Kentucky Wesleyan College will celebrate Homecoming 2019 on campus and throughout the Owensboro community the weekend of Sept. 20-22. The weekend coincides with the College’s Fall Family Weekend celebration, and events surround the Panthers’ home football game versus Southwestern Baptist on Saturday, Sept. 21, at 3 p.m. CT.

“We are looking forward to a special weekend of revisiting past memories and creating new ones,” said Eddie Kenny, vice president of advancement. “The theme of this year’s Homecoming is ‘Celebrate!’ As an institution, we have much to celebrate including the recent growth and accolades and our proud history of 161 years. We invite all of Owensboro to join the celebration and enjoy Homecoming at Kentucky Wesleyan.”

Homecoming activities include the Golden Jubilee celebrations for the Class of 1969’s 50^th Reunion, Campus Ministries’ build-a-bed service project and ministry, a golf scramble at The Pearl Club benefiting the Panther baseball program, the Wesleyan Singers’ annual Homecoming concert, the Panther Tailgate, and more. Fall Family Weekend activities will be a part of the celebrations, offering family-friendly events such as a Friday night bonfire.

Kentucky Wesleyan College has again been named one of the Best Regional Colleges in the South in the 2020 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings. Wesleyan was No. 16 in the South as a Best Regional College, the highest ranking in the Commonwealth.

“Kentucky Wesleyan is proud to be recognized by U.S. News & World Report,” said Interim President Dr. Gene Tice. “This ranking is a tribute to the excellent work by the faculty and staff and should be celebrated by our entire Wesleyan family, including the Owensboro/Daviess County community.”

The U.S. News & World Report Best Regional Colleges rankings feature 372 Regional Colleges – including 168 public institutions, 191 private schools and 13 for-profits – that focus on undergraduate education but grant less than 50% of their degrees in liberal arts disciplines. Regional Colleges are further divided and ranked in four geographical groups: North, South, Midwest and West. Schools are ranked according to their performance across a set of widely accepted indicators of excellence. A total of 84 institutions were ranked as Best Regional Colleges in the South.

Kentucky Wesleyan was also recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the Regional Colleges South Top Performers on Social Mobility.

The U.S. News & World Report ranking rounds out a series of recent national and regional recognition for the College. Kentucky Wesleyan was recently recognized as “Best in the Southeast” for a 16^th consecutive year by Princeton Review and ranked among the nation’s top Bachelor’s Colleges in Washington Monthly’s 2019 College Rankings. College Consensus has also recognized Wesleyan in several categories, including 2019 Best Colleges and Universities, Top 100 Best Small Colleges, Best Regional Colleges-South and Best Colleges and Universities in Kentucky.

Kentucky Wesleyan College is a highly ranked United Methodist-related four-year institution in Owensboro, Ky. At Wesleyan, students enjoy one-to-one relationships with professors, a rigorous academic environment and vibrant campus life experience.

Kentucky Wesleyan College has announced an increase in enrollment for the 2019-20 academic year, the College’s fifth consecutive year of enrollment growth. The total headcount is 841, which includes all full- and part-time students on campus and online. Wesleyan’s total full-time face-to-face enrollment for the Fall 2019 term is 780, which is a 5.4% increase from 2018. Over the last three years, enrollment has grown over 15%.

“I am incredibly proud of our dedicated faculty and staff who make Kentucky Wesleyan a destination of choice for students,” said Interim President Dr. Gene Tice. “Our Admissions team has continued to successfully recruit students who want to be a part of the momentum here, and everyone plays a role in the innovative retention programs we have introduced and continue to develop. Our students appreciate the many experiential learning opportunities available in Owensboro. These advantages attract excellent students and make us proud to call this community our home.”

We are pleased to welcome Summer Crick ’14 back to campus as the director of alumni relations. Take a few minutes to learn more about Summer here, and better yet, stop by the Martin Alumni Center and attend upcoming alumni events to meet her.

Why did you choose to attend KWC?
“My best friend, Sara Fleischmann ’15, and I had made plans to attend a large state university, but we had some ‘college days’ to burn in high school, so we planned a visit to KWC just to visit our Madisonville friends who were already students at Wesleyan . . . On the ride home the next day, we were both really quiet and finally, we both blurted out that we wanted to come to KWC, and that was that. KWC has felt like home from the minute we stepped on campus.”

Former State Senator Joe Bowen of Owensboro will teach a 300 level class at Kentucky Wesleyan College this fall – “Advanced State and Local Government.”

“This is my first foray into teaching a college class,” said Bowen. “The syllabus is ready, and I can’t wait to get started. It will be about how the sausage of public policy is made and how the process works.”

Associate Professor of Political Science Eric Schmidt, Ph.D., remarked, “Mr. Bowen spoke last year at the invitation of the Stanley Reed Pre-Law and Political Science Club, and his friendly and open demeanor sparked interest from our students. He also spoke to my state and local politics course in the spring, again with great success. I suggested he teach a practical hands-on course that would take advantage of his experience and contacts in Kentucky government. Our students are going to have a phenomenal experience.”

“After I graduated from KWC, I moved back to Louisville and enrolled in graduate school. I was taking chemistry classes and doing peptide research when I decided to apply to dental school. My dad had always teased me that he wanted me to be an orthodontist because my braces had cost him too much. I was accepted into dental school and knew I had to be at the top of the class to go on to a postgraduate program in orthodontics. It was a challenge, but my perseverance paid off, and I graduated from dental school and received my license to practice dentistry in 1980 and orthodontic certificate and license in 1982.”

Kayce Dallas ’19 began the second semester of her junior year with lots of questions. “I was considering education and becoming a school counselor, but wasn’t sure, and I needed help thinking it through,” she explained. Enter Lauren (Bishop) Wood ’08, who became a mentor in the Wesleyan Panther Career Ally Program (CAP) that semester.

“When I heard about the Panther CAP, it sparked my interest,” remembered Lauren. “My professors were great, but as a graduate I realized I had an additional need as a student – someone outside the campus with similar interests who was available to answer my questions and help guide me along. I wanted to offer that support to a current student.” Lauren is a school counselor at Hopkins County Central High School in Madisonville.

Why do you give to Kentucky Wesleyan, and why do you encourage others to give?

“I was the disconnected alumna at one time. It took returning to campus for Homecoming 2012 to love Wesleyan again – I’m proud to wear purple and to be a Panther! The campus has changed so much since May 2000 and KWC continues to grow to new heights in the community. My challenge to others is get involved either by coming back to campus or by attending an alumni event in your city.

“Donating money to your college is a great way to give back by supporting the next generation of students. As a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors, I am a firm believer in giving back. Whether you donate $5 or $500, your gift can make a big difference. I set up a recurring gift online, which makes the process easy.”

New Student Orientation is an academic and social experience to assist incoming students with their transition into Kentucky Wesleyan College. Because of the importance of material presented at New Student Orientation, it is a required activity for all new, incoming students.

Kentucky Wesleyan College Vice President of Advancement Eddie Kenny announced that Summer Crick ’14 has been appointed director of alumni relations. Crick will begin in her new role on Aug. 1.

“I’m so excited to be returning to Wesleyan in this role and to work for my beloved alma mater,” said Crick. “I’ve loved watching the communication, relations and overall morale improve between the College and its alumni since my graduation, and I’m thrilled to be joining this team.”

Crick returns to Owensboro after serving in community and economic development for Webster County and the City of Madisonville for the last two-plus years. She introduced and expanded a number of critical community engagement initiatives in Madisonville, including Friday Night Live, and was also a co-founder of the Hopkins County Young Professionals organization. In addition, she has been a board member for the Hopkins County Regional Chamber of Commerce, heavily involved with the Madisonville Rotary Club, Junior Achievement and Impact Mentoring, and was recently voted Hopkins County Citizen of the Year and chosen as a member of United Way of the Coalfield’s 30 Under 30 inaugural class.