....... I came to work for Southeast Community College in 1969. One of the things that attracted me to the institution then was its affiliation with the University of Kentucky.
.......Since that time, I have changed positions several times at SECC: From a program administrator to faculty member to president with several stops in between. But one thing has never changed: My firm belief thatour being a part of the University of Kentucky is a good thing-- good for students,faculty, staff, and the community at large.
.......Now with the appointment by Gov. Patton of a task force to look at ways to improve higher education and make it more responsive to the needs of the state, an undertaking which I enthusiastically support, we see emerging once again those who call for a dismantling of the Community College System and stripping it away from UK.
....... Recently, Kern Alexander, President of Murray State University, lambasted the University in a position paper presented to the task force for all manner of sins, including its management of the community colleges.
....... He argued that colleges were spending too much time on academic-related programs and not enough on job training. Without responding to this ludicrous--and patently untrue-- charge, suffice to say that Alexander is but the latest of many who have argued that the Community Colleges could better serve the state apart from UK.
.......To him and all the others who are proposing a governance change for community colleges, I ask: Where is your proof?
....... Yes, the burden of proof must now be placed on the Alexanders of the world to demonstrate how community colleges and the Commonwealth would be better served, how the colleges would serve more students at a lesser cost, and how the academic quality would be improved under a different governance structure. The case for maintaining the UK Community College System partnership has been made many times, most recently in a position paper prepared by Community College System presidents. Key points from that paper--along with examples from SECC-- include the following:
....... + The community colleges by providing statewide access to higher education serve vast numbers of Kentuckians who historically had been unserved and underserved. In SECC's service area of Bell, Harlan, and Letcher counties, well over 60 percent of students who attend public colleges go to Southeast Community College. The Kentucky General Assembly recognized that the mission of community colleges was consistent with that of the statewide, land-grant mission of the University of Kentucky.
....... Thus, they placed community colleges under the control of the UK Board of Trustees.
....... + Cooperative partnerships between the community colleges and University System departments promote the integration of research and teaching and the application of knowledge and information to the solution of real life problems. The results include healthcare services, community development, workforce and economic development, and cultural activities all of which lead to an improved quality of life for Kentuckians.
....... At SECC, our Mine Training Institute has joined with the College of Engineering to improve a much-used safety training program, our Appalachian Center runs joint programs and shares personnel with the Appalachian Center at UK, and students enrolled in our mathematics classes benefit directly from an $800,000 National Science Foundation Grant received by UK.
....... + The University of Kentucky - Community College System governance structure is cost effective. The UK Board of Trustees and University administration promote strategic planning, the wise use of resources, and accountability. For a myriad of services, the Community College System spends only $1.5 million per year. Services include purchasing, capital construction, financial aid, accounting, internal auditing, personnel, among others. Separation of the community colleges from UK could result in unwarranted duplication of services and increase operational costs by millions of dollars. A little over two years ago, SECC began a major fund-raising program--Partners In Progress--in its service area. The fact that it has been able to raise almost $4 million can be attributed in no small part to its partnership with UK, which has provided specialized help in several areas--planned giving, for example where professional staff are not vailable in the Community College System.
.......+ The academic quality of the 14 community colleges is enhanced by their affiliation with the University of Kentucky. The Community College System offers the same undergraduate transfer curriculum as the University System. Further, the existing governance structure allows the community colleges to serve as feeder institutions for all of Kentuckys public universities, with approximately 80 percent of community college transfer students enrolling at the regional universities. In fact, the Community College System has one of the highest transfer rates to four-year institutions of any system in the country, according to studies at the University of California Los Angeles. This is the reason that most SECC faculty give for wanting the College to remain a part of UK. In a vote taken recently on whether or not to remain with UK, faculty and professional staff opposed separation by a margin of 61-2 (with one abstention).
....... + The Community College System offers an outstanding array of associate in applied science degree programs in over 30 technical fields. These programs combine technical education with collegiate course work in mathematics, sciences and communications. TheCommunity College System's performance outcomes--student satisfaction, jobs obtained, and employer satisfaction--continue to prove the value of these programs. Further, the Community College System is open to blending educational programs and services with Kentucky TECH (without changing the governance structure of the Community College System). Southeast Community College has worked closely with Kentucky TECH institutions in the region for many years, offering joint degree programs in several fields, including engineering technology, radiography, respiratory care, nursing, and office administration. The College proudly shares its Bell County Campus in Middlesboro with the Southeast Regional Technology Center.
....... I believe I was right in 1969 to be attracted to Southeast Community College partly because of its affiliation with the University of Kentucky; and after 27 years, I am convinced now more than ever--that this partnership is good for students, faculty, staff, and the community at large. I believe the facts support me--and the thousands of others who share my belief: students, faculty, staff, advisory board members, alumni and a large majority of citizens from throughout the Commonwealth. I also believe in giving those who disagree a chance to be heard. But make no mistake about it, the burden of proof is clearly on those who call for change. The UK - CCS partnership has served Kentucky long and well. Now, what can they offer that is better?
.......On the last Thursday in November, most Americans will be celebrating Thanksgiving. Many things have changed in this country since the original feast in 1621. The first celebration was not repeated until 1863, when Sarah Josepha Hale encouraged Abe Lincolon to make a day for national Thanksgiving, praise and prayer.
.......The most notable change in today's Thanksgiving from that of the past is that we celebrate with our families instead of the entire community. We should all give thanks for the opportunity to spend time with our loved ones--I hope that you will enjoy my fragments of past Thanksgiving that follow.
.......My first recollection would be when I was about six. My dad and I were wrestling around before "the feast" and I leaped into his lap, his elbow removing my front tooth. Boy, those mashed potatoes sure were good.
.......Do you remember having to eat turkey at a boyfriend or girlfriend's house? That experience can be as uncomfortable as those thight Levi's after the feast.
.......Since I mentioned the tight jeans, can you women visualize the men lying around watching football with their belts unfastened, looking like clones of Al Bundy? I thought you could relate.
.......What about a mother smacking the hand of her 38- year-old son for trying to sample the goods before she was ready to serve them?
.......Has your wish ever come true after getting the largest piece of the wishbone--or were you accused of cheating on the "pull"? Have you ever wondered what they put in turkey that makes people so sleepy after eating and so hungry upon waking?
.......Ever been sent to the grocery store on Thanksgiving for a dozen eggs, and after returning home, you can't figure out how they used those eggs? Maybe they just needed to make me feel needed.
.......I wonder why the women cook for two days for a 30-minute feast. Also, after all the preparation to make everything just right, someone complains about the taste of something, but there's never any uneaten evidence.
.......These are just a few reasons why I am thankful to Sarah Josepha Hale. In addition, I want to thank our forefathers for their wisdom, not only for the holiday known as Thanksgiving, but for voting against Ben Franklin to make the turkey our national bird. We could have been saying Grace over a meat loaf.
.......We have much to be thankful for. I hope that you have a
safe and a very happy holiday season!
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Life purpose can be found if you know where to look
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by Bethsheba V. Hollon
....... Oftentimes I have heard Quite a few people say, "Why are we here?" Meaning, "What is the point of life?" I suppose different people would answer that question in different ways, while many people would probably simply admit they haven't figured it out yet.
....... However, there are a good many of us who know beyond the shadow of a doubt why we're here: to love and be loved by God.
....... For those people who have been deceived into believing the human race just evolved by some freak of nature, it probably is hard to find a reason to live. But, for those of us who know that God did in fact create us, it is easy to see why we are here. Therefore, it is essential that we know where we came from in order to discover our purpose in life.
.......The Holy Bible states in its first book, Genesis, that God created man in his own image, male and female, He created them. Genesis also declares that God breathed the breath of life into us. We are God's very own creations, made in His own likeness. He even gave us His own breath for our first. So surely He has a purpose for us, otherwise He wouldn't have gone to all that trouble.
.......We can also find in the Bible what kind of persons God wants us to be. The Bible is our instruction book, the very key to life. Trying to put together a life without this instruction is harder than trying to put together a complex machine without using the instructions. When this happens to a machine, it usually ends up being a useless, dysfunctional piece of equipment. When it happens to a life, it becomes a distorted, poor imitation of what God intended it to be.
.......There are many commandments God gives in His word that tell us how we must live in order to be who God wants us to be, the most popular of which being the " Ten Commandments," found in Exodus.
....... We find in the book of Matthew, however that all the commandments in the entire Bible are centered around only two of them. In the 22nd chapter of Matthew, a lawyer asked Jesus, the Son of God, " which is the greatest commandment in the(God's) law?" Jesus replied, " thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, and mind. This is the first and the great commandment. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy self. On these two commandments hang the law."
.......In turn, Jesus said in John, chapter 14, " If a man loves me, he will keep my words ( in other words, obey My commandments), and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make our abode (home) with him."
.......Now we know if we are ever going to be the people God made us to be, we must love Him and, therefore, obey Him. But how do we know God loves us? We know God loves us because He has told us He does and proved His love by sending His only begotten Son to die for us. Jesus loves us so much that He not only died for us, but He came back to life for us.
....... So the first steps in finding your purpose in life have already been taken for you, by God. You must take the next steps yourself, those steps being: (0) truly loving Jesus, which is loving God, for in John 11, Jesus said, "I and the Father are one;" (2) accepting Jesus into your heart, for He also said in that book, " no one comes to the Father but by Me;" (3) confess your sins to Jesus- 1 John says, " If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us;"(4) believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, as Romans 10:9 Says, " if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
.......It is also important to remember that God also has an individual plan for each one of us to fulfill; we are not "just a number" to God.
.......So how are we to find God's personal plan for us? Simply by asking Him to lead and to guide us through our journey of life. For God has told us in Isaiah that when we pray, He will answer us; when we call to Him, He will respond.
....... I will now leave you with what God Himself, has to tell us of His wonderful plans for us:
......."For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope, and a future."(Jeremiah 29:11)
....... I(God) will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you." (Psalm32:8)
....... For it is God who is at work within you, giving you the will and the
power to achieve His purpose." (Phillipians 2:13)
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WARNING:
Net can be addictive
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by Terry Day
....... In the previous issues of The Southeasterner we have looked at several different aspects of the Internet, and, in this last installment of a three-part series, let us examine what some might call “Internet addiction.”
....... In an article published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette titled "Signs of Compulsive Computer Behavior," Ed Masley reports, "Lena Wampler was the kind of girl who, even in the advanced class at high school, could read a book once and ace the exam. But in her junior year, Lena got hooked. She would come home from school and go straight to the Net. She'd eat her meals at the computer... before long Lena, a straight ‘A’ student was using 10 hours a day and bringing home Cs."
.......A Washington Post story by Rene Sanchez reports, "At the University of California's Berkeley campus, counselors say they are dealing with a small but increasing number of student cases linked to excessive computer use. Some students, they say, are putting too much emphasis on electronic relationships, are neglecting course work, and, in a few instances, are even being swindled out of money by e-mail strangers they have come to trust."
.......Here at Southeast Community College, when students in the Internet Management class were asked what they considered to be the down side of the Internet, the number one answer was the amount of time they spend on-line.
....... SECC student Wes Kilbourne, who has been using the Internet for about a year now, was asked how much time he spends on the Net and replied, "It varies from day to day--I have spent as much as five or six hours on it. "Kilbourne feels that the Net can become addictive, and his advice for those just beginning to use it is, "don't let it take over all your time--use it sparingly."
....... SECC student Robin Teshon said, "I use the Internet to do research, to answer questions, and to chat.” Teshon added, "I think it is very addictive. I used to spend at least four hours a day on it, but now I only use it about two.” Her advice to new users is, "don't get in the chat rooms--stay out of the chat rooms."
.......Brian Lewis, another SECC student and a computer lab assistant, also believes the Internet can be addictive, "there have been times when I didn't have access to the Internet that I have gotten depressed and even down right hateful because I couldn't get on the Net. Fortunately I have been able to cut down my use of the Net to a reasonable amount this semester."
.......The problem of excessive computer use due to the Internet is still a fairly new one, and as such, views concerning the problem vary widely. There are those who think the problem has been vastly magnified, as reported in the above mentioned Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story. Howard Rheingold, author of "The Virtual Community" and editor of the Whole Earth Review, said, "The threat of obsessive behavior is there, but nowhere near what the hype would indicate...if you find someone who drinks a lot every day or takes addictive drugs every day, they probably have a problem. If you find someone who's on the Internet every day, you have to look closer..."
.......Even though all those connected with cyber-space have yet to reach a consensus as to the severity of Internet addiction, a number of groups and services have already been established to address the problem.
.......If you feel you have a problem dealing with your Net habits, here are some sites you may wish to visit: http://www.mu.edu/dept/ccenter/introsrv.Atml or Interneters Anonymous; http://www.itw.com/rscott/ia.html or Webaholics;http://www.ohiou. edu/rbarrett/webaholics/ver2.
.......As we have discovered in this short series on the Internet, it is indeed a
powerful tool that should be used with a conscious regard of its dark side.
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