Yesterday, February 25, AIKCU President Gary Cox, Centre College President John Roush and St. Catharine College President Bill Huston testified before the Kentucky House Budget Review Subcommittee on Postsecondary Education. They had a very productive conversation with subcommittee members about the important roles that independent colleges play in Kentucky, the importance of student financial aid, and the ways that private colleges innovate and focus on serving students in today’s difficult fiscal environment.

One important point made during yesterday’s testimony is that the majority of Kentucky’s independent colleges do not have large endowments. Berea College is an exception in that they have a fairly substantial endowment that allows them to carry out their mission of providing an education for low income students without charging tuition. (Berea is also grappling with with very significant challenges because of the drop in that endowment.)

This chart taken from yesterday’s presentation, clearly illustrates that independent colleges in Kentucky are very tuition-driven institutions.

AIKCU President Gary S. Cox, board chair John Roush, and chair-elect Bill Huston testified this morning about the role of independent education in Kentucky before the House Postsecondary Budget Review Subcommittee. They were invited to testify by Rep. Arnold Simpson, the subcommittee chairman.

Dr. Cox provided a sector-level overview of the diversity of Kentucky’s independent colleges, the importance of Kentucky’s investment in student financial aid, the return on that investment for the Commonwealth, and ways that AIKCU campuses are innovating and collaborating to contain costs and focus on student success. [Download the handouts: AIKCU Presentation to Budget Review Subcommittee, 2/25/10 (PDF)]

President Roush (Centre College) and President Huston (St. Catharine College) talked about their very different institutions. The presidents talked about some of the successes and challenges they see from both ends of the independent college spectrum and challenged legislators to think about ways to increase the role of the independent sector in Kentucky.

Following the formal presentation there was a very positive and extended conversation between legislators and the presidents about the critical roles that Kentucky’s independent colleges can play in helping the state meet the goals of the landmark 1997 House Bill 1 postsecondary reform act.

Representative Bam Carney (L), Governor Steve Beshear, and the Campbellsville University volleyball team

Story provided by Campbellsville University. See original story with additional photos.

FRANKFORT, KY - Campbellsville University’s 2009 Lady Tiger volleyball team continued to celebrate its National Christian College Athletic Association National Championship with a visit to the Capitol on Wednesday, February 17.

“You’ve made your university, community and the Commonwealth very proud,” Governor Steve Beshear told the Campbellsville team as they gathered for a photo in the Capitol.

After meeting with Beshear the team was presented to and honored by both legislative houses. Rep. Bam Carney (R-Campbellsville) presented the team in the House, while Sen. Ken Winters (R-Murray), former CU president, did the honor in the Senate on behalf of Sen. Jimmy Higdon (R-Lebanon).

“It was a good day. I don’t know if the girls knew exactly what to expect,” said Randy LeBleu, head coach of the 2009 CU Lady Tigers. “It was a great opportunity to showcase the sport of volleyball, and it was good to see the senators and representatives not from our area go out of their way to recognize us and shake our hands. Being on the floor of both the Senate and House was a great experience.”

Though unable to make the trip, Campbellsville President Dr. Michael V. Carter was grateful for the state’s recognition and proud of the team’s experience.

“We are all very proud of the Campbellsville University national champion volleyball team. The recognitions of the team by Governor Steve Beshear, Representative Bam Carney and the Kentucky House of Representatives, and State Senators Jimmy Higdon and Dr. Ken Winters and the Kentucky State Senate, are noteworthy experiences for the members of the Lady Tigers volleyball team and coaching staff,” Carter said. “We appreciate the support by our state officials for Campbellsville University and our student-athletes.”

In the Senate, the Lady Tigers were brought to the floor by Winters, who served as Campbellsville’s president from 1988-1999.

“I really am honored to have been allowed to do it. Sen. Higdon, knowing my connection to the university, yielded to me to make the award,” Winters said. “Many years of my life were spent there with the school. I’m proud of this team effort and our first national championship. It was a real exciting time. I’m very, very proud of the team, as I am of Campbellsville University as a whole.”

Higdon said it brought satisfaction to see Winters make the presentation.

“You could tell he was bubbling over with joy today when he made the presentation,” Higdon said. “Out of respect for him and his deep love for the university, I wanted to present this opportunity to him. He’s so proud of Campbellsville University, and so am I…. It was a thrill to have a national champion visit us today.”

Carney presented the team in the House and was present for photos in the House chambers and with Beshear.

“We were honored to have them in Frankfort to celebrate a milestone for the university. It’s a very impressive group of young ladies, and it was a joy to have them there,” said Carney, who received his teaching certificate from CU. “It was an honor and privilege on my part, being from Campbellsville, to share their accomplishments with the other representatives across the state. It’s a historic moment for our community and the school.”

John Chowning, Campbellsville University’s vice president for church and external relations and executive assistant to the president, worked with the governor’s office, the offices of Sen. Higdon and Rep. Carney and CU Athletic Director Rusty Hollingsworth to organize the event.

Campbellsville captured the NCCAA Division I Championship on Dec. 5, 2009 in Kissimmee, Fla., and completed the season with a school record 38 wins.

(Frankfort, KY) - Ten students from six AIKCU member institutions will spend their spring getting an up close look at the inner workings of the Kentucky legislative process. Participants in the 2010 AIKCU Frankfort Semester Legislative Internship Program will work full-time for members of the Kentucky General Assembly. In addition to their full-time jobs working for legislators the students take two upper division seminar courses while in Frankfort.

The students selected to participate in the 2010 AIKCU Frankfort Semester Legislative Internship Program are:

• Laura Perry, an Asbury College senior majoring in communications
• Nathan Cox, a Campbellsville University junior majoring in political science
• Phillip Mitchell, a Campbellsville University junior majoring in political science
• Leann Straley, a Campbellsville University sophomore majoring in political science
• Chelsea Clark, a Georgetown College junior majoring in political science
• Jared Radford, a Lindsey Wilson College senior majoring in history
• Morgan Reck, a Lindsey Wilson College senior majoring in history
• Tanalisa Hatton, a St. Catharine College junior majoring in liberal arts
• Nicole Paulley, a St. Catharine College senior majoring in criminal justice
• Jessica Beard, a Transylvania University junior majoring in political science

This is the 11th year for the AIKCU Frankfort Semester Internship Program. In even years, students work directly for members of the General Assembly. In odd years, interns serve in a variety of state government agencies. The AIKCU intern program is directed by Richard Wilson, a former Courier-Journal reporter and bureau chief and member of the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame.

Campbellsville, KY — Campbellsville University’s public affairs program, “Dialogue on Public Issues,” will be must watch television for the politically minded in Central Kentucky over the coming weeks.

Campbellsville University will host Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell on November 13. Senator McConnell will take part in several campus events, including the filming of an episode of “Dialogue on Public Issues.” For a full rundown of the day’s events with Senator McConnell, see the story on Campbellsville’s website.

“Dialogue on Public Issues” is hosted by John Chowning, Campbellsville University vice president for church and external relations and executive assistant to the president. It can be seen in the Campbellsville area on WLCU TV-4, Comcast Cable Channel 10, and on a delayed basis statewide on KET-KY. Shows are archived online at http://www.campbellsville.edu/dialogue-on-public-issues.

“Dialogue on Public Issues” will also look closely at an election that all of Kentucky will be watching when Chowning interviews the two candidates  - State Rep. Jimmy Higdon, R-Lebanon, and former State Rep. Jodie Haydon, D-Bardstown - facing off in the December 8 special election for the District 14 seat in the Kentucky Senate. The special election follows the resignation of Senator Dan Kelly and his subsequent appointment to a vacant circuit court judgeship. The 14th Senatorial District includes Marion, Mercer, Nelson, Taylor, and Washington counties. The Higdon interview will air several times this week. The Haydon interview will premiere next Sunday and air several times next week. See the full story on Campbellsville.edu for air dates.

For more information about “Dialogue on Public Issues” episodes, contact Chowning at jechowning [at] campbellsville.edu or at 270-789-5520.

Record enrollments for AIKCU institutions; postsecondary enrollment up across Kentucky

Despite the down economy, enrollment is up again at Kentucky’s 20 nonprofit, independent colleges and universities. A preliminary fall enrollment report released today by the Council on Postsecondary Education indicates that a record 31,264 total students are enrolled this fall at institutions that comprise the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities. Total AIKCU enrollments have grown by 35 percent over the last 10 years.

Undergraduate enrollments at AIKCU institutions saw modest growth this fall of 1.3 percent over fall 2008. Graduate enrollment at independent colleges and universities grew by 11 percent, thanks in large part to the addition of new graduate programs at several AIKCU institutions. Total enrollment growth (both undergraduate and graduate/professional) in the independent sector was 2.8 percent.

While overall enrollment growth in the independent sector was modest, several institutions experienced stronger than average growth:

• Bellarmine University welcomed 610 new freshmen this fall, the largest entering class in the school’s history and an 8 percent increase over the previous fall’s freshman class. Bellarmine’s full-time undergraduate enrollment has grown by 15 percent over the last three years, to 2041 this fall.
• Campbellsville University began the semester with 728 new students, including freshmen, transfer, and re-admitted students, more than a 12 percent increase over the previous fall. Campbellsville’s freshman class of 515 was also a school record and represented an increase of about 15 percent over 2008.
• Lindsey Wilson College’s fall enrollment is a record 2,341, a 17 percent increase over last school year’s enrollment of 2,006. The college’s freshman class is a record 568.
• St. Catharine College saw its second straight year of double digit enrollment increases. St. Catharine’s 14 percent increase over Fall 2008 puts the Springfield college’s total enrollment at a record 860 students.

The enrollment increases at AIKCU institutions are consistent with Kentucky’s overall college enrollment growth this fall. Total postsecondary enrollments increased by 5 percent to 254,560 total students according to the CPE report. Undergraduate enrollment at Kentucky’s public universities grew by just under 2 percent. The largest growth was seen in the Kentucky Community and Technical System.

See the complete press release and report highlights from the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education.

AIKCU made its annual report to the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education during the September 10 CPE meeting at Western Kentucky University. AIKCU Board Chair John Roush, president of Centre College, Vice Chair Bill Huston, St. Catharine College president, and AIKCU president Gary S. Cox delivered AIKCU’s annual report to the Council. Several other AIKCU presidents also attended the meeting and participated in the subsequent question and answers session.

AIKCU’s annual report to the CPE is required by statute and provides a summary of the role private colleges play in the state’s effort to meet postsecondary education goals; explores ways in which their role can be further enhanced and challenges they face in that effort; and provides an opportunity for Council members to ask questions and offer suggestions to private college and university leaders.

The slideshow that accompanied the report to CPE is below.

Campbellsville University President Michael V. Carter and CPE President Robert L. King

By Joan C. McKinney, CU news and publications coordinator

CAMPBELLSVILLE, KY — Robert L. King, the third president of the Council on Postsecondary Education for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, said that he was “certainly impressed with what I’ve seen here today,” during a luncheon in his honor Aug. 31 at Campbellsville University’s Chowning Executive Dining Room.

King met with Ky. Sen. Dan Kelly (R-Springfield, Ky.); Brenda Allen, mayor of the City of Campbellsville; Roger Cook, Taylor County Schools superintendent; Ron McMahan, executive director of Team Taylor County Economic Development Authority; Campbellsville University educators and administrators and other interested parties.

King, in an address, said he has been on the job eight months and is learning about the state of the educational system in Kentucky. King is the former chancellor of the State University of New York, one of the largest comprehensive systems of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the world.

More recently, he served as president and CEO of the Arizona Community Foundation, a statewide charitable foundation with a strong focus on education, economic development and scientific research.

Dan Flanagan, co-chair of the Council on Postsecondary Education, said King was a good choice to lead Kentucky, and he was very knowledgeable in education.

King said the legislative leaders he has worked with in Kentucky are among the most knowledgeable and committed he has worked with in moving the state forward and enhancing educational attainment.

He said Kelly was a strong proponent of education and had been helpful to the CPE.

King said he was attracted to the Commonwealth of Kentucky because of the reforms put in place by House Bill 1in 1997 - generally known as the higher education reform bill in Kentucky - setting forth the goal of Kentucky meeting the national average of adults with bachelors degree’s by the year 2020 and other accountability measures.

King said Kentucky still has a long way to go in terms of doubling the numbers to raise the current 400,000 Kentuckians with a college degree to the 800,000 that is needed to reach the goal by 2020.

He said Kentucky can no longer afford to use its relatively poor economic status as an excuse to not pursue higher educational attainment.

He said 85 percent of 21st century jobs that pay a living wage require a post-secondary education. King commended Campbellsville University for her leadership in regional stewardship and economic development, noting that the key leaders were present in the room including local and state government officials, P-12 education (local schools), Team Taylor County/Economic Development Authority and higher education.

He spoke of the important contributions of Kentucky’s 20 private colleges and universities, of which CU is one, and commended the continuing growth of programs and enrollment at Campbellsville University.

He said, “I have been very impressed with what I’ve seen here today.”

King said of every 100 Kentucky ninth graders, 72 graduate from high school. Forty-four of the 72 enter college, and 29 are still enrolled in the sophomore year.  He said 18, of the 100 Kentucky ninth graders, graduate from college.

“Kentucky ranks low in educational attainment,” he said. He said the Commonwealth is 47th in bachelor’s degree attainment with 20 percent of adults 25 and older in 2007. Kentucky also ranks 47th in high school attainment with 80 percent of adults 25 and older in 2007, including high school equivalency.

In Taylor County, he pointed out, 16 percent have bachelor’s or higher degrees, and 73 percent have a high school degree or equivalent.

He said the Commonwealth is making progress with 10,307 adults having earned a GED in 2008. However, over 786,000 adults still do not have a high school diploma or GED.

He said postsecondary enrollment increased 30 percent from 1999 to 2008, but 30 percent of entering students do not return for a second year in the Commonwealth.

King also said there is a greater proportion of African Americans and low-income Kentuckians going to college than a decade ago, but there is still much work to be done in overcoming the gaps in educational attainment among African Americans and low-income Kentuckians.

King said “decisive leadership and a renewed commitment to create a highly educated Kentucky” and, “We want the best educated, best trained workforce in the nation.”He discussed the impacts of Senate Bill 1 passed during the 2009 General Assembly, which will bring the next wave of reform to Kentucky P-12 and higher education and noted that SB1 requires new partnerships to create a seamless educational system.

King answered questions from the audience concerning state financial aid programs, the ties between economic development and educational attainment and discussion of the role of Campbellsville University in providing support for the local community and region.

Dr. Michael V. Carter, president of Campbellsville University, presented key points concerning CU’s recent ranking as fourth in the South as an “up-and-coming” school out of 77 in the nation from the U.S.News & World Report’s 2010 “America’s Best Colleges Guide.” He said CU remains in the top 25 of “Best Baccalaureate Colleges” in the South.

Carter said CU is a “private institution with a public purpose” with a range of academic programs. He pointed out the importance of the Technology Training Center in training of those in the community.

One of the programs operated by the Tech Center is Kids College in which younger children are introduced to education from CU. Kids College was taken to Albany and Hodgenville this summer with 152 participating in those cities as well as at CU.

Carter pointed out a new economic impact analysis shows CU contributes $90 million to the economy of Campbellsville and Taylor County with 1,403 jobs. The tax revenue from CU is over $960,000.

He said CU provided over $11 million in institutional aid for 2008.

He also said Campbellsville University has a projected enrollment for 2009-2010 of nearly 2,900 with over 790 new freshmen, transfers and re-admitted students.  A discussion concerning the importance of dual-credit courses (in which high school students take university classes and earn college credit) pointed out that the professors teaching dual-credit courses have rigorous credentials. Dual-credit courses at CU are a financial advantage of $50 per credit hour.

Midway College President Butch Drake showcases Midway’s Equine Program
(all photos courtesy of Midway College)

Earlier this week Midway College hosted the July meeting of the Interim Joint Committee on Education, co-chaired by Representative Carl Rollins (56th District Representative, which includes Midway, as well as a former Midway staff member) and Senator Ken Winters (former President of Campbellsville University). Prior to the meeting, Committee members toured the campus and learned about Midway’s signature programs, including the innovative Equine Studies program. Several legislators were able to get a very close look at the experiential education that Midway students enjoy by themselves mounting college-owned horses.

Senator Tim Shaughnessy experiences Midway’s Equine Program

Midway President Butch Drake made a brief presentation during the committee meeting that emphasized the diversity of the independent sector and the independent colleges’ efforts to meet the educational needs of Kentucky citizens through innovative and entrepreneurial programs as well as traditional offerings.

The Interim Joint Committe on Education met in Midway’s Anne Hart Raymond Center

AIKCU President Gary S. Cox recently appeared on “Dialogue on Public Issues,” a public affairs program hosted by John Chowning, Campbellsville University Vice President for Church and External Relations. Chowning’s long-running program was recently picked up by KET for broadcast on their Kentucky Channel (KET KY). The show is produced by CU’s own television studio and features local and national guests, ranging from candidates for statewide elections to national subject matter experts, talking about current issues in a one-on-one, conversational format.

The episode featuring Dr. Cox and Chowning discussing the role of independent higher education in Kentucky can be seen in its entirety here. Other episodes of “Dialogue on Public Issues” can be accessed from Campbellsville’s site.