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Cottey planning for future says president
Nevada Daily Mail
New Cottey President Dr. Jann Weitzel gave members of the Nevada Lions Club an overview of the latest at the college and a glimpse of possible future plans, as well as an overview of the many events going on at the school.
Dr. Weitzel gave a brief history of Cottey as her introduction. The college was founded by Virginia Alice Cottey in 1884 to provide opportunities for young women.
"Alice wanted a solid, strong educational quality," for her school, which she led for some 40 years.
As she grew older, Virginia Alice Cottey Stockard realized that she needed someone to steward her school into the future.
Attempts to seek interest from the city and the Methodist church in purchasing the school didn't pay off, so she turned to a natural choice in the P.E.O. (Philanthropic Educational Organization) Sisterhood, an international women's organization with a focus on providing educational opportunities to female students.
The P.E.O. Sisterhood voted to accept the donation of her school in 1927.
Dr. Weitzel noted that the P.E.O. today has 230,000 members in the U.S. and Canada.
"Two to three times a week, we have P.E.O.s stop by and visit (Cottey)."
The campus includes 17 buildings situated on 100 acres.
Freshmen enrollment is up 20 percent, she said, with the student body coming from 53 states and 25 countries, with 14 percent of the students coming from outside the U.S.
Dr. Weitzel added that the board of trustees and the administration were working on a new strategic and master plan for the future of Cottey.
Enrollment growth would, at some point, necessitate new housing, with that option already being looked at, Dr. Weitzel said.
With six associate and eight baccalaureate degrees being offered, Dr. Weitzel said plans call for starting a secondary education program for teaching as well as "looking at a middle school," component.
The associate degrees include arts, arts music, fine arts art, fine arts dance, fine arts theatre, and science.
Currently, the eight baccalaureate programs include business, English, environmental studies, health sciences, international relations, liberal arts, and psychology, with the latter being the largest.
The faculty is also considering taking several of the current minors to full degree level.
Touching on the Serenbetz Institute for Women's Leadership, Social Responsibility and Global Awareness, Dr. Weitzel noted Cottey makes a concerted effort to include leadership and service learning as an integral part of the Cottey experience.
"We had 1,084 community service hours by our students in Nevada."
The faculty, which mirrors the student body, is also global, with a number of different countries represented.
And those faculty members are well qualified, she said.
"Eighty-nine percent have the highest degree in their area," Dr. Weitzel said of the faculty's credentials.
With a low student to faculty ratio of 8 to 1 and an average class size of 12, those faculty can provide a strong relational approach for the students.
Cottey has several new faces, Dr. Weitzel said, with a new vice president for academic affairs in Chioma Rita Ugochukwu and a new vice president for enrollment management in Natalie Herring.
Moving to finances, Dr. Weitzel said the school is in a solid position, with no debt, a strong endowment and a balanced budget each year.
Like most educational institutions, she said Cottey gets the majority of its funding from tuition, with a small percentage from endowment, and 7.5 percent of the budget coming from the P.E.O.
In response to a question from the audience, the president said, "Ninety-five to 96 percent of our students receive some kind of financial aid."
While the school is looking at growing its degree programs, it will also look to expand its athletic offerings.
Cottey currently has volleyball, basketball, softball and cross country, with the latter sport being the newest.
"We just received word that our cross country team was ranked 21st nationally."
Dr. Weitzel said she hoped to see other sports join the Cottey fold, possibly golf, tennis, and soccer, in the coming years.
Citing her background at Lindenwood in St. Louis, where she worked with some 50 sports, she said as Cottey transitions to more of a four-year granting institution, the athletic program would also transition, moving from junior college status to NAIA, which consists of smaller four-year schools, and is headquartered in Kansas City.
There are approximately 300 NAIA member schools, playing 13 sports. Fourteen of those schools are in Missouri.
Moving on to the many activities going on at Cottey, Dr. Weitzel pointed to the Distinguished Speaker Series. The program brings noted government, business, and social leaders across a variety of fields to share their experiences and their motivation.
The college also brings to campus a number of entertainers, including musicians, comediennes, actors, and magicians.
Cottey students take part in vocal, instrumental, dance, and drama performances that are open to the public.
Dr. Weitzel referenced the recent multicultural festival, which featured food from around the world, prepared by students and members of the college community, as well as performances of music and dance and an international bazaar.
The school also recently hosted the Cottey Chamber Singers, music students, and the Cottey-in-Motion Dance Company concert.
Upcoming events include the informal Christmas Choir concert Dec. 3, the Hanging of the Greens tradition Dec. 4 and 5, an instrumental music concert Dec. 6 and an informal dance concert Dec. 8.
A key part of the Cottey experience is offering a paid trip overseas, to broaden the students' cultural and global experience, she said.
This year's trip is scheduled for Paris, France, but as one of the questioners noted, and Dr. Weitzel concurred, the current terrorism acts have raised concerns about the excursion.
"We're looking at the events there. It depends on the travel warnings and advisories at the time of our trip (planned for the spring). We're working on a contingency plan and our options."
In concluding, Dr. Weitzel said she wanted to, "Thank the community for being so welcoming and for being a partner with the college."