Budget Justification:

The revenue/expense analysis is based on several assumptions. They are:

1. No new faculty will be needed for the program.
2. Tuition and fees revenue is based on full-time students taking 9 credit hours and part-time students taking 6 credit hours per semester. It also assumes that 75% of the full-time students will be in-state and 25% will be non-residents.
3. Internal reallocation amount reflects a portion of the $500,000 annual KSU share of the Higher Education Reauthorization and College Opportunity Act of 2008 which provides funding to HBCUs to expand their graduate programs.
4. Personnel expenses are calculated based on four courses being offered each semester by faculty with an average salary of $60,000 dedicating 25% time towards the program.
5. Operating costs includes one full-time office assistant and capital costs include books, journals, and other program related resources.

Cost Effectiveness/ Feasibility Analysis:

As noted earlier, the proposed MES program is a collaborative partnership between KSU's Division of Mathematics & Sciences, the Land Grant Program, the Honors Program, and the Kentucky Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet. To maximize resource efficiency, this interdisciplinary program utilizes a multidisciplinary approach by taking advantage of administrative support from the three participating departments and the Land Grant Program. In addition, support staff associated with the KSU Environmental Education Center will coordinate most field activities. The program coordinator will work as a liaison between the department chairs, deans, and the director of graduate studies to facilitate communications between the support offices. The program will promote collaboration between individuals from the various departments and programs in an interdisciplinary area of common interest which forms the backbone of the KSU MES program. At this time, the core group is composed of eleven individuals from the collaborating departments and programs.

Some of the capstone project studies will be conducted in collaboration with the central laboratory of the Environmental Protection Cabinet and the Transportation

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