Some good news — 09/30/08

September 29, 2008 06:49 pm

— While this fall’s decline in enrollment at the state’s community and technical colleges certainly is not a positive, there is some good news on the higher education front in Kentucky: The state-suppported universities and community and technical colleges awarded a record number of degrees and certificates during the 2007-2008 school year. Even more important, the 15,036 bachelor’s degres awarded not only is a new record but exceeds the goal established by the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education.
With most of the state’s universities and community and technical colleges setting new enrollment records in recent years, awarding a record number of degrees and certificates should be expected. But in the past, too many Kentucky college students dropped out before earning a degree or even a certificate. The record number of degrees and certificates indicates that increased retention efforts launched by the universitis and colleges.
The number of college degrees awarded in Kentucky must continue to set records if the state is going to come close to achieving its goal of doubling its number of college graduates by 2020. The ambitious goal may not be possible to achieve, but at least the state is moving in the right direction. Indeed, the number of bachelor degrees awarded has increased by 26 percent from the 2000-2001 school year.