For Sally Winship of Johnson County Community College and the Center for Business and Technology, the task of the community college is to provide students an experience that exceeds their expectations and "changes their lives in a positive way."

The state colleges and universities staked out distinctive positions even among themselves. For Bobby Patton, it was Central Missouri State Univer-sity's easy access to Kansas City that enabled this affordable, residential university "to capitalize on urban connectiveness."

Michael McManis defined Truman State University as being "student and learning centered in a residential liberal arts environment." President Barbara Dixon elaborated that Truman represents a "community of academically talented students." In this traditional liberal arts environment, she continued, students enjoy the "opportunity to explore their potential in close relation with faculty."

Missouri Western State College, said Jim Scanlon, focuses on "the quality of student outcome," especially in applied learning situations. Like other public institutions, the college tries to provide access to quality education at affordable costs. Perhaps more than others of its kind, it em-phasizes community service as well as community and regional partnerships.

Beyond quality academic programs and faculty who actively help students reach their goals, Pittsburg State University prides itself on the "variety of educational experiences it offers." Tom Bryant also emphasized the opportunities for leadership and growth the college provided. Al-though Dean Hubbard initially proposed the gently oxymoronic "tops in humility" as Northwest Missouri State University's essential virtue, he later allowed, "We did start what was called the first electronic campus."

Washburn University, as David Monical noted, is a one-of-a-kind institution- "publicly funded, independently governed, and state coordinated." The college emphasizes traditional undergraduate instruction in small classes taught by the faculty.

Among the private colleges, there was even more diversity of purpose than among the public. Ottawa University, as John Neal volunteered, "has a vision to be an entrepreneurial Christian university." This means an aggressive adult learner program in five states and three countries and a traditional residential campus in Ottawa, Kansas. According to Neal, the college caters to those students who "want to design their own program of study." Provost Grant Chapman further defined Ottawa as a college that "meets the educational needs of students at times and places that are appropriate with plenty of delivery options."

Park University has staked out an extended, adult learning environment for the 21st century. Beverley Byers-Pevitts sees Park's role as "prepar[ing] students to be life long learners in a global community." And even though Park is a private institution, Byers-Pevitts takes pride in the fact that its tuition is the same as that of a public university.

The St. Louis-based Webster University has likewise been ahead of the curve in adult learning. As Carolyn Cottrell noted, Webster's Kansas City campus is now in its 31st year. Here, it offers twelve "reality based" graduate programs and one undergraduate.

Baker University, whose main arts and sciences campus is in Baldwin, Kansas, offers both professional graduate studies and nursing in the Kansas City area. Dan Lambert argued the two most important elements remain teaching and the student, wherever and however the learning takes place.