Published: September 21, 2009 08:13 am      

EKU enrollment up by 2 percent

Transfer students increase 7 percent

With 16,200 students enrolled this fall, Eastern Kentucky University’s enrollment is up 2 percent, President Doug Whitlock told the board of regents Saturday.

Freshman enrollment is up 6 percent and transfer enrollment is up 7, the president said. There is a downside to the positive numbers, however.

An overall increase of 2 percent with larger percentages of incoming freshman and transfers indicates the university is not meeting its retention goals, Whitlock said.

“That means we need to do more to help our students be successful,” he said.

Among retention initiatives, planned or under way, is an effort to better prepare high school students for college math courses, Whitlock said.

This fall, seniors at Madison Central, Madison Southern and Berea Community high can take a transitional algebra course that should help them avoid having to take a remedial math course when they get to college, he said.

The course being taught at the three high schools is designed for students who have completed one geometry class and two algebra classes in high school, but have not scored high enough on the ACT college admissions exam to qualify for a college math class.

The classes will benefit the university as well as the students, regardless of where they go to college, the president said. Eastern stands to get better-prepared incoming students, while the students will not have to pay tuition for college courses that will not count toward their graduation requirements.

“The number one indicator of college success is being able to pass college algebra without remediation,” said Dr. Bill Phillips, dean of EKU’s college of education, when the program was announced.

In the past, EKU has not done the job it should of indentifying, early on, students who are struggling, Whitlock said.

Over the past 10 years, about 60 percent of the Madison County students who took a developmental math class at EKU did not go on to earn a college degree, according to statistics released by the university.

The 48 percent of applicants accepted this fall, a high proportion, also indicates that EKU may be accepting too many students who are not fully prepared for college work, Whitlock said. The university also is working on ways to attack that problem, he said.

Other business

Construction of the performing arts center next to the Business and Technology building off the Eastern Bypass between Kit Carson Drive and Lancaster Road is 30 percent complete, the president said. It and the first phase of the new science building near the center of campus should be ready for occupancy when the 2011 fall term begins, he said.

EKU eagerly awaits both facilities, which will add about 400,000 square feet to the campus’ physical plant, Whitlock said. The university also realizes that their operation and maintenance will significantly increase campus expenses, he said, and EKU will include that in its state budget requests.

The university completed the fiscal year with its budget in balance, said Deborah Newsom, vice president for finance, despite a $1.5 million reduction in state funding.

Whitlock said the university had been told to prepare for a 4-percent cut in state funding.

“We were cut only 2 percent, but we still decreased expenses by 4 percent,” he said.

The state funding was cut by the lower amount because it applied $155,000 million in federal economic stimulus funding to education at all levels, Whitlock said. The university went ahead with the 4 percent expense reductions because the economy may not be fully recovered after the federal stimulus is spent, he said, and state funding may not have returned to previous levels.

EKU reduced expenses in part by freezing faculty and staff salaries, and Whitlock said he appreciated the understanding and support of university employees for his efforts.

Their support can be attributed in large part to the transparent manner in which spending cuts were applied, he said.

Work is progressing on the Walters Hall dormitory, said James Street, associate vice president for capital planning and facilities management. Because the structure’s brick façade was not properly installed when originally constructed, he said it must be completely replaced. The project also includes removal of asbestos from the building.

The $10 million cost is being funded from the university’s residence hall reserve fund, he said.

The regents voted to accept a faculty recommendation to eliminate fees when students drop or add courses.

The board welcomed three new members, gubernatorial appointees Nancy Collins of Hazard and David Sloan of northern Kentucky, and student regent Afsi Siahkoohi of Irvine.

Bill Robinson can be reached at brobinson@ richmondregister.com or at 624-6622.