More kids will need college remedial courses in Kentucky

The Courier-Journal reports about the anticipated impact of increased admissions requirements in Kentucky’s public colleges next year.

This is very bad news, as Kentucky’s college remediation rates are already high.



The largest impact of the new change will probably be felt in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System, which handles most of the state’s two-year programs. The newspaper estimates that 30 to 50 percent more of next year’s freshmen will have to take non-credit bearing remedial courses after the new standards take effect.

Impact at the state’s four-year institutions will be smaller, partly due to the fact that applicants who need remedial courses are already are being shuffled into the two-year programs.

The paper quotes Lana Jennings, director of the developmental education program at Murray State University Community College, about students who find out they need remedial courses in college. She says, “Many of them are embarrassed. Some are angry. Some are grateful that the help is here because they realize they are not ready for prime time.”

And, a lot of them probably are a little upset that their KERA educations didn’t prepare them for college.

The costs of remediation are rising rapidly. The Courier says currently, “…state spends more than $35 million a year on college remedial education, according to state's Council on Postsecondary Education.” It isn’t clear if that includes both the taxpayer supported costs plus the students’ added costs of tuition for the non-credit bearing courses.

In any event, this new $35 million figure is up dramatically from an estimate provided to the state legislature only around two years ago of $25 million a year, which included both the taxpayer and student-borne costs.

These are real consequences of a public education system that simply isn’t meeting all the promises that were made back in 1990.

If you know of a student who sailed through high school and then got the sudden shock in college that remedial courses were required, let us know with the comments section.

And, get ready to see a lot more kids in the remedial course pool next year.