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| U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), right, discusses a point with Park University Provost and Senior Vice President Michael Droge, Ph.D., during Hoyer's visit to Park's Downtown Kansas City Campus Center on Sept. 12. |
U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) said making higher education more accessible to all types of students, including offering Online classes, is extremely important as the U.S. prepares talented and skilled workers for the global marketplace.
"You will not stop globalization," Hoyer said, "and investing in education is an imperative component of producing high-end value-added U.S. workers."
Hoyer made his comments during a brief afternoon visit Wednesday, Sept. 12, to Park University's Downtown Kansas City campus, located at 911 Main St. The meeting included Michael Droge, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Park, Tom Peterman, vice president for distance learning at Park, and former Kansas City mayor Kay Barnes, who joined the university in May as distinguished professor for public leadership, to lead Park's efforts to create the Center for Leadership in Public Affairs.
Hoyer praised Park for its dynamic Online program, which has grown from its debut class in 1996 to 52,000 enrollments currently. In 2006, U.S. News & World Report ranked Park as the second-largest Online degree-granting program in the country.
"We need to be connected," he said. "That's why it's vitally important to give education access to every kind of student, whether he or she is in a remote area of Missouri or in West Virginia."
But this connectivity means little to those who don't have access to a computer, or the financial assistance to get a higher education, Hoyer said, citing the connectivity issue brought up in the House Democrats' Innovation Agenda: A Commitment to Competitiveness to Keep America No. 1." Among the priorities in the Innovation Agenda was delivering high-speed Internet access to all Americans within five years. Hoyer also pointed to the recent $20 billion student aid package recently approved by Congress that will boost Pell Grant funding.
In response to Hoyer's request, Park representatives also shared information about the Barnes-led Center for Leadership, which will focus on preparing students and others for leadership in an "unscripted future." In order to do that, according to Barnes, the center will offer certificate programs, seminars and individual coaching focused on several leadership components. These include self-awareness, leadership competitions, decision-making, implementation and service. An additional component of the Center for Leadership, she said, includes a mentoring program with leadership associates.
