unveils ‘Plan for a Competitive Commonwealth'

PRESTONSBURG - Floyd County students being under-prepared for college was one of the issues addressed Friday at a meeting concerning proposals by the Kentucky Community and Technical College System held at the Big Sandy Community and Technical College campus.

According to figures provided during the meeting, in 2006, Floyd County schools had a graduation rate of 75 percent, and 51 percent went to instate schools. Of those students, 65 percent required developmental math courses.

Dr. Michael B. McCall, president of KCTCS, who spoke at the meeting via telephone, said that one of the strategic initiatives proposed will address collaboration with school districts to better prepare high school students entering into KCTCS.

During the legislative briefing to introduce the “Plan for a Competitive Commonwealth,” McCall outlined a series of goals for improving the KCTCS system.

“Our work will become even more important as we move forward in meeting the needs of business and industry in providing an adequately trained workforce,” McCall said.

Research shows that 83 percent of all jobs created in the state over the next seven years will require an associate degree or less.

“KCTCS was charged with combining the 14 community colleges that were part of the University of Kentucky with the fifteen technical colleges that were under the state's jurisdiction, and functions today as an innovative system of 16 comprehensive community and technical colleges with 67 campuses,” said McCall.

According to the plan, as a result of working collaboratively with secondary school districts, KCTCS will contribute to the level of preparedness for high school graduates by increasing the percentage of high school dual credit/dual enrollment students from 9 percent in 2006-07 to 15 percent by 2020, with a greater emphasis on general education courses.

Other initiatives addressed at the meeting included an expansion of workforce education, increasing the number of transfers from KCTCS schools to Kentucky's four-year colleges, and improved remediation services. KCTCS also plans to assume the primary role in providing adult education and literacy programs and services.

“We have great relationships with our public school partners, four year colleges, and with the business community,” said Dr. George D. Edwards, president of Big Sandy Community and Technical College. “The funding of the KCTCS plan will enable us to work collaboratively to make huge differences in the success of our students in terms of remediation, transfer and workforce readiness.”

In order to achieve the initiatives outlined in the business plan, KCTCS will need an incremental increase in funding of $32 million annually through 2020.

State Sen. Johnny Ray Turner and state Rep. Leslie Combs as well as several local elected officials and business representatives, were in attendance to show their support for the proposals.