Kentucky State University

A historically black college founded in 1886 to train African American teachers, Kentucky State University never strayed from its roots of providing the most eager students access to a higher education. KSU continually finds ways to help students fulfill their dreams of earning a degree: whether securing them financial aid to begin and continue their educational journey; preparing students for college-level study with refresher courses and pre-entry programs; providing a flexible class schedule to allow working students to take classes online, at lunch or after work; or offering small class sizes and accessible teachers, which gives teachers and students more individualized time for instruction.

The faculty, staff and students embody the most diverse mix in the Commonwealth. More than 40 percent of the campus represent various ethnicities besides African American, including students from Central America, the Caribbean, Asian countries and Europe. Several years ago, KSU launched a Hispanic Initiative to better serve the needs of the Latino populations in Kentucky and to encourage more Hispanics to attend college. Since then, more Hispanics have turned to KSU. KSU also reached across the ocean to establish research partnerships and exchange programs with colleges and universities in China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. Now, several KSU students teach English as a second language overseas or study in Asia while their counterparts stay in Frankfort and learn to be English as a second language teachers for their home countries.

KSU provides something for everyone from traditional liberal arts fare to business, science, agricultural studies, fine arts, nursing, education, criminal justice, social work and aquaculture. In the last three years, the graduate studies program has grown. KSU now offers master's degrees in aquaculture, business administration, environmental studies, computer science, public administration and the online master's in special education. The university continues to expand its course selection by introducing the new journalism/mass communications degree program and specializations for the master's in business administration.

The only 1890 Land Grant institution in Kentucky, KSU focuses on agricultural studies, extension services, competitive research and its program of distinction, aquaculture. KSU's Community Research Service and Aquaculture faculty are breaking ground with their experiments and helping bolster the state's and nation's economy.

For example, aquaculture researchers are teaching Kentucky farmers how to cultivate a caviar, shrimp and tilapia crop. The aquaculture department also partnered with the Frankfort Sewer Department to explore a new, safer, more effective way to harvest paddlefish while simultaneously cleaning wastewater. Aquaculture has become the fastest growing segment of agriculture in America and a booming business throughout the world. KSU leads the state in offering aquaculture as a viable cash crop alternative for former tobacco farmers.

The Land Grant program staff also educates part-time and small farmers about how to make their land more profitable and how to sustain natural and financial obstacles through a series of outreach initiatives and workshops on campus. Meanwhile, KSU students partner with Land Grant Community Research Service researchers to test theories, conduct experiments and aid in national and international research, which gives them experience for graduate school and their future careers and also allows them to publish and present their findings at local, state and national competitions.

In the past five years, the message about KSU has spread. Applications and admissions have increased substantially, making KSU the fastest growing university in Kentucky since 2006. This not only benefits the niversity and students, it helps Kentucky reach its goal of having 400,000 bachelor's degree recipients living in-state.