Kansas Private College Week Feb. 9-13

Baldwin City, Kan. — The week of Feb. 9-13 has been declared as Kansas Private College Week throughout the state by Gov. Sam Brownback. The proclamation urges “all citizens to join in this observance by recognizing the important contributions of private college in the state.”

Baker, founded in 1858 and the first university in Kansas, is one of 18 member institutions of the Kansas Independent College Association. The others are Friends University and Newman University (both in Wichita); Bethel College and Hesston College (both in Harvey County); Tabor College (Hillsboro); Central Christian College and McPherson College (both in McPherson); Benedictine College (Atchison); Bethany College (Lindsborg); Donnelly College (Kansas City); Kansas Wesleyan University (Salina); Manhattan Christian College; MidAmerica Nazarene University (Olathe); Ottawa University; Southwestern College (Winfield); Sterling College; and University of Saint Mary (Leavenworth).

More than 22,000 students from across the nation enroll each year for undergraduate or graduate study at one of Kansas’ private colleges, which award 20 percent of bachelor’s degrees and 30 percent of master’s degrees in the state.

Kansas’ private colleges have more than 200,000 living alumni, half of whom live and work in Kansas.

A 2014 study commissioned by the Kansas Independent College Association reported that $980 million is annually pumped into the state economy because of the impact of private universities and colleges.