Paducah: The name of the game is growth

     Mid-Continent University just posted record enrollment numbers. Already this year, the Mayfield, Ky.-based university has welcomed several hundred more students to its programs.
    A few hundred more students may not seem like a big increase, but compared to Mid-Continent’s original total enrollment of approximately 2,000 students, that few hundred can mean a 20 or 30 percent increase - in one year.
    Now compare that to Murray State’s rumored enrollment decrease this year, and it’s easy to see we have a problem.
    Murray State offers western Kentuckians a quality education at its Paducah campus, so why is a smaller, more limited school such as Mid-Continent giving Murray State a run for its money (quite literally)? The answer can be found in the debilitated facility where its students are being educated.
    Our Paducah campus represents a slew of unrecognized students: non-traditional, commuting and Illinois students.  All three groups have the potential to make a dramatic difference in Murray State’s enrollment numbers as well as its funding and reputation.
    The Paducah site’s enrollment numbers this year have not yet been released, but school officials say they are not expecting as dramatic an increase as Mid-Continent has seen. Now the question has turned to, why?
    For Illinois students, the aforementioned negative factors may persuade them to stay home and attend a school other than Murray State. As University President Randy Dunn said in an interview with The News earlier this week, “We have a hard time getting Illinois students to cross the river and go down to that old facility on Cobb Drive. ... It’s a tough sell.”
    For non-traditional students juggling their coursework with families and work, limited degrees don’t put them in any better a work position than they are now.
    A new facility with updated technology and a broader range of academic programs has the potential to change that tide.
    In general, the number of students at our smaller campuses can bolster our overall enrollment figures, potentially garnering the University more state funds for our various projects like that physics and engineering building lacking from our science complex.
    Paducah facilitates the education of hundreds of students in an outdated former Pepsi bottling plant. Although they are at a different campus than the majority in Murray, the Paducah students are our educational comrades.
    By getting the ball rolling on funding the construction of a new building, we are contributing to the education of our fellow students. So do what we do for our own education. Call legislators and local politicians. Inform local residents of the plethora of opportunities a Murray State degree can provide them. For the well being of all Murray State, get involved.
    As Dunn said, “We can’t push this over the finish line ourselves.”   

2 comments

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Mon Jan 18 2010 12:23

i agree with "Lynn".....MSU is so outdated with technology, and just TRY to find a full-time schedule with them for online courses (and good luck with that!). if you do find an online class, ask the question WHY is the cost of one online class so EXORBITANT??? i can take that very same class at the university of phoenix, or, well, anywhere else online with an accredited institution for half MSU's price. moreover, try to follow MSU's antiquated processes and practices -- they want you, the student, to walk around campus manually obtaining signatures from various departments if you leave school.......why could one not have this done electronically? oh, because MSU is BEHIND THE TIMES in a MAJOR MAJOR way....and with some of the inexperienced and uninformed "directors" and higher-ups at MSU (several of whom were placed based upon murray's notorious "good old boy/girl network"), well, just something else keeping the old university down......

Lynn

Fri Oct 23 2009 12:05

As a former Mid-Continent ADVANTAGE student, I believe the problem for MSU isn't entirely its outdated building on Cobb Drive. The problem is widespread for many universities. They don't want to offer much, if anything. off their campuses. Their faculty won't budge and residents aren't truly served. Mid-Continent University recognizes that adults have a tough time keeping everything going. Going back to school for a mom or a dad with parental obligations and holding down a job is all that most can do. MCU reaches out to those folks by streamlining the educaiton process from the start to the finish; which allows them to do exactly that....finish. Congratulations to MCU! Its not all about the faculty or administration. Its about serving others and meeting their needs and its paying off.

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