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The Chronicle of Higher Education
September 16, 2003
Tuition Rises 11.4% at Public Community Colleges, Survey Finds
Tuition and fees for the current academic year jumped by 11.4 percent at public
community colleges, largely because of state budget cuts, according to a survey
to be released later this week by the American Association of Community Colleges.
In more than half of the states, community-college tuition rose by more than
10 percent. California and Virginia colleges had the highest percentage increases,
at 60 percent and 42 percent, respectively. Maine and West Virginia did not
raise tuition at all, although some two-year colleges in those states increased
fees slightly.
The association conducted the survey because of concerns that "the tremendous
cuts in state revenues were big enough that they are beginning to affect our
core values, namely access," said George R. Boggs, the group's president.
Still, the survey found, average tuition at public two-year colleges -- $1,560
annually for full-time students -- remains the lowest of any other sector in
higher education. The 11.4-percent increase amounts to a rise of roughly $80
per semester.
The survey also found that community colleges received 61.3 percent of their
revenues last year from state and local governments. That's up from 56 percent
in the 1998-99 academic year, according to a 2001 survey by the association.
The Messenger
September 14, 2003
Tech center drops in funding priority
The planned $12.5 million Advanced Technology Center at Madisonville Community
College has dropped on Kentucky Community and Technical College System’s
list of capital project priorities.
Local officials, however, continue to push the need for the facility in hopes
of gaining funding from the General Assembly.
“The current facility is outdated,” said Dr. Judith Rhoads, MCC
president. “It’s not located well. It’s located on a middle school
campus, not on a college campus.”
In the current biennium, KCTCS listed the Advanced Technology Center as second
priority on its new construction list behind Ashland Technical College’s
proposed $28.7 million Regional Postsecondary Education Center.
No projects have been built during the past two years because of state budget
woes. Funding remains uncertain for the next biennium.
For 2004-06, MCC’s building has fallen to fourth in new construction
– and seventh overall. Two new construction projects, a $13.1 million Tri-County
Technology Center at Henderson Community College and a $24.1 million Advanced
Technology Center at Owensboro Community College, have jumped ahead.
Rhoads said she doesn’t know why MCC dropped on the list.
“If you’re in the No. 1 tier, which we are, at being considered
for new facilities, it becomes very political as to when and if it’s constructed,”
she said. “We need community support and legislative support to help make
this building the priority in western Kentucky.”
KCTCS referred questions to Vice President of Finance Ken Walker, who is out
of the office this week.
The current technical campus on School Avenue behind Browning Springs Middle
School contains three buildings: the Technology Building and Learning Center
Building, both constructed in 1964; and the Mine Occupations Building, which
opened in 1973.
Problems with the campus, according to documents provided by MCC, include
that it is outdated, embarrassing, not located well, has a bad image, has “30
years of low expectations for the facility” and has been given few resources.
KCTCS Chancellor Keith Bird said it is the second-worst facility he has ever
seen, Rhoads said.
“The college can provide a dire need as far as the actual facility itself,”
she said. “We can also boast that we have a significant number of students
in the technical fields who are doing very, very well. We could dramatically
boost those numbers with a new facility.”
Plans call for constructing a 40,000-square-foot facility southwest of the
John Gray Building on MCC’s north campus.
“In addition to existing programs, we’re looking to have space and
programs that relate to the new economy, and the great need for energy technology,”
she said.
Programs housed in the building would include agricultural technology, biomedical
equipment technology, computer-aided drafting, construction technology, electricity,
electronics, HVAC, industrial maintenance technology, construction technology,
machine tool and welding. The center would also provide a new home for technology
programs to support business and industry, community and economic development,
adult education, the Business and Industry Technical Assistance Center, and
the Assessment Center.
“We’re looking into the future of what programs will be needed to
take us into the new economy and be responsive to the need for and development
of new energy sources in Kentucky,” Rhoads said. “If Thoroughbred
Energy, Peabody Coal, is able to construct a power plant in Muhlenberg County,
it will make the Advanced Technology Center even more crucial for students and
industries in this area.”
The building is the No. 1 education priority of the Visioning and Executive
Committee of the Hopkins County Economic Development Corp.
“Our motto this time is ‘It’s Our Turn,’” said Economic
Development Director Danny Koon. “That’s what we’re trying to
make the motto of our community for this upcoming election and this next legislative
session.”
A new Advanced Technology Building is “an absolute must” for the
area’s future growth, he said.
“Everything in economic development, both now and in the future, is directly
related to the preparedness of your work force,” Koon said. “Hopkins
County cannot possibly compete in the world economy today with the current antiquated
technical facilities that we’re trying to use to prepare our work force.”
Hopkins County Judge-Executive Patricia Hawkins also supports the effort to
get funding for a new technology building.
“It should be a community priority,” she said. “The current
building, it doesn’t allow room for growth or to bring in new programs
that are needed here in Hopkins County. It would just be an asset to the community
to have a new facility and have it located at or near the college campus.”
MCC officials will meet with Dr. Michael B. McCall, KCTCS president, later
this month. They will also present packages on the need for the facility to
the two gubernatorial candidates and talk with legislators.
“I think if there’s money for facilities, there’s an excellent
chance,” Rhoads said. “We have an excellent chance of getting at least
the first phase.”
The first phase would include architectural fees and money for half the building.
The rest of the funding would be appropriated in the following legislative session.
“I think it would have been funded last year if there had been facility
money available in the state,” she said. “A lot of work has gone into
documenting the needs and making plans for today and for the future.”
The Cincinnati Enquirer
September 12, 2003
Gateway to offer credit for out-of-class work
For the first time, Gateway Community and Technical College in Fort Mitchell
will offer college credit for work done outside the traditional college classroom.
The new process, called portfolio development, will award students credit on
a case-by-case basis for activities such as noncredit courses, workshops, television
and newspaper courses, self-taught skills, career, work or training experiences
and community services. To receive credit, students must prepare a portfolio,
which explains what they have learned. Faculty members determine how much will
be awarded.
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