sunday, april 10, 2016 daily news, bowling green,...

& technologyEducation

n Western KentucKy’s services groW throughout the years Page 2

n BoWling green offers regional educational opportunities Page 9

Third in a four-part seriesComing April 17: Region & community services ailyNews

Bowling greenD

ThriveSunday, April 10, 20162 Daily News, Bowling Green, Kentucky

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On the frOnt:Top: Patrons watch the western Kentucky University men’s basketball game against the University of north carolina at charlotte in 2015 at hilligan’s Bar & Grill.

Daily News file phoTo

BoTTom: Pearce-Ford tower and Guthrie tower stand March 17 on western Ken-tucky University’s campus.

ausTiN aNThoNy/[email protected]

Feedinga need

Western KentucKy university’s services

groW throughout the years

tOP:wetherBy adMinistration Building stands March 17 on western Kentucky University’s campus.

ausTiN aNThoNy/[email protected]

Story by Aaron Mudd n [email protected]

Growing to more than 20,000 students has prompted Western Kentucky University to respond to changing needs

in its food service, parking and transpor-tation and facilities. For Gary Meszaros, WKU’s assistant

vice president of business and auxiliary, one of the most drastic changes is how WKU feeds its students.

See GROWTH, 3

Bac ToTroNg/[email protected] walK through downing student Union in 2015 during western Kentucky University’s first day of the spring semester.

Where the university used have just two dining loca-tions in the early 1990s, the university now features 21 different dining locations.

“I think it goes with the one thought on campuses of taking care of the qual-ity of life,” he said, stressing there’s more to choosing a college than academics.

Parents these days want to visit campus and be reas-sured of basic needs, such as safety, plenty of food choices and good housing, he said.

Meszaros has seen the university evolve over two stints at WKU – one from 1992 to 1999 and the second from 2005 to the present.

Aramark took over WKU’s food service in 1997, which is the same year President Gary Ransdell started. The move helped the universi-ty save roughly $1 million, Meszaros said.

This year, the university added a restaurant with an international theme called Passport Bistro in its new Honors College/International Center. WKU also added the Topper Grill and Pub after students requested a place to legally drink on campus, but a licensing issue now precludes serving alcohol. A Chili’s location will also open in May, Meszaros said. The restaurant is between student house and a parking garage.

WKU stood out by add-ing a Popeyes and Steak and Shake – the first locations on a college campus, Meszaros said. WKU also helped start an Aramark restaurant modeled after Panera Bread called DaVinci’s, which had its first location on WKU’s campus.

“You don’t want to have the same burger, fries and a drink every day,” Meszaros said.

As WKU’s food service has expanded, so has its transportation system.

“Most of our system is not just getting you up and down the hill,” Meszaros said, adding that it helps students travel to locations off cam-pus and become less depen-dent on cars.

Jennifer Tougas, the cur-rent director of WKU’s Parking and Transportation Services, came to the uni-versity in 2004 back when it was a committee and tran-sitioning to department sta-tus.

Back then, WKU’s buses carried 170,000 passengers annually. That number rose to 735,000 passengers in fis-cal year 2015, Tougas said.

Officials began the change process through a mas-ter plan that identified high priority areas, Tougas said. Since then, the department has changed routes and schedules to make them more predictable, got a grant to build a bus maintenance facility and increased its fleet of buses to 13. Students can even track where their bus is through the WKU app, she said.

Dwindling parking resources in recent years have also created the need for changes, Tougas said. Since 2011, parking spaces for commuters have dropped by 800.

“There’s also been a growth in housing parking demand,” she said, adding that when residential stu-dents bring their cars to cam-pus it limits available space for commuters.

A parking garage planned to go up in a parking lot off Creason Street will add a net increase of 500 spaces fol-lowing legislative approval, she said.

Additionally, the depart-ment continues to encourage students to ditch their cars with incentives through its Car Free Program. The pro-gram offers complimentary enrollment in an Enterprise CarShare program that charges by the hour and includes insurance and gas. Other incentives include a complimentary pass for a Bowling Green transit ser-vice, a bicycle tune up, discounted airport shuttle trips to Nashville’s airport, a drawing for a $250 book scholarship and other incen-tives.

The department contin-ues to look for better routes and tries new things, Tougas said.

Along with efforts to improve transportation on and off campus, WKU has tried to improve quality of

life on campus through facil-ity improvements.

Perhaps its most vis-ible change is the recently revamped Downing Student Union, formerly known as the Downing University Center.

For Bryan Russell, WKU’s chief facilities offi-cer, DSU is the “living room of our campus.” The student union offers meeting space for students to socialize and participate in student orga-nizations along with places to buy food, purchase books, find tutoring services or even buy postal stamps.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a building on WKU’s campus that hasn’t been touched by renovations. WKU has upgraded its residence halls along with adding apartments along Kentucky Street to offer upperclassmen a more inde-pendent lifestyle.

In recent years, the univer-sity added its Mass Media and Technology Hall and Adams-Whitaker Student Publications Center to fur-ther serve its journalism pro-grams and award-winning student newspaper and year-book.

Another initiative, Russell said, is WKU’s efforts to continue improving access to campus by removing steps and improving side-walks and entrances.

Russell said part of that is a project over two or three summers that added 10-foot-wide sidewalks on both sides of Normal and State Streets along with lighting improve-ments and crosswalks where needed.

“That was a project that I think has been really well received and made a lot safer for the community,” Russell said.

Improvements to the uni-versity’s electrical system over an 11-year period have also helped, Russell said.

The university’s utility budget has remained at $8 million since 2008, he said.

“It just makes for a safer more consistent level of ser-vice for our campus,” he said.

— Follow education and general assignment report-er Aaron Mudd on Twitter at twitter.com/aaron_mudd bgdn or visit bgdailynews.com.

ThriveSunday, April 10, 2016 3Daily News, Bowling Green, Kentucky

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From Page 2

GROWTH

Austin Anthony/[email protected] honors College and International Center stands March 17 on Western Kentucky University’s campus.

Austin Anthony/[email protected] sMoKe stack of the Central heat Plant appears on WKU’s campus.

BAc totrong/[email protected] WalK on campus in 2015 at Western Kentucky Uni-versity.

Austin Anthony/[email protected] sTUDenT Union stands March 17 on Western Kentucky University’s campus.


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20 years

HillStory by Aaron Mudd n [email protected]

on the

Bac ToTrong/[email protected]: Western KentucKy university President Gary ransdell waves a red towel in 2015 during a M.A.s.t.e.r. Plan event at Houchens-smith stadium. Top: ransdell speaks in 2014 during a birthday party for the Chinese language major offered at the university. (Daily News file photo)

WKU president reflects on time at the university

By the time Western Kentucky University President Gary Ransdell finishes out his tenure in 2017, he’ll have awarded nearly half of all the university’s degrees.

“I think we’ve educated a couple generations of WKU students, and that education has changed dramatically,” Ransdell said. “We’ve had to become more relevant in a WKU education.”

After Ransdell became WKU’s ninth president in 1997, he led the university through a transformative period in its 110-year history. Where WKU used to be seen as a respectable regional university, it has since broadened its horizons nationally and internationally.

It’s about to begin a new chapter once again following an announcement from Ransdell in January that he’ll be stepping down as WKU’s president in June 2017 with full retirement in December 2017.

“In these decisions, you always want to have a good sense of timing and we certainly wanted to go out on positive circum-stances,” Ransdell told the Daily News at the time, adding it was a decision he made with his wife, Julie. “We wanted to do this on our terms ... and we just felt like our health is good, and I’ve seen some many people in this job retire and not have the best of cir-cumstances with their health.”

Acting as WKU’s president during its evolution to a university that now attracts students from across the nation and world has been “very satisfying” for Ransdell.

“The value of a WKU degree is considerably greater than it was a few years ago,” he said. “And I’m proud of that.”

See RANSDELL, 6

Enduring friEndshipsPerhaps Ransdell’s most

persisting accomplishments are the friendships he’s built over his the course of his career.

Among them is his for-mer college roommate Chief Justice John Minton Jr. of the Supreme Court of Kentucky. The two have shared a lot since pledging to Sigma Alpha Epsilon together in the spring of 1971.

“I have such a great deal of respect for him and a deep friendship,” Minton said of Ransdell. As a friend who’s kept in touch as the years fly

by, Minton said Ransdell’s leadership has transformed WKU in many ways and “carried forward some of our finest traditions.”

One of those accomplish-ments is restoring the cam-pus’ natural environment that had fallen into decline.

Kevin Brooks, who practic-es law at Bell Orr Ayers and Moore, is also an old college buddy of Ransdell.

“He is a caring friend,” said Brooks. “He’s able to pay attention to all of those per-sonal family and friend rela-tionships while being very busy all the time.”

Brooks has fond memories of weekend getaways to a house in the mountains with Ransdell and other friends

where the group enjoys good food and reminiscing. It’s one of the few times Ransdell can go “completely off duty,” he said.

“Long term I think what he has accomplished most importantly are in the aca-demic areas,” Brooks said, cit-ing accomplishment like the creation of WKU’s Honors College, Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science and engineering program.

Alex Downing, president of Franklin Bank and Trust, is the son of WKU’s fourth president and used to work with Ransdell through the College Heights Foundation – an organization that manages funds for students.

“My father certainly felt

blessed to have the opportu-nity to see the transformation of the university during much of Dr. Ransdell’s tenure,” Downing said.

ransdEll’s risEAlthough now a charismat-

ic leader for WKU, there was a time when Ransdell didn’t see himself as the university’s president.

Before graduating from Western Kentucky University in 1973, the Louisville native studied mass communica-tions, specifically advertising and public relations.

“My goal as an under-graduate was to go back to Louisville and go to work for Doe-Anderson Advertising, an ad agency in downtown Louisville,” he said. “My intent was to get into the cre-ative end of the advertising business.”

But things changed. Ransdell got married dur-

ing his senior year. Ransdell’s college roommate in his junior year was Minton. The relationship provided an influential connection to Minton’s father, John Minton Sr., who was WKU’s vice president for student affairs and vice president for admin-istration at the time. He later became the university’s fifth president.

“It was Dr. Minton who suggested I get a master’s degree,” Ransdell said. “He arranged for me to have a graduate assistantship in the admissions office.”

Ransdell pursued a mas-ter’s in public administration, worked as a graduate assis-tant and worked in student recruitment. That last respon-sibility left a lasting impres-sion on him.

“I liked working in student recruitment,” Ransdell said. “I began to think ‘maybe there’s a career here.’ ”

What he enjoyed most was that he “got to tell people about WKU,” and said he brought passion and sincer-ity to the job. He was then offered a permanent position doing the same thing and “put off the Louisville thing.”

Minton Sr. later convinced Ransdell to get a doctorate. It was a decision that would take Ransdell and his wife to Indiana University to get a degree in higher education administration because WKU lacked a doctorate program at the time.

“Once again Dr. Minton talked to me about some options,” he said, adding they discussed an open position and developing position in alumni relations.

Ransdell accepted a job as assistant director of alumni relations and did the job for three years before thinking about becoming a university president.

“That’s when I made the decision that in order for that to happen I was gonna have to leave WKU,” he said. “It’s almost impossible to move all the way up to a presidency at the institution where you’ve spent your whole career.”

His quest to become presidential material led him to apply for a posi-tion at Southern Methodist University as director of

alumni relations and he spent seven years in Texas.

Following that, he took a job as vice president for institutional advancement at Clemson University in South Carolina. He inherited more responsibilities there after the university downsized from seven to four vice presidents after about eight years there. He picked up finance, facili-ties and most of the universi-ty’s administrative operations.

Ransdell began his return back to WKU after running into Thomas Meredith, the university’s eighth president, at a professional meeting.

“He told me that he was getting ready to announce his decision to leave,” Ransdell said, adding that it got him thinking about becoming WKU’s president.

He wasn’t sure if WKU was ready for him as a “change agent by nature.”

“I didn’t know if WKU had become a sleepy, regional institution that wasn’t ready and willing to be bold,” he said. “But I found just the opposite.”

a univErsity’s risEWhen Ransdell returned

to WKU in 1997, he found a university that wanted to escape being pigeonholed as a “good regional university.”

“The governing board at that time wanted no part of that,” he said. “And I wasn’t interested in coming back here to be part of a good regional university.”

Board officials wanted a university that was nationally competitive just as much as Ransdell did.

“I was pleasantly surprised when most across campus wanted that too,” he said, adding that he found a fac-ulty hungry to reach the uni-versity’s potential. “That gave me the encouragement to help lead us in that direction.”

The university set to work. WKU transferred its resi-

dence halls to the Student Life Foundation and part-nered with the city and coun-ty on bond issues to improve campus facilities – things Ransdell said hadn’t been done in Kentucky before. The university getting its first doctoral degree program was huge, Ransdell said.

“After a few years some of the things that people were dubious about turned out well and our respect began to grow,” he said.

Perspectives from Frankfort and Washington, D.C., improved along with those of prospective students, he said.

“We began to become an institution that perspective students knew was mov-ing aggressively in the right direction,” Ransdell said.

WKU cleared many hurdles in its quest to earn national recognition and stay relevant.

Ransdell said the univer-sity has changed its curricu-lum to meet the needs of the region with engineering degrees being the best exam-ple. Perhaps the most signifi-cant change, he said, is how some courses are delivered. Now, 20 percent of the uni-versity’s credit hour produc-tion is online.

Additionally, Ransdell

said private support has also become more important and that by the summer of 2017 the university will have spent close to $1 billion in an effort to rebuild the campus.

The university’s budget has gone from $130 million to $400 million, and although tuition costs have gone up as well, “it’s enabled a lot to happen.”

“Because we have the sec-ond largest undergraduate enrollment among Kentucky’s universities, we’re viewed with respect and importance in the state’s higher education community,” he said, add-ing the Honors College and Gatton Academy also add to that reputation.

WKU’s international ambi-tions also add to its reputa-tion, Ransdell said.

One of the biggest mile-stones includes getting the first Confucius Institute in Kentucky. Additionally, being designated by the Department of Defense as one of 11 origi-nal Chinese Flagship cam-puses showed that WKU has superior students and people capable of teaching language proficiency, he said.

Partnering with a British university for a study abroad program helped democra-tize study abroad experi-ences for students because extensive language study wasn’t required. Moving the Kentucky Institute for International Studies to WKU was also “an important vote of confidence,” he said.

“As more students study abroad and more international students come to us, we have taken on an international con-text,” Ransdell said. “Which also has value to the degree that a Kentucky student gets at WKU.”

nEw chaptErThere will be a lot of things

Ransdell will miss after step-ping down as president.

“What I will miss most is interaction with students,” he said. “I would daresay that almost every student knows who I am, and we interact and it’s fun.”

Ransdell will also miss the “art of the deal”, not to be confused with businessman and presidential candidate Donald Trump.

“I love making the deal,” he said. “I love trying to figure out how to solve a problem, and bringing parties together. And I love it when somebody says I don’t think we can do that.”

His retirement will also give him more time to take advantage of campus events.

“In another 17 months I can yell whatever I want at the referee or the umpire and not be held accountable,” he said.

There are also things he won’t miss, such as campus tragedies and calling parents who have just lost a child.

He remains proud of the university’s economic and cultural contributions.

“What a rich tapestry of life that our campus brings to this community,” he said.



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From Page 5

RANSDELL

Miranda Pederson/[email protected] KentucKy university President Gary ransdell speaks in 2013 to faculty and staff at the opening convocation at Van Meter Hall.


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Some 20,000 students study at Western Kentucky University, but the uni-versity offers much more

to the community and region than a place for college students to get a higher education.

“We bring things to the commu-nity that wouldn’t be here other-wise,” said David Lee, who recently became WKU’s provost and vice president of Academic Affairs.

Perhaps one of the more vibrant services WKU provides is its Cultural Enhancement Series. The program is an annual series of performances, lectures and question-and-answer

sessions featuring leading artists and newsmakers. Cultural Enhancement shows are free and open to the public and are well attended enough to be hosted in WKU’s Van Meter Hall.

Lee used to manage the program as the former dean of WKU’s Potter College of Arts and Letters, and said he’s been overseeing it for 19 years. For Lee, the program is a part of WKU’s commitment to the public.

“We are a public university and we are supported by the tax dollars of the citizens of the commonwealth,” he said, adding that it’s “part of how

Story by AARON MUDD | [email protected] • Photos by AUStiN ANthONy | [email protected]

WKU serves community with culture, innovation

See WKU, 8

Workers move a fermentation tank in 2010 at Western kentucky University’s Center for research and Development.

Bill Nye takes a selfie with Big Red in 2014 after speaking at E.A. Diddle Arena as part of the WkU Cultural enhancement series.

we acknowledge that we are a public university.”

Serving the public is one reason why the Cultural Enhancement Series events have remained free and open to the public.

The series was created, Lee said, to have as “few barriers as possible.”

“It seemed like a free event was a part of doing that,” he said.

Although Lee said offi-cials may need to consider charging for it down the road in light of budget issues, Lee said officials want to keep it as a free event for the time being. The event has attract-ed larger audiences in recent years, he said.

The program’s stated mis-sion is to “challenge our audiences, to expose them to new ideas, and give them new perspectives on our world,” according to its offi-cial website.

The series has featured many standout performances in during its run. Lee remem-bers a performance from Indian sitar player and com-poser Anoushka Shankar who met with music students and brought something new to the campus. Intellectuals – such as theoretical physi-cist and science enthusiast Michio Kaku, philosopher and activist Cornel West and science educator Bill Nye – have attracted large crowds.

“I think the community is getting a chance to see and hear some really creative people,” he said, adding the program allows people to experience different ideas, fresh musical styles and “some of the best things that are going culturally today.”

Larry Snyder is the current dean of the Potter College of Arts and Letters and the chair of the series’ organiz-ing committee. He said the committee is planning next season.

“We try to get as much diversity as we can in terms of area of interest,” Snyder said of planning the lineup.

When it comes to picking guests, Snyder said organiz-ers look for names that are

recognizable in the com-munity. This year’s sea-son kicked off with country music artist Sam Bush fol-lowed by Nina Totenberg – a legal affairs journalist with NPR who Snyder said fit nicely with the start of the political season. Other guests this season included writer Neil Gaiman, performers from Martha Graham Dance Company and Ladysmith Black Mambazo – a South African a cappella group.

The series will continue next year in September with Anne Lamott, an American novelist and non-fiction writer who wrote “Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life,” among other books. Ben Sollee, a cellist raised in Lexington, will also perform in October.

“So we’re looking for folks who are both notable and on the cutting edge,” Snyder.

While the shows are enter-taining, they can also chal-lenge attendees’ personal views.

Snyder cited West – who often speaks about race rela-tions and income inequal-ity – as a speaker who chal-lenged perspectives.

The series started as an

initiative of the university’s president, Snyder said, and usually features four to six performances.

Snyder agrees the series is a part WKU’s mission to serve the larger public – something he said lawmak-ers are missing in their bud-get discussions in Frankfort.

“We see this as what a uni-versity ought to be about,” he said. “I think it’s been a nice way for the university to provide leadership in this area and for this region.”

WKU’s Center for researCh, Development, small BUsiness aCCelerator

While WKU aims to enhance the region’s cul-tural life, it’s also trying to improve its economic pros-perity.

One way it’s doing that is through WKU’s Small Business Accelerator – a ser-vice located in the univer-sity’s Center for Research and Development providing business support services for startup companies.

“Our position is to do whatever we can to support their success and help them create jobs and opportuni-ties,” said Jeff Hook, who

directs the Small Business Accelerator along with the Center for Research and Development.

WKU’s Center for Research and Development sports a range of research resources. One of those is the Nondestructive Analysis Center’s Large Chamber Scanning Electron Microscope, which can observe deformations in engineering materials. The Center for Research and Development’s laboratories help solve business-related problems and offer students educational experience.

When it comes to help-ing businesses get off the ground, Hook said the accel-erator can help businesses find resources, increase growth and provide space.

“Basically we’re provid-ing a professional business environment for these young companies to work in,” he said.

Over its 11-year existence, the accelerator has helped a range of businesses from in the energy, automotive and Web development sectors.

One of those companies is Bluegrass Supply Chain Services – a third party

logistics provider located in Bowling Green. After start-ing out at the accelerator years ago, Hook said, it’s grown to 600 employees in the region.

“It creates jobs and oppor-tunities within the region,” Hook said of the accelerator.

soCiety of lifelong learning

When it comes to learning more about the world, you don’t have to be a student to benefit from classes through the Society of Lifelong Learning.

Anyone age 50 or over can become of a member of the society, and membership provides classes taught by university faculty typically over an eight-week period.

“This is a way for peo-ple to keep learning, to stay engaged,” said Cindy Ehresman, program manager for the society.

Classes for the society continue this spring and summer. Members can start any time for $125 per term or $200 for annual member-ships, in which people can take as many classes as they like. Membership is not lim-ited to WKU graduates.

Ehresman said she’s seen more people taking more classes since the program kicked off its first semester in the spring of 2015.

Classes offered this spring teach members the basics of drawing, how to interpret and memorize poetry, a his-tory class on Kentucky’s role in the American Civil War and behind-the-scenes tours using WKU’s buses. A trip to New York City is slated for this June to hear the WKU Chorale sing Mozart’s “The Requiem.”

Classes are often taught by current or retired WKU faculty.

“A lot of faculty really enjoy it because they have an engaged and interesting class,” Ehresman said.

Those interested in get-ting a taste of the program can attend Food for Thought sessions. For only $10 non-members can eat lunch, socialize and hear a lec-turer speak on a set topic. Sessions include the Beatles vs. the Stones, Immigration in Kentucky, Tips for Staying Healthy as We Age and Taking Care of Elvis, which is presented by Elvis Presley’s private nurse.

To learn more about the Society of Lifelong Learning, visit wku.edu/sll or call 270-745-1912.

Western maintains a list of campus events, many of which are either free or avail-able for a fee to the commu-nity. They include lectures, faculty concerts, sporting events and other things. That information is available at wku.edu.



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From Page 7

WKU

Austin Anthony/[email protected] Nye speaks in 2014 at e.A. Diddle Arena as part of the WKU Cultural enhancement Series.

“We see this as what a university

ought to be about.”

Larry SnyderDean of Potter College

of Arts and Letters, on WKU’s Cultural

Enhancement Series


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Bowling Green offers regional educational opportunities

Bowling Green may be an attractive destination for business and tour-ism, but it’s also strong in another area – higher education.

For Bowling Green Mayor Bruce Wilkerson, education has been “such an economic driver to our town and not just Bowling Green but to the region. I think that the engagement in a community of all our educational institutions is what makes Bowling Green unique,” he said.

By AARON [email protected]

See SUCCESS, 10

Two sTudenTs sit March 17 on the william “Gander” Terry Colonnade at western Kentucky university.

Austin Anthony/[email protected]

Bowling Green is home to roughly 62,000 people, according to a 2014 U.S. Census Bureau estimate. It’s also the home of Western Kentucky University, Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College and Daymar College, which attract students from surrounding counties.

Among those students traveling into Warren County is Sandy Combs, 51, of Franklin, who is studying in SKYCTC’s culinary arts program.

“This program has taught me that I can achieve and do a lot more than I thought I can do,” said Combs, who dreams of owning a bak-ery someday. “It’s showed me that I had strength that I didn’t realize that I had.”

Years ago, Combs was a seventh-grade dropout want-ing to get her GED and more out of life. Recently, the cake decorator was named culi-nary arts student of the year by the Kentucky Restaurant Association and placed fourth in a Dairy Queen cake decorating competition in Puerto Rico.

Combs is doing well in the program, but it’s no cake-walk.

She described the program as “tough” with challenges forcing her to tell herself “It’s gonna be OK. You can get through it.”

Despite the challenge, Combs said the program is preparing her for a career. “I’ve been in culinary my whole life, but I’ve never been in the management side of culinary,” she said, add-ing that management classes have helped. “I know that I’m getting a great education at SKY, and I know that for me SKYCTC is much more affordable.”

For Phillip Neal, president of SKYCTC, Combs’ story continues a tradition decades old. “For more than 77 years, SKYCTC has been prepar-ing students for life beyond the classroom by providing educational opportunities that allow them to enter the workforce a step above the

competition or transfer to a four-year institution,” he said in an email.

Today, SKYCTC serves 18,000 students annually through a variety of pro-grams.

“These include full-time and part-time students, workforce training, dual credit offerings to high school students, adult edu-cation and testing services,” Neal said. “Our service area spans a 10-county region that includes Allen, Barren, Butler, Edmonson, Hart, Logan, Metcalfe, Monroe, Simpson and Warren coun-ties.”

The college offers more than 30 programs geared toward preparing students for a job or transferring to

a four-year institution. It offers programs in advanced manufacturing, allied health and nursing and business. Students can also complete associate degrees in arts and science and transfer to any public four-year university in Kentucky as a junior with general education require-ments completed, Neal said.

“Students choose SKYCTC because it allows them to earn a quality edu-cation while staying close to home,” Neal said. “The tuition rate at SKYCTC is the most affordable in Kentucky, and we offer small class sizes with a flex-ible class schedule.”

As early as 1939, SKYCTC was established as a train-ing facility by the name of

Western Trade School.“The school was used to

train industrial workers and Armed Service personnel for the duration of World War II,” Neal said.

The school became inde-pendent from WKU in 1962 and took the name Western Area Vocational School. A move to its current main campus location on Loop Avenue happened in 1968 and preceded another name change to Bowling Green Area Vocational School.

The school changed its name once again in 1996 to the Bowling Green Regional Technology Center, and became part of the Kentucky Community and Technical College System follow-ing legislation in 1997. The name was later shortened to Bowling Green Technical College and in 2010 it was able to award associate transfer degrees in arts and science along with associate degrees in applied science.

In 2013, the college officially became the Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College. Neal said the move was motivated by two rea-sons:

“To highlight the compre-hensive mission of offering technical and transfer edu-cation, adult education and workforce training,” he said, and “to honor and recognize

our entire 20-county region. We currently have six cam-pus locations in the cities of Bowling Green, Franklin and Glasgow.”

Neal said SKYCTC wants to continue moving forward.

“We have set the bar high-er for our students, so they will stand out to employ-ers,” he said. “They will be the preferred hires not only because they have the nec-essary skills, knowledge and training to do the job, but also because they are dependable, hardworking and understand the expectation of today’s business and industry.

Preparing students for careers is also the goal of Daymar College. The career training school offers more than 30 career tracks and has locations in Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee, according to its website.

Wilkerson, who is also president of Daymar College’s Bowling Green campus, said his location has about 250 students who come from surrounding counties and Tennessee.

Wilkerson said the school has been around since the late 1960s or early 1970s and concentrates on programs in the health care, business, accounting and criminal jus-tice.

Instructors work with stu-dents personally to prepare them for careers, he said.

Katie Reedy, who is from Morgantown, started attend-ing Daymar College in August. As a student study-ing medical assisting and cardiovascular tech, Reedy appreciates the college’s small class sizes.

“It’s like every teacher is able to get to each individual student and help them,” she said.

Reedy said her classes strike a balance between online coursework and hands-on experience. She needs to complete assign-ments online to be counted as attending her classes, but she also has experience with certain medical procedures, such as using intravenous therapy.

Reedy, who wants to work at The Medical Center, said she probably wouldn’t be successful studying on a larger campus.

“I love Daymar,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to go any-where else.”

As for WKU, it is appar-ent that the university serves numerous students from out-side Warren County, many of whom drive in for classes. WKU also has a presence in Glasgow, Elizabethtown and Owensboro.

— Follow Daily News reporter Aaron Mudd on Twitter at twitter.com/aaron_muddbgdn or visit bgdaily news.com.


From Page 9

SUCCESS

Photos by Miranda Pederson/[email protected]: Steve HatcHer (left), a welding professor, and Mat-thew Keith, a welding instructor, put the lid on a time capsule that they helped build april 15, 2014, during the 75th anniversary celebration at Southcentral Kentucky community and technical college. right: SKYctc President Phillip Neal speaks during the 75th anniversary celebration at the college.

austin anthony/[email protected] KeNtucKY university’s campus is seen March 17.

Rebekah Houck never went to what she describes as “school, school.”

“It was at a church. I went three days,” the 11-year-old Rockfield girl said. “My mom would take home all my books, and then we would do two days of home-schooling.”

Rebekah has been solely homeschooled from grades two through five. She enjoys it, especially history.

“I get to spend more time with mom instead of a teach-er who focuses on lots of stu-dents,” she said. “She’s able to focus on my strengths and weaknesses and whether I’m behind or not.”

Rebekah’s family is one of more than 200 home educat-ing families who are mem-bers of the Barren River Homeschool Association, which provides educational and social activities for home educators and their children in Warren, Allen, Simpson, Edmonson, Butler and Barren counties in Kentucky, Sumner County in Tennessee and other nearby counties. For more information, visit homeschool-life.com.

An Answer to prAyerAllison Houck is BRHSA

vice president. In addition to Rebekah, she homeschools her 8-year-old daughter, Samantha.

“We’ve homeschooled since Rebekah was in kin-dergarten. She had a teacher half the time in co-op and half with me,” she said. “Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays were at the co-op, and Wednesdays and Fridays I would teach her at home.

“We have homeschooled full time for three years and part time for six,” she said. “The younger one has always been homeschooled.”

The Houcks have never had traditional school and traditional school hours.

“My husband works for CSX Railroad. We got moved a lot when he first started,” Houck said. “When it came time to put my oldest in kindergarten we had just moved. We weren’t sure she would stay where we were.”

The family was in Knoxville, Tenn., when Houck got an answer to her prayers through selling a chair on Craigslist.

“I hadn’t decided what to do. I had been praying what was the best fit for our fami-

ly. This mother called (about the chair). We got to chatting and talking about jobs and she said she worked at (co-op) school and encouraged us to come visit,” she said. “It seemed like the most per-fect thing for us. My hus-band worked 10 days out of town and came home for six days. It was an odd schedule to keep. Those days he was home I could keep her home and teach her and she could spend time with her dad.”

Samantha and Rebekah have one day at co-op for science and history, Houck said.

“I’m not strong in science. The subjects that I don’t love can be hard to relay to my children,” she said. “It is nice to have a co-op or additional class to say it’s cool. I teach science, but I don’t think I give them a good apprecia-tion of it. I love history.”

A hard thing about home-schooling is getting adult time, Houck said.

“I’d like to have an adult conversation,” she said. “I have to carve out that time to have adult time.”

In addition to the co-op, which gives the girls lessons in a classroom setting, the

girls get socialized in other ways, Houck said.

“People ask ‘What about socialization?’ That has been the bottom (problem) of the list. Because we are at home, a lot of people make sure there are things to do,” she said. “Someone has always put together things.”

Rebekah enjoys going to the co-op and hanging out with friends.

“On Fridays, we go to the co-op where we learn about fun stuff and get to be around other kids. It’s a lot like school,” she said. “Outside of homeschoolers we have

a group and we’re always doing activities together.”

That doesn’t mean they go to all the functions, Houck said. “We have to be home this week. We’ve got to get our lessons done,” she said recently. “You almost have to say no to socialization sometimes.”

‘It wAsn’t somethIngon my rAdAr’

BRHSA Chairwoman Tina Nahid has been a stay-at-home mom for 16 years and has homeschooled her


Local families find blessings in homeschoolingBy ALYSSA HARVEY

[email protected]

Miranda Pederson/[email protected] Houk (left) and her daughter Rebekah, 11, work March 24 on an English lesson at their Warren County home.

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children – Abraham, 15, Micah, 12, and Ellie, 9 – for about eight of those years.

“There’s been a few years my children have been to school. One of my sons is in school right now,” she said. “My oldest just started this year. He started at Bowling Green Christian Academy.”

Nahid hadn’t been think-ing about homeschooling her children.

“My husband came home and said he had met a fam-ily that homeschooled, and I said, ‘What was that?’ He said he felt like that was some-thing God had for us. We started reading about it,” she said. “The more people we met, the more it seemed that it was attracting us. It wasn’t something on my radar. We did like a lot of aspects of it, the freedom and the time you have with your children. It seemed to fit our family.”

Homeschooling can be tai-lored to fit the child’s needs depending on their interests, personalities and learning styles, Nahid said.

“At this point my children have a routine. We have a set schedule,” she said. “It’s a flexible schedule. We get up and have breakfast. They start out with their Bible les-sons and then do math.”

Nahid uses different meth-ods with her children.

“I let Micah have the freedom to choose. My son is mostly independent. Of course I’m there. He likes to do things on his own. He learns well on his own,” she said. “Depending on if a child is more social they may work in a more interac-tive way. Ellie’s age plays a part. She likes to have more structure.”

Many things can be used as a homeschool lesson. Ellie signed up to get a pen pal through “Adventures in Odyssey Clubhouse” maga-zine.

“She got a letter today and asked if she could write back. That can be your hand-writing today. She’s learn-ing how to communicate,” Nahid said. “She’s going to learn more. We can incorpo-

rate it in the learning, which makes it more fun.”

On Fridays, the Nahid children go to co-op.

“They have science and history and half a year of drama and half a year of art,” Nahid said. “It’s like a mini school. They have home-work and teachers there.”

Nahid likes how home-schooling has helped strengthen her bond with her children.

“You just do life togeth-er, so I think it gives you a chance to get a strong bond. It’s a way to get to know each other and be their pri-mary people as parents, not that you don’t need others because you need that com-munity,” she said. “I like the freedom of being able to teach them and instill my values and faith. It’s a good way to disciple your kids.

They see you at your worst and see you at your best. It’s a blessing.”

You have to have a certain amount of self-motivation and self-discipline, Nahid said.

“You’re not punching a time clock. You don’t have somebody overseeing you. Your patience is shifted. You have these certain expec-tations,” she said. “You’re trusting God with your chil-dren. Sometimes you want to control things you can’t take control over. As a home-schooler you have people looking at you like you’re weird. You have to learn to be real and who you are.”

Sending Abraham to Bowling Green Christian Academy was a “decision we made as parents,” Nahid said.

“That was something we felt was good for him at this

point. We felt at this point it’s what God wanted for him,” she said. “You take it year by year. Sometimes things change, and that’s OK. Sometimes you can no lon-ger be what your child needs and we have to be open to that also.”

The number of parents who homeschool grows every year, Nahid said. There are many activities such as spelling bees, Bible bees, chess club, skate par-ties, crafting, theater, com-munity sports, 4-H, scouting and more.

“It’s very diverse. There are all kinds of ways to homeschool. I think there’s a lot more opportunities for children to be involved in so many ways,” she said. “How will your child be around people? They have so many opportunities to be around other children and lots of extracurricular activi-ties. Your child can still be very involved with other children.”

‘It’s a full-tIme job’Sara Jones had friends

who were homeschoolers, but she didn’t think it was for her.

“I was anti-homeschool,” she said.

Her son, Noah, had a September birthday so he would’ve been going to kindergarten at 4 years old, Jones said.

“Sending him to school as a 4-year-old didn’t sound good as a social aspect,” she said. “He was reading chap-ter books at 4 years old. He was an avid reader and is an avid reader.”

Jones decided to try home-schooling even though she thought she’d probably hate it. What she found surprised her.

“The first year I fell in love with the whole process. We spend our summer review-ing where they are. We start school the same week tra-ditional schools begin,” she said. “Our first priority is the kids’ education. If we think they’re not mastering things they need to master we always see if we need to reassess their education-al needs. Come fall they’re doing their schoolwork, just

here at home.”Jones homeschools all her

children – Noah, 16, Macy, 14, Molly, 13, Emma, 9, and Jordan, 7.

“Noah is a senior this year. As a junior he was doing great as a homeschooler,” she said.

Noah Jones, as well as his middle and high school sib-lings, are doing their studies through the Barren Academy of Virtual and Expanded Learning, a partnership with Barren County Public Schools that is done from home, Sara Jones said.

“He is assigned an educa-tor for every subject that he takes. For every chapter he completes he has to be in contact by phone or by Skype to a teacher,” she said. “He has accountability through the public school system. He’s scheduled by a teacher and graded by a teacher. It’s available for kids sixth grade and up. Warren County is a partner with them.”

Sara Jones has told other people about BAVEL.

“I met someone from Edmonson County who didn’t have chemistry at their school. They took it through BAVEL,” she said. “It’s good for children with dif-ferent needs whether they’re gifted or with learning dis-abilities. I found it to be a great option for our family.”

The beauty of BAVEL is being able to do different things, Sara Jones said.

“We’re allowed to do (advanced placement) cours-es not done by homeschool-ers. You have (Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship) money and guidance counselors,” she said. “It gives us access to programs available to public school students, which we have found beneficial.”

Noah Jones will gradu-ate early and has been well received by university admissions, Sara Jones said.

“We have found since we are at that spot it’s not a challenge at all,” she said. “We’re able to document his work and doing the admis-sion process has not been a challenge at this point. He has taken the ACT. You have to meet the same standards and test scores as traditional

students.”Noah Jones is weighing

his scholarship options and what he will study. A pos-sibility for study is biology and he wants to participate in theater.

Sara Jones said her expec-tations of education are high.

“The challenge for me as a mom is for me to make sure I am providing them with a challenging curriculum that I am involved with, having great debates and great dis-cussions on difficult topics. I am having to stay educated on top of events and read great literature to keep them challenged,” she said. “It’s difficult and a great blessing. I’m showing them what life-long learning looks like and that they have potential to be students forever. There’s always something to learn. The challenge is to push them to the next level.”

Being an at-home educator is a full-time job, even with the older kids doing online school, Sara Jones said.

“Yesterday I sat with Macy for three hours because she was writing on censor-ship and the aspect of ban-ning books. We had a great conversation on the pros and cons of censorship,” she said. “Even with hav-ing a resource like BAVEL I’m still involved with their education. If you’re doing it right, you have to devote a lot of time to it.”

Homeschooling allows for mastery, Sara Jones said. Kids can go at their own pace.

“Education is individu-al. You can teach in a way that the child needs to be taught,” she said. “I feel like that’s a positive for kids. It allows them an educational experience where mastery is the key and I can pace them where mastery is the key.”

Her favorite thing about homeschooling is spending so much time with her kids.

“Homeschooling has been a big blessing in our life,” she said. “I don’t think I’ll look back and regret my decision to homeschool them.”

– Follow Daily News reporter Alyssa Harvey on Twitter at twitter.com/bgdn features or visit bgdaily news.com.


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Warren County Public Schools and the Bowling Green Independent School District serve thousands of children each day. Here is information on each district:

Warren County sChoolsSuperintendent: Rob ClaytonBoard of education members: Garry

Chaffin, Kerry Young, Don Basham, Amy Duvall and Becky Evans.

Numbers of schools: 14 elementary schools, four middle schools, four high

schools, five alternative schools and one vir-tual high school.

Number of students: More than 15,000.

boWlIng green sChoolsSuperintendent: Gary FieldsBoard of education members: Deborah

Williams, Christine Dressler, Michael Bishop, Frank Moore and Jane Wilson.

Number of schools: five elementary schools, one middle school, one high school and one alternative school.

Number of students: 4,006

Public schools: By the numbersBy the Daily News

From Page 11

BLESSINGS

Photos by Miranda Pederson/[email protected]: Allison Houk (left) and her daughter samantha, 8, work on a math lesson March 24 at their Warren County home. right: lesson books are placed on the table.

Keeling, 46, is in his third year as principal at the Warren County Area Technology Center, where students can learn about information technology, health sciences, construc-tion, automotive technology and welding.

“I am in the perfect posi-tion to share and model the importance of career readi-ness and college readiness collectively,” he said. “Our students are generally not focused on college. We are able to provide skill sets to start a career.”

Keeling grew up in Todd County. His father, James Keeling, died two years ago. His mother is Connie Keeling. His oldest broth-er, Jimmy Keeling, died in 2008. He also has an older brother, Scott Keeling.

“My dad was a welder. He worked for TVA,” he said. “We had a body shop. We had a farm and horses.”

He and his brothers enjoyed each other’s compa-ny and sometimes, like many kids, got rowdy.

“We were just a year apart, so we were a handful. My momma used a switch on us,” he said. “When we were 9, 10 and 11, we raised a tobacco crop together.”

Keeling was always fasci-nated with cars.

“My dad would come in and paint on weekends,” he said. “I can remember being 9 years old and he not mak-ing me redo my work.”

Cars have marked impor-tant days in his life.

“I was working on a ’63 (Chevrolet) Impala when Elvis Presley died,” he said. “They were playing Elvis songs all day. We were blast-ing the radio.”

Keeling got his first job when he was 14 years old at Law’s Garage.

“I pumped gas, changed oil, changed tires – small service work,” he said. “He would teach me mechanic work and pay me a dollar and two Cokes a day.”

Keeling went to Hopkinsville Community College and was taking general education credits to go to Western Kentucky University in 1987. He trans-ferred to WKU in the fall of 1988 and married his wife, Melanie, on Feb. 23, 1990. In April 1990, he joined the U.S. Army as a stinger missile crewman, working with air defense missiles that shoot down planes. He left WKU to ship to Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Storm on Aug. 27, 1990.

“We were apart for the first year (of marriage) basically,” he said.

Keeling came home on March 29, 1991, and got out of the Army the next year. He went to what was then Bowling Green Technical

College to study collision repair.

“I could do body work, but I wanted to learn how to spray,” he said. “I was going to WKU at the same time for about a semester.”

Keeling started teaching collision repair in Hebron with the Kentucky Tech System. He transferred into the Kentucky Community and Technical College System in Somerset for col-lision repair. In 1999, he transferred back to Bowling Green with the birth of his daughter, Madeline. He taught collision repair at Bowling Green Technical College. He was promoted to applied technology divi-sion chairman in 2002.

In 2006, he accepted a position as principal at Butler County ATC.

“I had to hire person-nel, set up programs, order equipment,” he said. “It was a great experience.”

Keeling was asked to pres-ent at former Kentucky first lady Jane Beshear’s Dropout Summit. “I talked about our school and program and suc-cesses,” he said.

In 2010, he transferred to Russellville ATC and imple-mented the Be the Change Program. “It’s a rewards program for students with strong work ethics, excel-lent attendance, respect and a positive attitude,” he said. “It started at Butler County.”

Keeling worked with Tom Harned, executive direc-tor of the Logan Economic for Alliance Development, to start foundational work for the area technology center in Russellville. He worked there from 2010 to 2013 before transferring to Bowling Green

“It’s a beautiful facility. It seems the timing has been right for everything,” he said.

Things are bright at Warren County ATC. Be the Change won a national award. There have been pos-itive culture shifts for career readiness. The school has moved from 64 percent to 90 percent career readiness and received numerous cer-tifications.

“We placed 100 percent of students who wanted jobs,” Keeling said. “It is due to outstanding and dedicated teachers and amazing stu-dents.”

Kids, based on attendance, can participate in Mentor Mondays, Keeling said.

“Plant managers and HR directors come once a month on Mondays and teach how to write a resume, company expectations and salary,” he said.

While the students may not be interested in further-ing their education, Keeling works to help them real-ize that by earning a two-

year degree at Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College or a degree at WKU, they can earn $5 more an hour, $40 more a day, $200 more a week and $800 more a month.

“Now we have purpose and passion for students to excel and achieve,” he said. “The mini-successes build the confidence to be success-ful, coupled with skill sets, dual credit and tuition assis-

tance we are experiencing a huge return on investment.”

Keeling finally finished his bachelor’s degree at WKU and his master’s degree in industrial education admin-istration at Eastern Kentucky University. He received his Rank 1 in K-12 educational administration, superinten-dent certification and recent-ly finished his doctorate in K-12 in educational leader-ship at WKU and has numer-

ous certifications.“They would not have

been possible without the encouragement and support of my wife and daughter and parents,” he said. “My mom instilled in me and my broth-ers a strong work ethic. She would say, ‘Always work harder than your boss and make sure they are happy you are there.’ ”

ric Keeling learned the value of a strong work ethic early in life.“Work using my hands and back didn’t translate to low intelligence, just that

I get excited about fixing and building things,” he said. “As an adult, I realized the value of an education and the opportunities that it can provide.”


Warren County Area Technology Center principal helps students succeed

Miranda Pederson/[email protected] County area technology Center Principal eric Keeling speaks in 2015 at the Bowling Green area Chamber of Commerce.

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Hardin Planetarium hopes to expand programs

Miranda Pederson/[email protected] KistleR presents a show Jan. 5, 2015, for “Humans on Mars” at Western Kentucky University’s Hardin Planetarium.

By WES SWIETEK • [email protected]

or almost half a century, the Hardin Planetarium at Western Kentucky University has offered virtual views of the stars to countless visitors. Opened in 1967, the white-domed structure is a WKU landmark that has drawn hundreds of thousands of visitors since its inception.

It has been called “the smurf house, the spaceship ... it’s iconic,” planetarium director Richard Gelderman said. “The architecture really stands out.”

When the planetarium opened with its 40-foot dome, it “was one of the big-gest, best attended planetari-ums in the U.S. for a long time,” Gelderman said.

“It was a big deal (and) was very well known” nationally, he said.

The planetarium was dedicated Oct. 14, 1967, and is named for the son of then-WKU President Kelly Thompson – Hardin Cherry Thompson, who died in 1963 during his senior year at WKU.

During those early years, the planetarium had a large staff and drew throngs of vis-itors. The result is “a great legacy,” Gelderman said, which can be a challenge to maintain: The structure itself has had virtually no upgrades since it was built, and heating and cooling the facility with the original HVAC system has been tricky. And instead of a large staff, there is only one full-time employee.

One thing, however, has been updated – the virtual heart of the planetarium.

The center of the plan-etarium features the “star chamber” – the round, 110-seat room where spectators have a 360-degree view of “space” projected onto the dome’s interior.

The stars projected on the dome were originally pro-vided by a “star ball” – a

round metal ball a bit bigger than a basketball with holes punched in it and lit by a very bright carbon arc lamp.

While producing a bright display, the star ball had lim-ited functionality.

“In 2012, we realized it wouldn’t take millions to replace it,” Gelderman said. For about $50,000, a digital projector with a fish eye lens was installed. Now, the star chamber displays can, with a flick of a button, move, rotate, change and show ani-mations and movies.

The planetarium hosts three weekly programs on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, as well as special shows and school groups, with attendance topping 10,000 per year.

The concourse surround-ing the star chamber fea-tures displays and interactive exhibits relating to astrono-my and space exploration.

“The whole focus is interactivity,” planetarium coordinator Ronn Kistler. “Hopefully (visitors) will come away with something.”

As for the facility’s future, Gelderman has several goals.

“I’m a big believer that we serve this community. It has been a real democratic thing from the beginning (and) we still don’t charge for admis-sion,” he said.

Gelderman said he would like to increase the frequen-cy and variety of programs with a repertory of shows.

“We’re working toward being open more hours (and) to find more resources,” Gelderman said.

Kistler is the planetarium’s only staff member.

Gelderman has even big-ger aspirations.

“My big dream is that I think the planetarium should be the center of science edu-cation in our community,” he said.

The now-closed Barren River Imaginative Museum of Science “did great things. Bowling Green needs some-thing like that and the plan-etarium is already a fixture,” he said.

BRIMS was an interac-tive, child-focused museum in Bowling Green on Center Street that in 2012 relocated temporarily to Greenwood Mall, and then the Mentz Hotel in Park City, but soon after closed its doors for good.

Gelderman would like to see the concept of a compact interactive science museum built on vacant space adja-cent to the planetarium come to fruition, but in an era of budget cuts, the project would likely need hefty pri-vate donations.

Whatever its future, Gelderman said the planetar-ium already has a special leg-acy. “So many people have fond memories; we have to keep it going,” he said.

— For more informa-tion about the Hardin Planetarium including latest show schedules, visit www.wku.edu/hardinplanetarium.

— Follow Daily News reporter Wes Swietek on Twitter at twitter.com/BGDNgovtbeat or visit bgdailynews.com.

WKU PHoToHaRdin PlanetaRiUM has been called “the smurf house” because of its shape.

He also has a business, the Center for Innovation and Influence, with a partner, Brian Dunican, that does consulting and leadership training.

“We try to focus on build-ing positive culture and personal development and safety to improve production proficiency at companies,” he said.

Keeling loves watching his students blossom.

“The relationships we’re building with businesses and industry partners is so great because of what we’re see-ing. They’re required to call in if they’re not coming,” he said. “We’re seeing students on task and motivated. We see kids who don’t want to go to college. We set them up with mini-successes so they can see how talented they really are. We want to provide a seamless transition into the workforce or techni-cal college system. The job placement provides funds to sustain themselves.”

There isn’t a discipline problem at Warren County ATC, Keeling said.

“The kids come in focused,” he said. “They know there is a job waiting for them at the end of the year if they do what they’re supposed to do.”

People who have worked with Keeling find the things he has done at the Warren County Area Technology Center to be innovative.

Ron Bunch, president and chief executive officer at the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce, has worked with Keeling with the On Track program, which introduces STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines into career education. According to the chamber website, On Track is a competition between the Warren County ATC and SKYCTC that challenges the students to completely rebuild two Chevy Camaros to compete in the Holley LS Fest that’s held annually at Beech Bend Raceway.

“We work with Eric exten-sively on talent initiatives

that help with workforce and education. Also in the past we’ve helped fund some of the industry certifications,” he said. “Every student who wanted to get a job got a job. We’re very proud of that.”

Keeling “is exceptional to work with,” Bunch said.

“We’re very proud of what Eric has done in his leadership role. Enrollment has gone from 150 students to 200 students in the past year,” he said. “His instruc-tors are great. He’s brought a lot of vibrancy to that school.”

While the Warren County ATC is technically not a Warren County school, Rob Clayton, superintendent of Warren County Public

Schools, has come in contact with Keeling on numerous occasions.

“It’s actually a state-run school. However, he works closely with the Warren County schools because of the size and quality,” he said. “He pretty much participates in all the things our princi-pals do. I work as closely with him as I do with the other 22 principals that we have.”

In fact, that’s how

Clayton’s relationship with Keeling began.

“He asked to be part of our professional develop-ment. I go as often as I can to observe what they’re learning in the programs. We talk often,” Clayton said. “He is passionate about stu-dent opportunities. He’s done some amazing things, especially developing part-nerships with the business community. He works with other high school principals

as well.”Students in his programs

have graduated high school and immediately started in some quality job opportuni-ties, Clayton said.

“He had businesses com-ing in and performing onsite interviews with students before they graduate,” he said. “It’s a hidden gem in our district.”

The level of achievement occurring at the Warren County ATC is impressive, Clayton said.

“The students are passing the industry certifications the first time. There are high lev-els of engagement in all the programs they’re receiving,” he said. “They have positive relationships with the kids. I

can’t say enough good things about what’s happening out there for our kids.”

Clayton said he appreci-ates Keeling’s enthusiasm and passion for the students.

“Those are hallmarks of his leadership,” he said. “I think he’s doing on outstand-ing job and I feel everybody who’s observing what’s hap-pening out there would con-cur.”

Keeling has enjoyed the journey. “There’s nothing greater than making a living out of making a difference,” he said.

— Follow Daily News reporter Alyssa Harvey on Twitter at twitter.com/bgdn features or visit bgdaily news.com.


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From Page 13

PRINCIPAL

Miranda Pederson/[email protected] KEEling stands at the Warren county Area Technology center.

People who have worked with Keeling find the things he has

done at the Warren County Area Technology Center to be innovative.


THRI4

Scenes from the Hill

Adliris riverA/Special to the Daily NewsAN AeriAl view of the campus of Western Kentucky University is shown in 2015.

dAily News file photoBrett rice, of lexington, then a senior at Western Kentucky University, walks in 2013 down regents Avenue after class.

AustiN ANthoNy/[email protected]: PeArce-ForD toWer and Guthrie tower stand March 17 on Western Kentucky University’s campus. below: WKU’s campus is shown March 17.

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