Midway, Ky. – At a ceremony last week, Midway University President Dr. John P. Marsden, received the Excellence in Education Vision Award from Bluegrass Tomorrow. The annual Vision Awards pays tribute to individuals and businesses in the 18-county Bluegrass Region related to improving quality of life and place – the Bluegrass Tomorrow’s mission.
Dr. Marsden received the award based on the remarkable turnaround at Midway University since he took over as president in February 2013. Upon his arrival, the institution faced significant challenges. Under his leadership, the institution worked to balance its operating budget, improve cash flow, develop a strategic plan, improve community and donor relations, develop new revenue streams with international partnerships and fundraising events, and expand graduate programs. Most importantly, he led the institution through its change to University status, its successful 10-year reaffirmation of accreditation with SACSCOC, quick transition to full coeducation, and launch of men’s athletics.
“I am honored to have received this award on behalf of the entire University. Our board of trustees, ambassadors, faculty and staff have dedicated great time and effort into making Midway University the place it is today,” said Marsden. “This has truly been a team effort. Difficult and courageous decisions were made to transform Midway University to ensure our relevance and viability and to establish a solid foundation for the future. We are grateful to Bluegrass Tomorrow for acknowledging our progress.”
In August 2016, less than 100 days after the decision to go co-ed, the University welcomed its largest incoming daytime class in the history of the institution with 432 students (compared to 2015’s 261 students). In fall 2017, the daytime class grew to 482 with an overall enrollment at the institution of 1217. Marsden has overseen the expansion of athletics in his tenure from 90+ students-athletes to 340 in the 2017-18 academic year. In 2018-19, the institution will add three additional sports totaling 20 competitive athletic teams. Midway University has also reported record graduate program enrollments due to the addition of concentrations in the MBA (Equine Studies, Healthcare Administration, Tourism and Sport Management) and the launch of a Master of Education (M.Ed.) and a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN).
Marsden added “our work is not yet done. We have many ongoing projects to make improvements to our campus facilities, create more business partnerships, grow new academic programs and continue our outreach internationally. In 2017 we launched a mini-capital campaign to raise funds for a recreation center as an addition to our existing student center, an on-campus baseball park, and improvements to our existing residence halls. To date $4 million of the $5 million goal has been raised and we hope to break ground this fall on the recreation complex.”
You can also review the video of the Bluegrass Tomorrow Vision Awards here.
Photo Credit: Custom Photo
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Media contact:
Ellen D. Gregory Vice President, Marketing & Communications egregory@midway.edu or 859.338.1775