■ What is the anticipated time-to-graduation for full-time and part-time students entering this program?

As projected in the curriculum ladder, full-time students should be able to complete the program in three to four semesters. Students requiring additional undergraduate courses will require one or two extra semesters depending on the number of extra courses they have to complete. Part-time students should be able to complete all the requirements of the program in approximately three years.

■ Describe your plans for collaborating with other institutions for offering this program. Why is it necessary that your institution offer the program?

KSU's involvement in the Kentucky University Partnership for Environmental Education (KUPEE) through the Kentucky Environmental Education Council of KDE over the last several years was a key motivating factor in developing the MES program. It is advantageous to continue to collaborate with the KUPEE group, which includes all eight of the Commonwealth's public universities. Collaborative partnerships between the MES program personnel and faculty conducting environmental research at the two research universities of the Commonwealth, the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville, are being planned. The program plans to establish formal research/teaching collaborative arrangements with the UL Kentucky Institute for the Environment and Sustainable Development (KIESD), the UK Center for Applied Energy Research (CAER), and the EKU Environmental Research Institute. The close proximity of these institutes will allow KSU to explore joint research projects and faculty to team teach some courses.

The liberal arts mission of Kentucky State University combined with its land grant mission and the geographic location of KSU at the center of state government activities in Frankfort will allow the University to take a leadership role in the emerging field of environmental studies. The KSU

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