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May 28, 2004

BOARD OF REGENTS AWARDS LEADERSHIP GRANTS

(TOPEKA) – This week the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) awarded three grants that are intended to encourage, expand and improve workforce education and economic development in Kansas. Butler County Community College, Manhattan Area Technical College and Wichita Area Technical College were selected from 30 eligible Kansas community colleges, technical colleges and technical schools. Grant selection was based on the merits of proposals submitted to KBOR that would enhance the areas of career and technical education by either serving as a demonstration site or as a statewide/regional model.

“I am pleased to recognize the innovative proposals submitted by these three institutions,” said Reginald Robinson, President and CEO of the Kansas Board of Regents. “These programs will truly enhance workforce and economic development efforts in the state and would not be possible without the continued federal funding made possible by the support of our Congressional delegation.”

Butler County Community College was awarded $47,719 to fund “Increasing Student Access to Technical/Vocational Programs” – an innovative approach in the use of web-based curriculum in the areas of auto body, auto technology, manufacturing technology and welding. Students will have the opportunity to master the art of welding using both computer-based and traditional lab-based instruction, which in turn will increase student access to high skill/high wage careers in Kansas.

Manhattan Area Technical College was awarded $29,800 to expand the “Health Exploration Alignment Ladder” – a project designed to provide students with the opportunity to explore health care career options in an attempt to address the current shortage of health caregivers in the region.

Wichita Area Technical College was awarded $40,000 to “designing, develop and deploy a statewide technical education curriculum.” This project will produce a common curriculum and course-numbering system with comparable program lengths for similar technical programs. This change will assist students as they compare statewide technical education programs or transfer from one institution to another as well as improve technical education programs.

These leadership grants are awarded annually by KBOR to postsecondary institutions through a competitive process designed to identify innovative projects that impact workforce education and economic development. The grants are made possible by the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998, a federal program that was established to assist with improving student achievement as well as preparing students for learning through educational reform, innovations and continuous improvement in career and technical education.

The KBOR Office of Career and Technical Education assists the 30 postsecondary institutions benefiting from Carl D. Perkins funding with federal and state compliance issues, continuous improvement through data-based decision making and professional development to encourage and enhance innovative career and technical educational programming to meet the needs of the communities they serve and the state of Kansas.

For more information contact Kip Peterson, Director of Government Affairs & Communications, at (785) 296-3421.

June 7, 2004 10:51 AM