KIRKSVILLE AREA TECHNICAL CENTER

1103 South Cottage Grove

Kirksville, MO 63501
(660) 665-2865
www.kirksvilleatc.weebly.com

Self-Study Report
2015

Preface
The Kirksville Area Technical Center staff took on the challenge of COE accreditation with enthusiasm
and trepidation (apprehension). While the staff knew KATC could meet each of the standards, this
process can be rather intimidating and somewhat daunting. However, at this time, KATC is ready for the
accreditation review!
The process began by forming the COE Committee, composed of the following staff members:
Sheryl Ferguson, Director
Lindsey Fraser, Counselor
Susan Hazen, College and Career Consultant
Katie Love, Instructional Team Leader
Deb Snyder, Instructional Team Leader
Karla Truitt, Adult Education Coordinator
Once the committee was formed, the members determined a plan of action:
1.

Assign standards to each member

2.

Schedule weekly meetings during 4th hour

3.

Implement checkpoints to assure progress was being made

A large part of the self-study preparation was simply gathering the information and compiling it into a
usable document. While the information was readily available, there were several instances when a
formal policy or plan was not in place.
The major benefits of preparing the self-study include the following:
o

A Strategic Plan is in place which is aligned with the newly implemented program
evaluation system recommended by Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary
Education.

A consolidated Instructional Materials plan is in place which addresses media services,

equipment, and supplies. This includes everything an instructor needs to know in regard
to the curriculum materials he/she is using in the classroom. This will be a huge benefit
to new instructors as well as existing instructors.

The self-study caused each staff member to seriously self-evaluate his/her program,
curriculum, and teaching methodology.

The KATC staff is proud of KATC accomplishments and is looking forward to the COE Accreditation Team
Visit.

KATC Self-Study Committee

Name
Sheryl Ferguson

Director

Position

Standards
Standards 1, 5, 7 & 9

Lindsey Fraser

Counselor

Standard 8

Susan Hazen

College and Career Consultant

Standard 10

Katie Love

Instructional Team Leader

Standard 6

Deb Snyder

Instructional Team Leader

Standard 2

Karla Truitt

Adult Education Coordinator

Standard 3

KIRKSVILLE AREA TECHNICAL CENTER STAFF

Mrs. Sheryl Ferguson ............................................................................................................ Director
Mrs. Dana Amidei ....................................................................................... Administrative Assistant
Mrs. Kim Bevill .............................................................................................. Computer Applications
Mrs. Maria Bradshaw .................................................................................. Technology Coordinator
Mrs. Laura Brown.......................................................................................... Computer Applications
Mr. Rich Chapman................................................................................................. PLTW Engineering
Ms. Vickie Cooper ..................................................................................Community Education/EMS
Mrs. Deborah Coulson ............................................................................................... Practical Nurse
Mrs. Cassie Cowles.......................................................................................... Agriculture Education
Mr. Tom DeBlauw ............................................................................................. Missouri Option/AEL
Mr. Jason Dimmitt........................................................................................... Agriculture Education
Mr. Mark Easdale .................................................................................................... Embedded Math
Mr. Robin Ferguson .................................................................... Automotive Mechanic/Technician
Mrs. Lindsey Fraser ......................................................................... Career and Technical Counselor
Mrs. Susan Hazen ............................................................................... Career Education Coordinator
Mr. Jerry Kruger ................................................................................................................. Custodian
Mr. Tysen Lawson ...................................................... Auto/Automotive Body Repairer Technology
Ms. Katie Love ................................................................................... Health Services/PLTW Biomed
Mr. Vince McQueen ............................................................ Construction Trades, Other Technology
Ms. Katie Miley ........................................................................................... Administrative Assistant
Mr. Tom Primmer ...................................................................................................Adult Agriculture
Mrs. Keely Schoonover .............................................................................................. Practical Nurse
Ms. Samantha Shelley ................................................................................................................... Art
Mrs. Debbie Slattery ............................................................................. Practical Nurse Coordinator
Mrs. Debbie Snyder............................................................................. Child Care Provider/Assistant
Mrs. Betsy Tornatore .......................................................... Digital Photography/PLTW Engineering
Ms. Karla Truitt ....................................................... Resource Educator/Evaluator/Adult Education
Mr. Jonathan Walker ........................................................................................................... Business
Mr. Steve Wheeler .................................................................................... Graphic Arts Occupations

Table of Contents
Preface ...................................................................................................... 2
Self-Study Members....................................................................................
Table of Contents ........................................................................................
Institutional & Community Characteristics .................................................
Conditions Check Sheets .............................................................................
Standards ....................................................................................................
Standard 1 ......................................................................................
Standard 2 ......................................................................................
Standard 3 ......................................................................................
Standard 4 ......................................................................................
Standard 5 ......................................................................................
Standard 6 ......................................................................................
Standard 7 ......................................................................................
Standard 8 ......................................................................................
Standard 9 ......................................................................................
Standard 10 ....................................................................................
Glossary.......................................................................................................
Supplements ...............................................................................................

Institution and Community Characteristics

Institutional Characteristics
1.

Kirksville Area Technical Center

2.

1103 South Cottage Grove

Kirksville, MO 63501
660-665-2865
www.kirksvilleatc.weebly.com

3.

Kirksville Area Technical Center (one campus)

4.

History of Kirksville Area Technical Center

In 2016, Kirksville Area Technical Center will celebrate its 50th anniversary. The federal
Vocational Education Act of 1963 served as the catalyst toward creation of the Center.
Three years later, in 1966, the Kirksville Area Vocational-Technical School was
designated as one of the 58 area schools to be established in Missouri. At that time the
Kirksville R-III School District offered four skill training programs which were housed in
various locations throughout the community. With the area school designation, the
service was expanded beyond Kirksville to include all of Adair and Schuyler Counties, as
well as portions of Scotland, Knox, Sullivan, Putnam, Macon, Linn, and Shelby Counties.
By 1970 construction of the original area school facility was completed, and the number
of programmatic offerings had increased to nine. At that time the newly completed
structure housed vocational programs in agriculture, drafting, electronics, auto
mechanics, auto body repair, business and office occupations, cooperative occupational
education and building trades.
In 1978 a new wing was added to the original building, providing necessary space to
accommodate programs in graphic arts, data processing, industrial metal, multioccupations, commercial/residential wiring, Practical Nurse and adult basic education.
By the late 70s a separate facility had been erected adjacent to the east wing to house
the child care program. In August 2011 a $5.2 million dollar renovation and expansion of
KATC was completed.
The institution was renamed the Kirksville Vocational-Technical Center in 1983 to
respect the expanded number of activities and support services provided. While
occupational programming was still emphasized, attention by then was also given to the
coordination efforts with related agencies, additional accreditations, and implementation
of various ancillary services designed to support the needs of special vocational
populations. In 1994 the Kirksville Vocational-Technical Center was renamed the
Kirksville Area Technical Center.
Kirksville Area Technical Center currently serves seven area sending schools as well as
adult students. Area sending schools include Kirksville, Milan, Green City, Novinger,

Schuyler County, Brashear, and Knox County. KATC serves adult students from
throughout Northeast Missouri which includes the following counties: Adair, Sullivan,
Knox, Linn, Macon, Putnam, Schuyler, Scotland, Clark, and Shelby.
KATC is governed by the Kirksville R-III School District Board of Education which is
ultimately responsible to Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education,
a branch of the State of Missouri.
5.

Summary
Today, the Center conducts ten career training programs six of those programs are
available to adult students. Upon completion of a program, students receive a certificate.
The programs are as follows:
Adult Only
Practical Nurse

Secondary Only
Agriculture Education
Business Education
Project Lead the Way
Biomedical
Project Lead the Way
Engineering

Adult/Secondary
Auto/Automotive Body
Repairer
Automotive
Mechanic/Technician
Construction Trades, Other
Graphic Arts Occupations
Child Care
Provider/Assistant

The following ancillary services are available: adult education and literacy, English as a
second language, counseling/placement, and financial assistance. Technical assistance
provided by a Vocational Resource Educator (VRE) enables instructors to more
effectively address the learning needs of all students, while the College and Career
Consultant provides support services to students enrolled in programs non-traditional to
their gender.
Adult students make up a small percentage of total enrollment at KATC; a typical year
enrolls less than 40 adult students.
The KATC staff is composed of 1 administrator, 13 full-time instructors, 5 part-time
instructors, 1 counselor, 1 adult education coordinator, 1 college and career consultant,
2 administrative assistants, and 2 custodians.
6.

All KATC programs except Practical Nurse utilize a 9-month calendar system that
coincides with the Kirksville R-III school calendar beginning in August and ending in
May. The Practical Nurse program utilizes an 11-month calendar beginning in August
and ending in July.

7.

A full-time adult student would enroll in two 3-hour blocks from 7:52 10:36 p.m. and
12:02 2:46 p.m. Monday through Friday. A full-time Practical Nurse student would be
scheduled for classes from 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday; starting
and ending times vary when clinical rotations begin.

8.

Not Applicable

9.

The delivery systems used within each program area encompass lecture, lab work,
work-based education, clinical-based education, and online curriculum delivery.

Community Characteristics
1.

KATC is located in Kirksville, which is in the Northeastern part of Missouri. Kirksville is

the county seat of Adair County, approximately 168 miles northeast of Kansas City,
Missouri, 204 miles northwest of St. Louis, Missouri, and 90 miles north of Columbia,
Missouri. Kirksville is surrounded by the great outdoors including three large state
conservation areas: Big Creek, Sugar Creek and Montgomery Woods, along with fishing
at Hazel Creek Lake and camping and water recreation at Thousand Hills State Park.
With a population of over 17,000, Kirksville is the shopping, health care, and education
center of Northeast Missouri.
Education is important to the continued growth of any community; however, in Kirksville,
Missouri, education is a way of life. Kirksville boasts that a child can go from PreKindergarten through a Doctorate degree without ever leaving town!

2 & 3. In addition to Adair County, KATC serves the following counties: Knox County, Schuyler
County, Scotland County, Sullivan County, Putnam County, Macon County, Linn County
and Shelby County. The following table details demographic information as reported by
the US Census Bureau.
County

Population

Adair

25,602

Ranking
out of 114
Missouri
counties
42

Macon

15,479

68

Linn

12,311

80

Sullivan

6,411

104

Shelby

6,108

106

Scotland

4,863

108

Putnam

4,829

109

Schuyler

4,370

111

Knox

4,000

112

Ethnicity

92.1% white
2.4% Asian
2.3% Hispanic
94.4% White
3% Black
1.1% Hispanic
96.1% White
1.6% Hispanic
1.4% Two or More
77% White
18.4% Hispanic
1.9% Two or More
97.1% White
1.4% Black
.8% Hispanic
98.1% White
1.5% Hispanic
.2 %Two or More
97.5% White
.8% Hispanic
.8% Two or More
98% White
.8% Black
.4% American Indian
97% White
1.6% Two or More
1% Black

Median
Household
Income

Families
Living in
Poverty

Median
Age

$36,269

24.6%

29.2

$38,443

16.2%

42.5

$38,250

15.1%

42.9

$36,676

17%

41

$35,938

18.4%

42.9

$39,028

18.2

39.2

$36,713

18.8%

45.2

$34,688

24%

41.1

$34,481

26.3%

43.8

Missouri-Demographics.com

4.

Kirksville is the home of two universities: Truman State University and A.T. Still
University. The universities along with Northeast Regional Medical Center, and
Kirksville R-III School District are the largest employers in Kirksville. Within the last few
years, several factories in Kirksville and surrounding areas have either closed or
decreased their employment base. These changes in the economic and employment
conditions in the area have contributed to the fluctuation in adult student enrollment.
When a factory closes, the availability of job retraining monies contributes to adult
enrollment. Unfortunately, the Northeast Missouri region has very few industries left.
Due to the downturn in the economy which has severely impacted employment
opportunities in Northeast Missouri, Kirksville Area Technical Center has reluctantly
closed two programs in the past five years. The remaining programs are still viable and
relied upon by Northeast Missouri employers and higher education institutions.

5.

The population total has stayed almost the same decreasing by just 35 from 2010 to
2013, which is less than -.1 percent. With the increasing workforce challenges for the
future anticipated from the demographic changes in an aging population, the question of
a more active approach to increasing the labor pool with productive workers is crucial.
Weighing the cost for education and other programs with the social and economic
benefits will be key in remaining competitive in a global economy.