Published: November 18, 2009 06:45 am      

College presidents discuss collaboration

Tri-State enrollment agreement ongoing

IRONTON — Three years after area college presidents gathered on a barge in the middle of the Ohio River and agreed to collaborate in boosting enrollment, all remain enthusiastic about their agreement.

On Tuesday, most of them convened again at Ohio University Southern to report progress and update the agreement, called “Educate the Tri-State.”

The pact is a regional approach to higher education designed to encourage more people to go to college by enhancing access and removing barriers.

High priority in the upcoming weeks will go to updating a Web site created as a gateway for potential students to find the right college.

The site, www.educatethetristate.com, includes links to all seven institutions — Ashland Community and Technical College, Morehead State University, Ohio University, Marshall University, Marshall Community and Technical College, Rio Grande Community College and Shawnee State University — and search functions to explore career possibilities and academic program options.

It does its job by providing a central point from which a potential student can find out which institutions provide the coursework and programs needed for a degree or certification.

The Web site update should do two things: ensure complete, accurate information and make it easy to use, said Susan Warsaw, assistant to the president for strategic collaborations at SSU. “It could be more user-friendly,” she said.

The Web site also is helpful because the participating colleges have multiple tuition reciprocity and transfer agreements, making it possible for students to attend more than one institution in more than one state during a college career without paying out-of-state tuition.

The reciprocity and transfer agreements are fundamental to the goal of getting more students while maintaining academic standards, said ACTC President Greg Adkins. “They lower the barrier, but not the bar,” he said.

A regional campus focus also is important, said MSU vice president for university outreach Michael Seelig. Morehead State, for instance, needs to offer more complete academic programs at its regional locations. Health care programs are a particular need, he said.

The colleges also will concentrate on better marketing of the cooperative concept, said SSU President Rita Rice Morris.

The joint effort has grown to the point that the colleges probably will need to appoint a coordinator to keep it on track, Warsaw said. One task for that person in the near future will be arranging a meeting of counselors and superintendents of area school districts, she said.

MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or at (606) 326-2652.