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WILMORE, KY—Asbury College senior Clark Sleeth, 19, of Wilmore, Ky., received the University of Kentucky College of Medicine’s Cralle Foundation/Joan Cralle Day fellowship for 2008-2009. The fellowship will award Sleeth a $15,000 stipend, a tuition scholarship and student health insurance. Sleeth is the first Asbury student to be awarded the fellowship.

The fellowship is a 12-month award named to honor Joan Cralle Day. To be eligible for the award the recipient must be a graduate of one of the 20 four-year independent colleges and universities in Kentucky affiliated with the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities. The recipient must also be applying to or enrolled in their first year of a graduate or professional program at the University of Kentucky.

Dr. Bobby Baldridge, professor of biology and chair of the Department of Natural Sciences, said that the department nominated Sleeth and coordinated the application process with him. Baldridge said that Sleeth was selected “because of his exemplary academic record and exceptional humanitarian qualities.”

In February, Sleeth participated in the worldwide Mathematical Contest in Modeling, earning a meritorious or top 15 percent ranking. Five teams participated in the contest that proposes real-world questions for college students to find mathematical solutions. Sleeth’s team tackled solving the efficiencies of healthcare in India. All other Asbury College teams received an honorable mention.

“Our courses provide the opportunity for superior preparation for graduate study,” Baldridge said. “However, the awarding of the fellowship to Clark is more telling about Clark’s commitment to learning than to anything else.”

Sleeth said that the faculty and staff of the College were supportive. He said that the reason he felt that he was selected was because of his academic record, but more importantly because of the letters of recommendation he received from professors and Provost Dr. Jon Kulaga.

Sleeth acknowledged that this was the next step to fulfill his calling as a missionary. He said the College offered him courses that would be useful in his future studies. He also said the College helped other medical school-bound seniors.

“In the past, Asbury has had a really good record with the medical students getting into medical school,” Sleeth said.

This fellowship will support a pre-existing scholarship for the UK College of Medicine.

For more information about the fellowship visit http://www.research.uky.edu/gs/fellowship/cralle.html.

Courtesy of Asbury College Public Relations. Read the original here.

2008 AIKCU Legislative Interns, originally uploaded by aikcu.

Five independent college students from campuses across Kentucky reported to Frankfort this week to begin internships with the General Assembly. The students will spend their spring semester working directly for state legislators as part of the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities Legislative Internship Program.

Sara Allen, an Alice Lloyd College junior from Viper, is a history and pre-law major who plans to attend law school. She will be working with Rep. Kathy Stein, a Lexington Democrat and chair of the state House of Representatives’ Judiciary Committee. Allen said that she applied for the internship because of her “interest in politics and the legal system.”

Micah Ingram, a Georgetown College junior from Corinth, is a political science major and would like to enter state government work someday. He will be interning with state Sen. Joey Pendleton, a Hopkinsville Democrat.

Leah Riley, an Asbury College junior from Harrodsburg, is a history major. She will be doing her internship with state Rep. Jim Wayne, a Louisville Democrat. She said that she applied for the internship to learn more about law-making and how public policy is made.

Holli Clevenger, a Lindsey Wilson College sophomore from Ashland, is a human services and counseling major at LWC. She will be doing her internship with state Rep. Susan Westrom, a Lexington Democrat. Clevenger said that she applied for the internship to learn how public policy is made “and how to increase civic engagement and advocacy on college campuses.”

“We’re very pleased to have another outstanding group of students come to Frankfort, and I’m certain that they will benefit as much from their experience here as have those who’ve completed this program in previous years,” said Dr. Gary S. Cox, president of AIKCU.

At their orientation luncheon, the five interns got advice from two former interns who have gone on to successful careers in state government. Leslie Caudill, a Pikeville College alum who now works in the office of the Kentucky Senate Democratic leadership, and Colene Elridge, a Transylvania University alum who works in the Personnel Cabinet, both told the new interns that this would be the “experience of a lifetime.” They encouraged the interns to work hard and ask lots of questions.

“In my four months as an intern I learned more than I ever did in a textbook or a class about government and how bills are made and passed,” said Caudill.

The Frankfort internship program, begun in 2000, is sponsored by the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities. Since its inception, 70 students attending most of Kentucky’s independent colleges, have spent a semester in Frankfort working for either selected members of the General Assembly or in state agencies. The program’s major purpose is to expose outstanding college students to public service as a career option and to help them hone already-existing leadership skills. Students chosen for the competitive program are required to complete 30 hours of work per week and two academic seminars focused on state government policy-making. They receive living expense stipends while in the state capital and a semester of academic credit from their campuses. The program is coordinated by Richard Wilson, a retired higher education reporter and Frankfort Bureau Chief for the Courier-Journal.

Please visit AIKCU.org periodically for more news about the interns and their experiences during what promises to be an exciting session of the General Assembly.

Click here to view more photos from the orientation.

Berea College junior Ashley Burba of Munfordville, KY, is spotlighted in a September 2007 Kentucky Living article about time management. The single mother of a 3 year old, Ashley balances her studies at Berea, caring for her daughter, and her campus work position as the student office manager of Berea’s Student Financial Aid office. Ashley, who happens to also be an AIKCU Named Scholar, is representative of the many students on Kentucky independent college campuses who shatter conventional perceptions of college students by juggling work, family, and educational responsibilities.

From the article:

A single mother with a 3-year-old daughter. A junior in college majoring in agriculture. The manager of an office with four other employees. These three busy people are actually all the same person and her name is Ashley Burba. And when I visit her apartment on the Berea College campus, she has even baked toffee cookies, which are cooling on the kitchen counter.

Her secret? “I write everything down,” Ashley says. “I keep a calendar book.” In her weekly schedule, she marks out blocks of time for all her commitments: her classes, her 23 hours as manager of the Student Financial Aid Office, her volunteer work at the college’s Ecovillage. After she picks up Isabella at day care, the two have playtime and dinner while Ashley does housework. She studies when her daughter is in bed.

It’s a daunting schedule, but Ashley handles it with grace and energy by staying focused on what’s most important to her: her daughter and her education. This semester her special goal is to get all A’s and B’s in her classes.

Ashley and other successful students across Kentucky have discovered the key to using time well: setting priorities and then building the day around them. We all have our “have-to’s” (study, work, chores) and our “want-to’s” (sports, TV time, socializing). An effective schedule allows enough time to cover all the have-to’s, in order to make room for plenty of want-to’s.

Continue reading the full article.

AIKCU Interns pose during their orientation luncheon at the AIKCU office.
L-R: Jana Habarek (Lindsey Wilson); Crystal Bishop (Lindsey Wilson); Amanda Mullen (Midway); Erin Owen (Asbury); Kayla Blanton (Pikeville)

Forget what you might have seen on MTV. Five independent college students got a taste of the “real world” this spring while interning in state government through AIKCU’s Frankfort Semester Internship Program.

Four of the five AIKCU interns will graduate this weekend. One intern, Erin Owen of Asbury College, has already parlayed her intern experience into a full-time position in the Governor’s office (see related story). All of them agree that this experience opened up a world of possibilities for the future.

Jana Habarek explains that the practical experience she gained while interning with the Kentucky Historical Society and the exposure to a variety of people have given her confidence in her ability to face the future. She notes that prior to her internship she “felt that there was nowhere to go in Kentucky to get a job with a bachelor’s degree in History and Social Science. The AIKCU internship showed me the endless opportunities and directions I can go in with my education from a small school like Lindsey Wilson College.”

A key aspect of the AIKCU internships is the full-time nature of the program and immersion in a real state government working environment. Interns are treated as valued employees with real responsibilities. This is both challenging and invigorating for the participants.

Kayla Blanton of Pikeville College, the only non-senior among the five interns, worked in the Department of Parks where she wrote press releases and conducted market research, among other tasks.

Blanton notes that the experience challenged her as both a writer and a person. “This internship has given me the opportunity to sharpen my communication skills as well as invaluable experience that I would have never learned in a classroom,” she said. “I now have a much better understanding of the career path I want to take and the person I want to be.”

Life as an intern in the Secretary of State’s office was never dull for Crystal Bishop, a Lindsey Wilson College biology major. The days leading up to late-January’s candidate filing deadline for state primaries was particularly exciting.

“It was crazy when everyone was filing to run for state office,” said Bishop. “I had photographers jumping on my desk, candidates coming in at the very last second, you name it, it happened.”

Bishop also contends that the internship experience provided educational and professional opportunities that she would never have access to on campus. “I had the opportunity to meet every potential governor and many other influential state government officials,” she notes. “Secretary Grayson and his staff have made me feel right at home. I feel like a part of the team, not just an intern.”

For Midway College’s Amanda Mullen, who interned for the Council on Postsecondary Education, the internship “presented me with the opportunity to build lasting friendships and make valuable connections in the professional world.” Like her colleagues in the program, Mullen gives the AIKCU internship program a ringing endorsement. She writes, “I would highly recommend the AIKCU internship to other students.”

Asbury College’s Erin Owen, who went straight from her internship to her new role as assistant to the director of Gov. Fletcher’s Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives, said that her AIKCU internship “truly changed my life.” She had no experience in state government or administration and public policy prior to beginning her AIKCU internship in January. The help, advice and camaraderie from other Fletcher staff members, she said, have led her to consider a career in some aspect of public service. “That is (also) life changing for someone who would not have thought twice about such an undertaking in the past,” Owen said.

The AIKCU internships are sponsored during the spring semester of each year and are open to applicants from Kentucky’s 20 independent colleges and universities who are juniors, seniors or graduate students. Students work 30 hours weekly and complete two academic seminars while in Frankfort. During even-numbered years interns work with members of Kentucky’s legislature. In alternate years they spend their semester working in state government executive agencies. The primary purpose of the program, held each spring semester since 2000, is to expose outstanding students to public service and state government as a potential career choice.

Click “more” to see more photos of the interns Read the rest of this entry »

While many soon-to-be college graduates may still be feverishly searching for that first full-time job, Asbury College senior Erin Owen isn’t one of them.

Owen, who will receive her bachelor’s degree in applied communications May 13, has already parlayed a spring semester internship in Gov. Ernie Fletcher’s office into a full-time job there. She has already begun her new post as assistant to the director of Gov. Fletcher’s Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives.

“I anticipated that the end of the semester would be a time where I would be fervently looking for a job. (Now) I am very pleased that (it) will not hold such endeavors,” Owen said. Owen is one of five Kentucky independent college students who this month are completing their semester-long state government internships in a program administered by the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities. She joins Michelle Clark, a 2004 intern and Asbury alumna on Gov. Fletcher’s staff.

Until assuming her new full-time job, Owen spent the first three months of her internship in a variety of duties including the tracking of legislation before the General Assembly and preparing adopted legislation for Gov. Fletcher’s signature. “Her work as an intern was outstanding, and we are pleased to now have her as part of our staff,” said Stan Cave, Gov. Fletcher’s chief of staff. “(She) is a very smart and talented young lady who has a bright future ahead of her (and) I look forward to watching Erin learn and grow as a part of this administration,” Cave added.

Owen, in a recent interview, said that her AIKCU internship “truly changed my life.” Prior to applying for the internship, she added, she had no experience in either state government or administration and public policy. The help, advice and camaraderie from other Fletcher staff members, she said, have led her to consider a career in some aspect of public service. “That is (also) life changing for someone who would not have thought twice about such an undertaking in the past,” Owen said.

The Asbury senior is the daughter of Charlie and Sherry Vittitow of Eastwood, a Louisville suburb. She is married to Michael (Mitch) Owen, an Asbury student who plans to attend dental school.

The AIKCU internships are sponsored during the spring semester of each year and are open to applicants from the independent colleges who are juniors, seniors or graduate students. Students work 30 hours weekly and complete two academic seminars while in Frankfort. During even-numbered years interns work with members of Kentucky’s legislature. In alternate years they spend their semester working in state government executive agencies. The primary purpose of the program, held each spring semester since 2000, is to expose outstanding students to state government as a potential career choice.

Campbellsville University is temporary home for Mongolian newscaster

By Ashley Sidebottom, Campbellsville University staff writer

Ed McGuire, Campbellsville University’s consultant for broadcasting, has dubbed Dulguun Lkhagva “the Katie Couric of Mongolia.”

Lkhagva, 26, left her “celebrity” status in Ulaanbaatar to study English as a Second Language (ESL) at Campbellsville University.

She is taking advantage of her ESL studies as an opportunity to send valuable news broadcasts back to Mongolia.

Lkhagva utilizes the television equipment at TV-4, CU’s low-power local television station, to document and edit the news she encounters and records in the United States to send back to Mongolia’s TV-5.

She has reported on Mongolian activities at CU, and she also reported news from Los Angeles when she made a trip there during Christmas break.

Before coming to CU in August 2006, Lkhagva traveled to Germany where she trained for two weeks. She has also reported news from France, Italy, China and several other countries.

“Mongolia can learn a lot of things from my experiences here,” Lkhagva said.

She plans to do a serious newscast in the future possibly featuring American health insurance.

Lkhagva has more than four years experience as a journalist and news reporter. Her experience helped her receive the spot as broadcast anchor on TV-5.

“Many people are shocked that I am an anchor at such a young age,” Lkhagva said, since the position is one most often fulfilled by seasoned professionals.

Lkhagva, who is a news reporting major at her home university, came to CU to study ESL since the second language in Mongolia is Russian.

Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia, is Lkhagva’s hometown. She said it is a “very busy city.”

“Campbellsville is much smaller, and a very good condition to study in,” Lkhagva said.

“English is a necessity,” Lkhagva said. “I have learned a lot about American culture,” and she will take that culture back home with her.

Despite CU’s large Mongolian population of 41 students, Lkhagva said she only knew one or two Mongolians when she arrived here. While having culturally similar people close by, Lkhagva said she still dealt with a huge culture shock when she came to Campbellsville because it is so different from what she was used to.

One bonus of not knowing people, Lkhagva said, is that she isn’t a hometown celebrity anymore. “I’m just a student here,” she said.

“I miss my job,” Lkhagva said, but she calls home every day to talk with friends and family. She also e-mails them to keep in touch.

At age 15 Lkhagva was also named the Mongolian Swimming Champion.

Upon leaving CU, Lkhagva plans to move to Los Angeles to pursue a master of journalism degree, and eventually head back to Mongolia to continue developing Mongolian television.