KSU has an advantage over other universities with its typically small class sizes—the University enjoys a student/faculty ratio of 16 to 1, the lowest among all the public colleges and universities in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. (Link to Budget_p.17.pdf) This meant that making significant reductions in class size and spending large sums of money for hiring several new faculty expressly for the QEP were not necessary.

Due to the rise in the number of students who require remediation, the University has relied upon adjunct faculty to supplement the regular faculty who teach developmental reading, writing, and mathematics classes. The AWA QEP, however, will use regular full-time faculty with extensive experience in teaching developmental courses as much as possible. Such will also be true for gateway classes. University Orientation courses have traditionally been taught by regular faculty and professional staff, a practice which will continue.

The University committed to filling the position of Director of Developmental Education in spring 2009. That decision came independently of the development of the QEP but will complement and benefit the AWA project. The Director of Developmental Education, along with two faculty members from the area, will serve on the AWA Implementation Committee.

The AWA Quality Enhancement Plan will make use of several support programs, services, and activities that KSU provides that promote students' learning and enhance their development. These programs also have available professional staff that will provide training for faculty and other staff members in areas critical for success of the QEP. The Office of Student Affairs administers the programs and activities of Student Support Services, which are organized into several areas, while the Office of Academic Affairs administers Academic Support Services. The AWA project will coordinate and integrate with the following:

o Academic Center for Excellence

o Office of Academic Advising

Facilities

o Residence Life

Student Support

o Student Health Services

o Computer Services and Labs

o First Year Experience

o Career Counseling and Placement

Office of Placement and Testing and the Center for Professional Career Preparation

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