K-STATE LAUNCHES FIRST DISTANCE-BASED DOCTORATE PROGRAM
Working professionals in the finance industry can now bolster their skills with a distance-based doctorate in personal financial planning from K-State.
K-State launched the doctorate program in personal financial planning this summer. It is the university's first distance-based doctorate program and is conducted almost exclusively online, save the summers when students come to campus for an intensive 10-day course. The fourth summer, students will travel abroad to see firsthand how global markets work and how they affect financial planning in the United States and worldwide.
"Demand for the program has been tremendous," said John Grable, K-State professor of personal financial planning. "We are recruiting students from around the world, and these are the best and brightest individuals who have a desire to make a lasting impact in the financial planning world through teaching and research."
The program, which is a collaboration between the College of Human Ecology's School of Family Studies and Human Services and K-State's Division of Continuing Education, enables distance students to earn their doctorate in as little as five years.
In the program students learn to solve real-world problems and integrate knowledge about personal finance and relationships. They also will have the opportunity to participate in professional groups, assume professional leadership positions and become involved in teaching, researching and publication, Grable said.
The degree fulfills the educational requirement for designation as a registered financial consultant, registered financial associate, certified retirement counselor or accredited financial counselor. This program also is registered with the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., which will allow graduates to sit for the certified financial planner exam.
More information on the program is available at http://www.ipfp.k-state.edu/programs/doctoral/
K-STATE ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROGRAM RECEIVES ACCREDITATION
The English Language Program at K-State has received a four-year accreditation from the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation.
Requirements for accreditation included extensive documentation of policies and procedures, as well as an on-site visit in which students, faculty and university administrators were all interviewed.
The benefits of accreditation include ensuring a quality education for the students within the English Language Program, standardizing working conditions for employees and guaranteeing that the program meets standards set by K-State as well as the profession in general.
The English Language Program currently serves around 480 students in the area of English preparatory courses. The program also offers three part-time English courses that aid students who are taking university classes but who still need some help in the areas of reading, writing or listening.
Most of the people in the program are international students who need help to improve their English for personal reasons or to meet university standards. Overall, students in the program are primarily degree-bound.
Mary Wood, director of K-State's English Language Program, said achieving accreditation is important to the program and the university.
"The CEA is the only agency that actually assesses programs on a standard set of criteria," Wood said. "There are a number of different English programs in the U.S. and around the world. Some are integrated into a university like we are. Some are loosely attached to a school and others are commercial programs. It's a way to make sure that students are getting what they pay for."
BEACH MUSEUM OF ART TO ENHANCE ARTISTIC EXPERIENCES FOR CHILDREN WITH MORE THAN $20,000 IN GRANTS FROM THE KANSAS ARTS COMMISSION AND TARGET
More than $20,000 in grants from the Kansas Arts Commission and Target will enable K-State's Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art to enhance its programming for children.
The commission recently gave the museum three grants totaling $19,046, including a $6,400 Arts-in-Education grant to support the busing of local students on "Bugging Out" tours being conducted in conjunction with the museum's "Robert J. Lang: Insect Origami" exhibition. Students in kindergarten through second grade will be bused to K-State's Insect Zoo, Manhattan's Sunset Zoo and then to the Beach Museum for the origami exhibit.
A $6,400 early childhood grant from the commission will help support the Beach Museum's Growing up ARTSmart program, a collection of children's art classes that are often tied to ongoing exhibitions. This is the fifth year the Kansas Arts Commission has supported the museum's early childhood and family programs.
The museum also received $6,246 from the Kansas Arts Commission to help cover exhibit expenses and overall operating expenses.
In addition, the museum has received a $1,000 grant from Target to support the busing of local children in grades three through sixth to the museum for the upcoming "Recreating Oz in Comics" exhibition.
K-STATE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION SEEKING IMAN AWARD NOMINATIONS
The K-State Alumni Association will be awarding the Dr. Ron and Rae Iman Outstanding Faculty Awards for Research and Teaching this fall, and is looking for nominees.
The Ron and Rae Iman Outstanding Faculty Award for Research is awarded annually to a full-time K-State faculty member who has distinguished his or herself in their chosen profession and who has contributed significantly through research to improve the betterment of the educational experience, or whose research has had a significant impact on their area of study.
The Ron and Rae Iman Outstanding Faculty Award for Teaching is designed to honor those known for excellence in instruction, strong relationships with students inside and outside of the classroom, and who have a reputation for scholarship and distinguished service to the university.
Each award winner receives $5,000. The awards presentation and reception will be from 4-6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 9, at the K-State Alumni Center.
The nomination form and a complete list of criteria can be found at http://www.k-state.com/Programs/Awards/
Nominations are due to the K-State Alumni Association by Oct. 1.