John Nelson
Shirley Nelson
Pikeville College
147 Sycamore Street
Pikeville, Ky. 41501
(606) 437-3450
jnelson@pc.edu

Pikeville College was founded in 1889 by Presbyterians with a mission of providing educational opportunities to people from central Appalachian. From its earliest beginnings the College has focused its curriculum on preparing young people for entrance to college and the training of much needed teachers. This statement was printed in an 1890 publication, "Me preparatory department prepares teachers for county examinations and to do better work in their fine of teaching?"

Today, Pikeville College views itself as an "opportunity school' where all students are welcome. The historical practice of "open enrollment' is testament to the College's efforts to improve the overall educational level of the population, enhancing the quality of life for as many individuals as possible. To greater ensure that the College effectively fulfills its mission, it provides a high quality education supported by a broad range of academic and personal support services, including developmental studies Program coursework, academic tutoring and a counseling program that provides academic and personal assistance. The College's tuition rate of $7,800 per year remains one of the lowest for private institutions. The College prides itself on meeting the financial aid needs of all students who wish to take advantage of the educational opportunities it provides. To help meet these financial aid needs, the College commits over three million dollars annually to scholarships.

The College remains committed to serving students from Appalachia. Research shows that many of the poorest counties in the nation are located in central Appalachia. Pikeville College recruits approximately 73% of its students from these poor Appalachian counties; thus many of Pikeville College's students come from homes with characteristics associated with living in an economically distressed area. A large percentage of the students who attend Pikeville College are first generation college students and a number of these students come from homes where neither parent graduated from high school.

When the characteristics of Pikeville College's primary recruitment area are considered, is it any wonder that the great majority of its students enter the College poorly prepared for academic success? The following profile of students at Pikeville College further emphasizes the challenges and opportunities facing the institution in its mission to educate the citizens of the region:

The average ACT composite score of Pikeville College's entering fiwhmen class for the Fall 2000 Term was 19.2, compared to a state average of 20.1 and a national average of 21 (Source: Pikeville College Institutional Research Office). Fifty?four percent (54%) of the entering freshmen were enrolled in one of more developmental courses. (Source: Pikeville College Fact Book, 2000).

Ninety-five percent (95%) of the student body need and receive financial assistance in order to attend college. (Source: Pikeville College Institutional Research Office).

Many of the students entering Pikeville College today have dreams of becoming teachers. However, as evidenced by the information presented earlier, some enter the College poorly prepared for academic success, and therefore, require an extraordinary range of support services.

To respond to the challenge of preparing students who want to be teachers, the College has undertaken a broad range of program initiatives including:

· Revision of all educational programs to strengthen content preparation through additional course work, course revisions and innovative teaching strategies. Content course work in some majors was increased by as much as 25%, and all methods courses were revised to include the integration of technology and the use of assessment to improve teaching.

· Intensified involvement of arts and science faculty in the process of revising, developing, and delivering program content and pedagogy, adhering to the maxim "that teacher preparation is the responsibility of an entire institution, not just the education department." Arts and science faculty were provided documents outlining the content that teachers are expected to master and the knowledge and concepts students are expected to learn. Education and arts and science faculty collaborated extensively to establish high standards for content preparation.

· Establishment of the Lena C. Bailey Educational Resource Center to house support materials and provide assistance with the development of instructional materials to all teacher education majors and area teachers. This new Center houses computers with Internet access, multimedia equipment, CD?ROM resources, and instructional materials and supplies. This Center houses many Booth materials and equipment.

· Development of the Booth Teacher Training Initiative. This comprehensive, innovative prograrn prepares Pikeville College teacher education majors to integrate state-of-the-art technology with classroom instruction. The program employs a full?time technology integrationist to work with education majors as well as faculty in education and the arts and sciences. The new Booth Instructional Technology Center offers a network of new computers and multimedia instructional capabilities. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of this program is its laptop computer for seven day/twenty four hour use. Because the College is wireless, students can apply technology tools anywhere on campus, access online resources and communicate with fellow students and faculty. This exerting program also provides weeklong summer technology institutes for ninety (90) area teachers. Institutes are offered free of charge and a five hundred dollar ($500) stipend is provided each participant.

· Provision of technology?enhanced learning opportunities through the Booth Programs. Through Booth Program file servers educational enrichment programs and services will be provided to students, teachers, and Booth Scholars. Tutorials, CD-ROMS, streaming video, threaded discussion, and virtual course work will be among the services delivered through file servers on the Pikeville College campus

· Initiation of opportunities for education majors to mentor area students. Collaborative efforts between the education department, the Booth Teacher Training Initiative, and the Booth Scholars Program will allow education majors to establish mentoring relationships with youth from the region through the use of technology. This will be possible because both education majors and Scholars will be provided laptop computers, Internet access, and resources/services delivered through a program file server.

Pikeville College's Teacher Education Program is operated on the precept of a multicultural educational experience. Therefore, the Program faculty believe that each student can learn and learn at high level. The Program faculty promote and practice respect for cultural differences acknowledge students' micro?cultural experiences, place students at the center of the learning process, conduct critical analysis of oppression and discrimination, and critique society in the interest of social justice and equality.

The teacher training model (or conceptual framework) captures the essence of the program's mission: "Progressive Educators of the Whole Person: A Collaborative Approach." Through the implementation of this framework, the faculty seek to train teachers who will promote an experience-based, child-centered approach to education; who will teach cooperative learning, critical thinking and decision?making; who will view the classroom as democracy in practice; who will practice the components of continuous assessment, including formative evaluation and positive reinforcement; and who will facilitate, guide and supervise learning.

Progressive educators of the whole person recognize different ways of knowing and learning and stimulate multiple intelligences of students in maximizing learning opportunities. The Collaborative approach affirms the notion that we all, as parents, teachers, and members of the larger community must work together to prepare our students for the complexities and challenges of the twenty-first century.