DIRECTOR S ANNUAL REPORT ARDMORE HIGHER EDUCATION CENTER

Transcription

1 DIRECTOR S ANNUAL REPORT ARDMORE HIGHER EDUCATION CENTER The University Center of Southern Oklahoma

2 RETROSPECTIVE BACKGROUND: Opened in 1974, the Higher Education Program was the first Oklahoma off-campus university center established by Oklahoma statute. The AHEC facility contains instructional spaces that include traditional, multimedia, and ITV-equipped classrooms and laboratories. The facility also includes a bookstore, a student lounge, academic advisement offices, administrative offices, and an academic library. Because the AHEC facility is adjacent to High School, 10 to 12 classrooms in the high school are utilized by AHEC during the evening hours. The library is online with access to most Oklahoma academic libraries, the Internet, and interlibrary loan services enable students to receive materials not available on-site. Many courses are offered through interactive television and taught by faculty from the main campus. ACADEMIC PROFILE: The Higher Education Center is a university center comprised of four public higher education institutions who cooperatively offer undergraduate and graduate degree programs. East Central University (Ada), Murray State College (Tishomingo), Southeastern Oklahoma State University (Durant), and Oklahoma State University-Oklahoma City offer more than 200 courses during fall and spring semesters and 90 courses during the summer. Courses and programs may be offered from any Oklahoma public higher education institution. Degree programs offered at AHEC are designed so students can complete Associate, Bachelor, or Master degrees at the AHEC campus. There are two sixteen-week semesters (fall and spring) lasting from mid-august to mid-december and mid-january to mid-may. An eight-week summer session is offered during June and July. Additional college courses of varying lengths may be offered during the year and during two intersessions. Most classes meet one or two evenings each week. A variety of continuing education courses, seminars, and workshops also are offered. Most of the student population of AHEC consists of nontraditional students, working adults, students who transfer to another college or university after completion of general education courses, concurrent high school seniors, and other place-bound individuals in Carter, Murray, Love, Marshall, Jefferson, Garvin, Johnston and other southern Oklahoma counties. For most students, graduation occurs sometime after the traditional fourth year, as two or three courses totaling six to ten credit hours are the average academic load per semester. FACULTY: There are 60 to 70 college faculty teaching at AHEC each semester. Faculty are employed by the partner institutions. On average, 75% are members of the institutional partner s full-time faculty and 25% are specialized adjunct faculty. More than half of the ECU and SOSU faculty hold doctorate degrees. On average, the faculty-to-student ratio is 15 to 1. ADMISSIONS POLICY: Students taking classes at AHEC must meet the admissions and transfer standards of their participating institution. Generally, an open admission policy is provided for freshman students through the participation of Murray State College. COSTS: Average annual tuition and fees for a freshman resident student enrolled in 30 hours during the fall and spring semesters are $2,630. Average annual books and supplies are approximately $750. FINANCIAL AID: Scholarships, federal grants, and loans are available for students who qualify. Financial aid is administered through the participating institutions. In addition to federal and state financial aid programs, the participating institutions award tuition fee waivers on a competitive basis based on financial need and academic achievement. Scholarships from local foundations and endowments are also available. GOVERNANCE: The Higher Education Center is governed by a ten-member Board of Trustees appointed by the governor. The Board of Trustees approves all courses and programs offered at AHEC. For more information about the Higher Education Center, see AHEC s website at

3 MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR/CEO Steven C. Mills, Ph.D. Director/CEO Over the last year, the trustees and administrative staff have become keenly aware of the important role of the Higher Education Center in the economic growth and development of southern Oklahoma. We acted on this understanding by adopting a bold and ambitious strategic plan designed to impact the southern Oklahoma economy by increasing higher education opportunities. You can review a summary of our strategic plan and read about our key accomplishments during in the following sections of this report. Although developing and maintaining an effective delivery system for higher education programming has long been the focus of AHEC, we recognize that our university partners are the primary agents for delivering undergraduate and graduate courses to southern Oklahoma. The role of AHEC in this higher education delivery system is to create and coordinate high quality college programs that leverage the educational strengths of our university partners against the educational needs of southern Oklahoma. Our new strategic plan reflects our intention to focus most of our efforts on the creation and management of higher education programs in southern Oklahoma. Here are some of the initiatives put forward by our strategic plan: EXPANDED DEGREE AND CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMMING. The degree and nondegree program offerings at AHEC must be responsive to community needs and serve students further into their academic careers to the complete degree and to an advanced degree or professional certification. Program offerings at AHEC must provide students with complete programs in fields that directly benefit them in obtaining employment or in advancing their careers. Thus, AHEC will continually expand degree and non-degree program offerings to match the education and training needs of the citizens of southern Oklahoma. RESIDENT TEACHING AND RESEARCH FACULTY. Much of the projected growth of AHEC depends on creating new programs and developing endowments to attract highly-qualified college faculty to the AHEC campus. We plan to implement programs to recruit and support both research and teaching faculty through externally-funded fellowship programs and research grants that will help us recruit and support visiting scholars and specialized research faculty. In the coming year we will be asking the southern Oklahoma community to fund a new campus for The University Center of Southern Oklahoma. We believe that a new campus will enable our enrollment to double or even triple over the next 10 years as the availability of higher education programs is expanded. Ultimately, this endeavor has the potential to raise the standard of living in southern Oklahoma as more and more of our citizens realize their dream and goal of a college education for themselves and their children. A NAME CHANGE. During the next legislative session, the Board of Trustees will request the Oklahoma Legislature to change our name to The University Center of Southern Oklahoma to better reflect our mission and the population of students served by AHEC. A BUILDING CAMPAIGN. AHEC facilities are currently located on property owned by City Schools. Its facilities are leased from the school district and the lease expires in The existing location will not accommodate an extensive expansion of the campus to allow continued growth in enrollment. Therefore, there is a need to establish our own campus that is owned by our local Board of Trustees and in a location that will support increased enrollment and expansion for years to come.

4 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS DEVELOPMENT AND ADOPTION OF A STRATEGIC PLAN. In March 2005, the Board of Trustees held a planning retreat in conjunction with their March quarterly meeting. Trustees reviewed and updated the AHEC mission statement and established a vision and goals for AHEC. The Board retreat was followed by a planning meeting of AHEC staff to establish performance objectives and measures for each of the goals. To complete the planning process, institutional representatives participated in establishing action plans and in affirming the goals and objectives set by Trustees and staff. DETERMINATION OF NEED FOR NEW CAMPUS. Ownership of existing facilities and property is held by City Schools. The current lease arrangement with City Schools expires in The Board of Trustees determined that significant expansions are needed to accommodate long-term growth and that it needed to own its own campus rather than operate from leased facilities. In response to the strategic plan, the Capital Projects Committee of the Board of Trustees has initiated a search for 40 or more acres in a location that will sustain the long-term growth and development of AHEC. AUTHORIZATION FOR NAME CHANGE. In a resolution at its June 2005 meeting, the Board of Trustees approved changing the name of AHEC to The University Center of Southern Oklahoma. The Trustees requested the Oklahoma legislature make the necessary changes to the state statutes for the name change to take effect. CAPITAL BOND FUNDING FOR CONSTRUCTION OF CLASSROOM SPACE. The Higher Education Capital Bond Project approved during the 2005 legislative session provided $600,000 for AHEC. The original legislation designated that these bond proceeds be used on additions and renovations to the existing facility. Senator Johnnie Crutchfield sponsored legislation to redesignate these bond proceeds for construction of classroom space at the new facility. a result, AHEC is changing from distributing a proportion of tuition to its institutional partners to setting a fixed dollar value for its share of tuition. Institutional partners set their own tuition rates at AHEC and then AHEC adds its fixed tuition rate to the institutional partner s tuition rate. This cumulative total must be less than the average rate of peer institutions for regional institutions as established by the Oklahoma State Regents. This procedure ensures an equitable assessment of tuition for students enrolled at all course levels, standardizes the distribution of tuition revenues among the institutional partners, and authenticates the projection of tuition revenues. CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMS. In a study of AHEC, the National Center for Higher Education Management determined a need for offering continuing education and non-credit courses, workshops, and seminars. At the beginning of the spring semester, a Program Coordinator was employed with the task of developing a program of continuing and professional education programs and courses. Some of the programs implemented during the 2005 spring and summer terms include Geographical & Cultural Journey Across America colloquia, Kids to Kollege summer institute, and Vacation Spanish workshops. EXTENDED ADMINISTRATIVE SUPERVISION DURING ALL REGULAR HOURS. In addition to developing new continuing education and degree-based programs, the Program Coordinator provides administrative support for classes during evening hours and on Saturdays. A part-time Program Coordinator was employed to assist in program development and to provide student support services. In addition to extended administrative supervision, the library hours were extended to include Saturday mornings. ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW TUITION DISTRIBUTION PROCEDURE. In 2003 the Oklahoma Legislature modified the statutory limits and expanded the role of institutional governing boards in establishing tuition rates. As

5 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS RECORD ENROLLMENTS. During FY 2005, AHEC attained record enrollments. The unduplicated head count totaled over 3,100 students for the year: Fall ,208; Spring ,298; and Summer Students enrolled in almost 25,000 credit hours in over 450 college courses. COMPLETION OF ROOF REPAIR PROJECT. At the end of FY 2004, bids were accepted to repair the roof on all parts of the facility except for the new administrative office wing and the new classroom wing. The project was completed in February 2004 at a cost of $93,500. The project was paid by funds from the AHEC Endowment Trust account held by Community Activities, Inc. IMPROVEMENTS TO THE EXISTING FACILITY. Also during FY 2005, two new heating/air conditioning units were installed over the library to replace aging, non-functional units. All furnishings in the entrance and lobby areas were replaced, including tables, chairs, sofas, lounge chairs, and coffee and end tables. The AHEC logo attached to the front of the building facing Veterans Boulevard was moved from the west end of the front of the building to the east end to increase its visibility. References to the institutional partners were added around the AHEC logo. Murray State College installed a computer lab consisting of twelve computers to be used for math remediation. WORK PLAN FOR FY The FY 2006 work plan will include the reorganization of office and classroom space at AHEC; reformulation of the programming agreements with our institutional partners; implementation of new degree programs, including an AAS in Police Science - Crime Scene Investigation, a BA/BS in Social Gerontology, and advanced degree programs in health sciences; creation and organization of a supporting foundation; review of the organizational structure of AHEC; acquisition of property for the new campus; the development of architectural renderings and construction plans for the new facility; and inauguration of a fund-raising campaign. FINANCIAL SUMMARY The general operating fund for FY 2005 had revenues of $2.4 million. AHEC operates on a tuition-sharing basis with its university partners and a large proportion of tuition revenues are returned to the partner institutions.

6 STRATEGIC PLAN Goal 1: Establish our own university center campus. Review and evaluate our organizational structure and make needed adjustments or adaptations. Identify and acquire property for the location of a new campus. Establish a building campaign to raise funds from the community to build a new campus. Construct new facilities that provide sufficient and modern classroom and office space to accommodate a growing enrollment. Goal 2: Provide a student-friendly university environment. Increase availability of, and improve access to, student services, including academic advisement, enrollment, and financial aid. Provide centralized support services that include a bookstore and child care services on campus. Provide up-to-date technology services and resources that are easily accessible and available to students and instructors. Goal 3: Provide a good value for a college education. Increase availability of degree programs based on higher education needs of citizens of southern Oklahoma. Provide access to higher education opportunities for students from diverse educational and socioeconomic backgrounds. Maintain tuition rates that are comparable to university partner rates. Provide academic supports for students in completing degree programs. Extend higher education resources into the community. Increase community awareness of higher education opportunities. Increase the number of continuing education offerings. Goal 4: Provide a university presence that impacts southern Oklahoma. Modify name and examine organizational structure to better represent purpose and service area. Increase external funding through research grants and contracts. Increase the quality of instruction through fellowships for visiting scholars. Promote and participate in economic and community development projects. Increase the proportion of persons with a college degree through new degree programs and course offerings that accommodate degree completions.

7 QUICK FACTS Four University/College Partners: Murray State College, East Central University, Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma State University-Oklahoma City Program Offerings: Associate (Arts, Science, & Applied Science), Bachelor (Arts/Science), Master degrees (Education/Science) Enrollment: Over 1,200 students per semester, approximately 200 courses per semester, and 25,000 credit hours per year Class schedule: Monday-Thursday 8:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. and Friday-Saturday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Personnel: 8 to 10 AHEC personnel and 12 to 15 university partner administrative/student support personnel, approximately 70 instructors per semester Budget: $2.4 million budget, 22% appropriated from OSRHE, 78% tuition and fees, 70% of tuition and fees revenues returned to university partners Facilities: 30,000 sq. ft., 12 Classrooms and Laboratories (plus 10 to 12 Classrooms used in High School), Library, Computer Lab, Student Lobby, Bookstore, Offices for AHEC, MSC, ECU, and SOSU STUDENT PROFILE FOR FY 2005 CLASSIFICATION FALL/2004 SPRING/2005 SUMMER/2005 Freshmen 537 (44%) 560 (43%) 198 (37%) Sophomores 324 (27%) 403 (31%) 108 (20%) Juniors 94 (8%) 84 (6%) 48 (9%) Seniors 36 (3%) 36 (3%) 46 (9%) Graduates 104 (9%) 93 (8%) 90 (17%) Non-Degree Seeking 121 (10%) 123 (9%) 47 (9%) Total Enrollment First Time Freshmen 240 (20%) 78 (6%) 46 (9%) High School Students 84 (7%) 83 (6%) 35 (7%) Females 878 (72%) 970 (75%) 413 (77%) Males 338 (28%) 329 (25%) 124 (23%)

8 Board of Trustees, Charles Clowe, Chairman Andre Moore, Secretary Brent Hartin Marietta Thomas Worsham Healdton James Cruson Kingston Bob Bramlett, Vice-Chairman Mark Cunningham Kathleen Maher Bebe Lodes Sulphur Dustin P. Rowe Tishomingo Administrative Staff, Steven C. Mills, Ph.D. Director/CEO Robin Plumb, Ed.D. Program Coordinator Audrey Gastineau ITV Coordinator/Library Assistant Mary Ray Office Manager Cindy D. Pollard Assistant Director/CIO Cyndi Stoker Accountant Amanda Stinson Library Technical Services Coordinator Judy Harper Administrative Secretary Barbara Ellis Georganne Westfall Executive Secretary Program Coordinator Institutional Partner Staff, East Central University Dayna Stephens, Academic Coordinator Kirk Rushing, EOC Counselor Southeastern Oklahoma State University Kathy Carr, Academic Coordinator Deborah Godwin, EOC Counselor Murray State College Lynette Kirk, Director of Operations Rhonda Glenn, Associate Financial Aid Director Ronda Pickens, Student Support Counselor Margie Ritchie, Enrollment Facilitator Oklahoma State University-Oklahoma City Kathy Carr, Academic Coordinator This publication, printed by Sprekelmeyer Printing, is issued by the Higher Education Center as authorized by 70 O.S. 1999, Section Five hundred copies have been prepared and distributed at a cost of $1, Copies have been deposited with the Publications Clearinghouse of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries. The Higher Education Center, in compliance with Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order as amended, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and other federal laws, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, handicap, or status as a veteran, in any of its policies, practices, or procedures. This includes but is not limited to education, programs, employment, financial aid, and educational services.