By Heather Campbell, student news writer
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – “We’re starting our second century offering programs that meet the needs of today’s students,” said Campbellsville University President Dr. Michael V. Carter. “We now offer two graduate programs entirely online, with other programs offering a blended format.”
Karla Deaton, coordinator for graduate and extended programs at CU, said that the newest addition in the graduate program is the master of arts in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). The TESOL program is headed by the division of humanities and prepares students to teach English as a second language (ESL) in America as well as English as a foreign language (EFL) in other countries.
Campbellsville University is only one of two institutions, and the only private institution, in the state to offer the TESOL program as a master’s degree. This degree can be completed as a non-thesis program for 36 hours or as a thesis program for 39 hours.
“We started with just a handful of applicants, but now we have many more applications coming in for the spring,” said Dr. Sandra Kroh, director of English as a Second Language Institute and associate professor. For more information regarding the TESOL degree, contact Kroh at (270) 789-5073.
The two graduate programs which students are able to finish completely online are in the areas of business and special education.
The master of business administration (MBA) degree offers four tracks to the MBA online degree: marketing, international business, human resource management and healthcare management. The School of Business is accredited by the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE), a professional accrediting organization of Olathe, Kan.
The second graduate program offered completely online is the master of arts in special education (MASE), for students who are already teacher-certified. This program has 12 online classes and can be completed in approximately 1.5 years.
The MASE program allows students to gain more field experience as well as discuss issues through online chat sessions and meet other students through video-teleconferencing seminars. The basis for this degree is to target strategies for educating students with learning behavior disorders, according to Deaton.
The School of Education also offers a master of arts in education degree to further teachers’ knowledge in curriculum and instruction in schools.
The Campbellsville University School of Education is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board (NCATE).
“Achieving two national accreditations within a year speaks volumes about the quality of our programs as well as the expertise of our faculty,” said Deaton. NCATE and IACBE were both achieved by CU within the past year.
In the area of music, the Campbellsville School of Music offers a master of arts degree in music, music education and church music. The master of arts in music degree is designed to offer a broad range of study and not to focus on an area of specialization, Deaton said.
The church music and music education graduate degrees specialize in their respective areas.
The School of Music is approved by the National Association of Schools of Music, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the Council on Post-Secondary Education and the Kentucky Department of Education.
In addition, CU offers master’s degrees in social science, counseling and theology.
For more information about CU’s graduate programs, call (270) 789-5078.
Campbellsville University is a private, comprehensive institution located in South Central Kentucky. Founded in 1906, Campbellsville University is affiliated with the Kentucky Baptist Convention and has an enrollment of 2,405 students who represent 98 Kentucky counties, 25 states and 29 foreign nations. Listed in U.S.News & World Report’s 2008 “America’s Best Colleges,” CU is ranked 22nd in “Best Baccalaureate Colleges” in the South and eighth in the South for “Great Schools, Great Prices.” CU has been ranked 15 consecutive years with U.S.News & World Report. The university has also been named to America’s Best Christian Colleges®. Campbellsville University is located 82 miles southwest of Lexington, Ky., and 80 miles southeast of Louisville, Ky. Dr. Michael V. Carter is in his ninth year as president.