1998 December

~,\l 0C)J) MSU ARCHIVf MSU Clip ::iheet A sample of recent articles of interest to Morehead State University UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS MOREHEAD STATE UNIVERSITY UPO BOX 1100 MOREHEAD, KY 40361-1689 606-783-2030 Lexington Herald-Leader Tuesday, December 1, 1998 .Colleges reacting to dorm fire Despite having $15 million strong public colleges and uni •Safety changes available and ready to be spent versities accept responsibility for in the next few months, fi re safe their own situations as well as .will take a while ty improvements will not be for their own destinies. made overnight. By Gordon K. Davies When the unexpected hap Only a limited number of pens, especially when a promis I expect that every one of us firms do this kind of•work. ing young life is lost, it is diffi who ever has left a child at col Students will have to be shuffled cult to stick to the idea of lege felt some apprehension as about in order to empty whole autonomous colleges and univer we drove home that she or he halls or floors so additional fire sities. It is easy to encourage was suddenly beyond our ability safety devices can be institutions to run to to protect and keep safe. installed. The ceilings government for help, Surely. every parent's heart of older buildings just as children run goes out to the family of Michael may contain asbestos to parents. Minger. the student who died in that has to be I respect those a residence hall fire at Murra,· removed as part of the Kentucky trustees State Un1versny earlier this fa ll. work. l3ecause some and administrators When something so senseless halls already are who planned over the happens, especially when it is scheduled for demoli years to improve fire the result of a foolish and crimi tion and replacemem. safety, and I respect nal act - apparently a prank these plans may be those who have that went terribly wrong - we adjusted. accepted this respon need LO act as quickly as possi l{esidence halls are Safety, like sibility even if it was ble to protect the innocent built and maintained heat and unanticipated. against its happening again. with student fees. The electricity, i,s Does this indicate That is what we did. The universities are land part of the cost a lack of compassion presidents of our state-supported lords - caring land of renting a for Michael Minger colleges and universities con lords. but landlords room. and his family? l ferred with me immediately and nonetheless. Safety, don't think so. For began to estimate the cost of like heat and electrici Gordon K. Davies Michael's fami ly, the bringing all residence halls up to ry, is part of the cost natural order of the current fi re safety standards, of renting a room. things, in which chil regardless of when they were I recommended that fi re safe dren bury their parents, has constructed. ty improvements should be made been reversed. This is the occa At the direction of Gov. Paul using university reserves and sion for great sadness. Patton. his aides convened a bonds repaid over 20 years from All of us - the presidents. working group of top adminis student housing fees. The state the Council on Postsecondary tration officials to ensure that Council on Postsecondary Education, the administration of uni versity administrations would Education agreed with me for Gov. Patton, and I - are deter not be impeded as they moved three reasons. mined to improve fire safety quickly to undertake necessary First, this is the fastest way and to make this sad event an renovations, and that they would to get the projects started. The opportunity to learn behavior get immediate guidance about reser\'e funds and bonding that will help the citizens of what has to be done. authority are in hand. Second, Kentucky and the colleges and We found that some universi using these sources of funds universities that serve them. ty administrations had made fi re respects the financial strucrures Education can be a cruel safety a priority some years ago. of public higher education. business. Despite the best carefully building the costs into which require that student room efforts of their teachers. young student room fees. Some did not, and board be self-supporting. people will occasionally do setting fees as low as possible. Finall y, the increases in room things that can break our Some had planned to issue hous fees that will be required at hearts. ing bonds for fire safety some institutions can be phased We have seen too many improvements during the 199 • in over the next se,·eral years. deaths and acts of violence in 2000 budget cycle. building the Compared to other states. the our colleges and universities costs into student room fees over room fees charged by Kentucky this fall, incl uding another fire the next 20 years. universities still will be modest. that recently consumed a frater Within weeks of the fire at Kentucky has set its sights on nity house. We ha\'e to make all Murray tate. ,,·e had a plan to helping its public colleges and of these events occasions for u:;e u1m·ersn ,· fund reserves and univer:;i1ie · becom~ nationally teaching and learning that \\' ill housing bonds to put $15 million distinctive. Across the country. help protect some other parent'~ in to fire safety. Vl'e are setting the strongest state institutions son or daughter tomorrow. priorities campus-by-campus, are highly autonomous and self. usually to work first on the governing. ■ tallest buildings. We are consult· This is a responsibility as Gordon K. Davies is presi ing with the state's fire marshal well as a privilege. The boards dent of the state Council 011 as we proceed. of trustees and presidents of Postsecondary Education. .. Lexington Herald-Leader Tuesday, December 1, 1998 and its staff reports to Education Education Department Changes considered Commissioner Wilmer S. Cody. · spokesman Jim Parks said Cody . •. "'•'-'-"·'th•. ·;..,::.1;.ai.,.:,,,. __ ~~ ·- . , of ... ,,__ ' "the . Lo;., ;;,UUWA e,SwwWUW!)INiUU••~w:maware ........:toS!!l)a1'8te. lf f·""_'c.''-..:'.c:,_·tten""~t.~•-o,v,'"""". '110 . .__ ; ~~-~a· o,·<>·S-=•·= •,U, ,. :,;o;a:_,--~--"'-;Ky"!) "<."·Ii,,..!'(: 1:1; .... "<l,2.j: ... •... ~,~-,~..:.~-- - ,·. • ..... ~ .. -4.-a·•·i-,..·~•--r.7 ~·-·. __ -, .. for state's teacher . ·or•wuere w go =use• ,-0 ,>,J,'· e~•· epartment ··•supports· have two· masters,•· " · higher standards for said Robert Sexton, teachers and we are standards board executive director of supportive of any- the Prichard Commit- thing that would con- By Linda B. Blackford tee for Academic Ex• tribute to that," Parks HERALD-LEADER EDUCATION WRITER cellence. "I think this said. For the past eight years. fewer thau 30 people would help the teach- But relations be- have overseen the state's 40,000 teachers, operating ing profession." tween the two agen- as a small part of the Kentucky Department of Edu Leib would not ·'>, cies have been cation. comment on the cur- ·,,strained since Nov. But according to one Senate leader, it's time for rent meetings, but in :)6 when Cody an- the Education Professional Standards Board to strike the Herald-Leader se- . nounced a new initia- out on its own - with enough power, money and di ries she said she didn't have the tive on. teacher education without rect access to the governor to make significant im budget or personnel to keep prop- infonning_ -11:ie members of the provements in teacher quality. er data on Kentucky's teachers. standards board "Teacher preparation is an issue that needs more In addition, Leib said that her Cody's announcement came a attention, and the standards board has to have more agency had difficulty in infh.ienc- day after the Herald-Leader series autonomy to deal with it," said Senate Majority ing the way colleges prepare started. Leader David Karem. D-Louisville. teachers. The standards board has also Karem said he has been meeting with representa released its own goals, which in tives of the governor's office for several weeks. clude trying to make sure that Go,·. Paul Patton's education adviser. Ed Ford. teacher preparation programs in confirmed that he had mer with Karem and would colleges have higher admissions. hold another meeting on Wednesday about the stan In addition, the standards dards board. but he refused to go into specifics. board said it is committed to rais However, Ford said that a Herald-Leader series ing the passing scores on teacher that found serious gaps in teacher education and exams. Right now, Kentucky has preparation focused new attention on the subject. some of the lowest scores in the "That could certainlv act as a catalvst for some South. type of action," he said. · · The standards board is also in Patton could create a separate charge of making sure that teach agency attached to his office by ers have good training in the sub executive order, Karem said. jects they teach. A recent survey Susan Leib, executive director found that between 15 percent of the standards board, referred and 30 percent of math, science, all calls to Ford. social studies and English teach Teacher quality has often rak ers had less than a minor in those en a back seat to other education fields. al issues in Kentucky despite the An independent standards fact that it's one of the most im board would require a significant portant factors affecting student budgetary boost for costs now achievement. covered by the department. The Education .Professional "I hope this move gets the dol Standards Board was created as lars needed to do the job," Sexton part of the 1990 Kentucky Educa said.

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