend of theirs
died from drugs. I don’t see that anymore. We have created the awareness
that there is a problem. That is the first step toward a solution,” Plummer
said.
Floyd County Times
April 6, 2005
National History Day contest a success
“We welcome your to our College,” stated, Nancy Johnson, Big Sandy
Community and Technical College (BSCTC) Provost, as she overlooked a crowd of
280 students and teachers from around the region to the Annual National History
Day Contest.
The National History Day (NHD) Contest was held on the Prestonsburg Campus
of BSCTC on March 24, 2005. National History Day is a program designed to engage
students in grades 6-12 in active learning as they prepare theme related presentations
for the contest. Communication in History: The Key to Understanding, was this
year’s theme and students who participated in the contest had to prepare
a theme related paper, project, documentary or dramatic presentation.
“The contest held in this district is the oldest continual History Day
Contest in the state,” stated Dr. Donald Barlow, associate professor of
history at BSCTC and coordinator of the eastern Kentucky District of the National
History Day program, “It has been 14 years of building to reach such success
with the contest and I am proud of all that we have accomplished together in
the Eastern Kentucky District. According to the NHD website the contest is the
oldest and most highly regarded humanities contest and it engages more than
700,000 students annually.
Dr. George D. Edwards, BSCTC President said, “I am delighted that Big
Sandy Community and Technical College can host the National History Day Contest.
It is encouraging to see the many students from the Big Sandy area schools,
here on our campus and engaged in activities that exemplify excellence and learning.
It is my honor to congratulate all of the participants in this annual history
event.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
April 7, 2005
Most High Schools Have Dual-Credit, Dual-Enrollment Programs Offering College-Level
Courses, Reports Say
Two reports released on Wednesday by the National Center for Education Statistics
show the availability of college-level courses to students at public high schools.
One report, "Dual Credit and Exam-Based Courses in U.S. Public High Schools:
2002-03," provides estimates on the number and locations of schools offering
dual-credit or examination-based courses like Advanced Placement or International
Baccalaureate, the enrollment in those courses, and their characteristics.
The report says that most public high schools do offer such courses, but their
availability correlates with the size of the school. Location also plays a role,
with schools in urban fringe areas more likely than those in cities or rural
areas to offer college-level courses.
The other report, "Dual Enrollment of High School Students at Postsecondary
Institutions: 2002-03," looks at the enrollment of high-school students
at degree-granting institutions that receive student-aid funds under Title IV
of the Higher Education Act.
Most such institutions enroll high-school students, the report says, but whether
or not the students are admitted through dual-enrollment programs varies.
Houston Chronicle
April 6, 2005
Head Start program faces uncertain future
Some say audits are the beginning of the end, but others defend
Bush plan to reform it
WASHINGTON - Even in a town used to emotional fights about issues such as abortion
and Social Security, the debate about the future of Head Start, the 40-year-old
federal early-childhood program, is getting attention for its harsh rhetoric.
The National Head Start Association has accused the Bush administration of
conducting a series of nitpicking audits that highlighted such shortcomings
as "crumbs" left overnight in a toaster oven and unraked leaves on
a playground. Association President Sarah Greene attributes the accusations
to a carefully orchestrated effort to discredit Head Start to advance what she
calls the administration's misguided early-childhood education agenda.
The Bush administration says the association's charges are absurd and has joined
with House Republicans in pointing to a new congressional report that found
lax financial controls enabling some Head Start administrators to walk away
with exorbitant salaries and perks. If anything, Health and Human Services Assistant
Secretary Wade Horn said, the audit showed his agency hasn't been tough enough.
All this controversy, and the 109th Congress has yet to take up a proposal,
left over from the first Bush term, to establish a pilot program ceding control
of Head Start from Washington to governors in nine states.
The administration hopes the states, which have not been chosen yet, will be
in a better position to manage the program's finances and to expand Head Start's
educational component. But some Head Start administrators predict it will lead
to dismantling the program, or diluting its primary goal.
Head Start serves 900,000 preschool pupils. The purpose is to ensure that impoverished
children aren't far behind their more affluent classmates.
Questions about the program's future were to have been debated during a hearing
Tuesday by the House Education and Workforce Committee. The panel's chairman,
Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, said he is concerned by the recent report from Congress'
investigatory arm that the government has failed to sufficiently control how
Head Start's 1,700 local programs spent federal money.
"The federal government is spending almost $7 billion a year on Head Start,
but an inexcusable share of the money never reaches the children it is meant
to serve," Boehner said. He cited published reports about money for Head
Start instruction being misappropriated — in Lubbock, to run a Mexican
restaurant, and in Kansas City, Mo., to provide an administrator with a salary
of more than $300,000 and a Mercedes-Benz SUV.
Inside Higher Ed
April 7, 2005
The Public Trust
The American public understands that going to college helps individuals get
ahead. But what the public doesn’t understand is that colleges help society
as a whole, and that more people benefit than the graduates themselves.
Convincing the public of that broader social benefit is the goal of a major
national campaign that higher education leaders are planning. The Public Trust
Initiative will involve efforts in every state and with every sector of higher
education. The effort will feature both a national ad campaign and attempts
to have colleges shift some of their communications with their own constituencies
— students, parents, alumni, opinion leaders, taxpayers generally —
away from messages about individual institutions and toward messages about higher
education.
“There have been a number of calls recently for a new national dialogue
on the social compact between higher education and society,” said Stanley
O. Ikenberry, former president of the American Council on Education and the
University of Illinois, who is leading the effort. “What we are trying
to do is to launch such a dialogue.”
The Public Trust Initiative will probably be formally launched in the fall.
To date, a small group has been studying data on public attitudes, conducting
focus groups and briefing different groups of college leaders. The effort is
a collaboration between the American Council on Education and other higher education
groups. The first public briefing on the campaign will come at the annual meeting
of the American Association of Community Colleges, which gathers in Boston this
weekend.
Ikenberry said that much of the work thus far has been trying to get a handle
on what the public knows and doesn’t know about higher education, and to
figure out which messages will work. For example, he said it was important that
academics not to talk about higher education as being “in crisis.”
“The public doesn’t see higher education in crisis. Some of us may
see that, but the public isn’t convinced of that, and even if they were,
the public isn’t ready to take on yet one more crisis,” with Iraq
and other issues already center stage, Ikenberry said. “The public may
well be in crisis overload.”
He said that the message of the campaign would be a positive one, with the
emphasis on “why access to higher education is important to society broadly.”
He said colleges need to talk about how having an educated populace affects
health care, crime prevention, the economy, the quality of life, etc.
Ikenberry said that the campaign, to date, has not focused on fighting images
of higher education that come up in the culture wars, such as the idea that
Ward Churchill is representative of faculty members. Ikenberry said he is hopeful
that this controversy will pass, but “if that’s seriously and persistently
on the public’s list of concerns, obviously we would have to address it.”
Part of the message that will need to go out, Ikenberry said, would be to confront
questions and criticisms people have about higher education, and to do a better
job of answering questions like: How are you keeping costs down? Are you operating
efficiently?
While there are “tension points” about accountability, Ikenberry
said that colleges need to be prepared to answer questions about themselves
for the campaign to be successful. He said that the ACE and other groups have
already been leading discussions about how to balance demands for accountability
with colleges’ needs, and he said that this new campaign reflects the discussion
about the social compact at this year’s council meeting.
Ikenberry also said that he thought community colleges would end up playing
a key role in the campaign because the are by definition close to local communities.
Philip Day, chancellor of the City College of San Francisco, has been involved
in creating the campaign. He said such an effort is overdue.
“I think there is an issue that is of concern in the public about whether
or not higher education is pulling its weight,” he said. “Are we accomplishing
our missions? Are we achieving the results people expect? Is it assisting in
some broader objectives related to global economics and competitiveness and
all of that.”
Day said he thinks the answers to those questions “are most definitely
Yes.” But he said academics need to remember that “we are sometimes
misunderstood — people don’t quite get it.”
He added, “We need to try to establish a better balance between those
that are on the outside looking in and those that are on the inside looking
out.”
David Ward, president of the ACE, said that it’s time for a new approach
on building public support. “There didn’t seem to be any way to stop
the deteriorating levels of public investment through old-style advocacy,”
which would have been “to have in effect said, ‘we are entitled to
certain levels of support.’ “
By stepping back from the issue of appropriations levels in this campaign,
Ward said, he hopes that higher education can build a stronger base of support.
“We had to try something different.”
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