Student Support Services
Non-Traditional Student Services. This office assists undergraduate and graduate students who are married, have children, are re-entering the educational system after several years, or are 25 years of age or older. Staff members assist students with admission and enrollment and provide information or referrals for housing, child care, refresher and study skills courses, tutoring, financial aid, insurance, public school enrollment, community family programs, emergency locator, and commuter information. Staff members work with University and student groups to make their experiences as adult students at KSU successful ones. Staff also help students with their everyday challenges and special concerns before, during, and after their admission to KSU. Adult Student Services web site can be located at http://www.k-state.edu/adult.
Child Care Services. There are a variety of child care opportunities available for students with children, as follows:
On-Campus Child Care Facilities
The KSU Child Development Center is a nonprofit corporation serving the child care needs of K-State students, faculty, and staff. It is fully licensed by Kansas and is professionally staffed. The environment is designed to foster children's social, emotional, cognitive, language, and physical development. The Center offers full-day programs for toddlers (ages 12 months and walking through 2½), preschoolers (ages 2½ through 5), and school-age children (ages 5-12). Limited part-time program spaces are offered to families of toddler and preschool children who need regular flexible care. Transportation is provided to/from Manhattan public elementary schools. More information can be obtained at 785-532-3700 or e-mail ksucdc@ksu.edu.
Early Childhood Laboratory and Hoeflin Stone House Child Care Center. Both facilities are licensed by the Kansas State Department of Health and Environment and accredited by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs. The activities and environment at both facilities are designed to foster children's cognitive, language, social, emotional, and physical growth and development. For more information call 785-532-0713.
The Early Childhood Laboratory hosts an interagency program with the Manhattan school district. The facility integrates children who have disabilities or developmental delays with children who are developing typically. The program accommodates 44 children with an age range from 3 to 5 years in a part-day program, with both morning and afternoon sessions. The Hoeflin Stone House Child Care Center provides full day care for 30 children ranging in age from 18 months to 5 years. Priority is given to children of working parents. The program focuses on the children's developmental needs and interests.
Off-Campus Child Care Facilities
For a list of off-campus licensed and registered child care facilities, please contact Flint Hills Resource and Referral at 785-532-7197 or 1-800-227-3578.
Disabled Student Services. This office works to meet the needs of students with physical disabilities, documented learning disabilities, and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) by providing supportive services and academic accommodations. Academic accommodations include readers, note takers, and assistance obtaining taped texts. Test-taking accommodations, including tests administered with extended time, scribes, orally and in quiet environments, can be arranged through the Disabled Student Services office. Sign language interpreters are available, with sufficient notice. Upon request, classes scheduled in inaccessible locations will be relocated for students with mobility impairments. Individualized help with enrollment is available. Staff will work as a liaison with instructors. Specialized equipment for use by students is also available in various offices on campus. A shuttle van equipped with hydraulic lift operates on campus between all buildings and is available to students with temporary or permanent physical limitations. Accessible housing is also available. The Disabled Student Services web site can be located at http://www.ksu.edu/dss.
Family Center. Students, under faculty supervision, offer services involving marriage and family therapy and family life education. Special workshops address particular family topics, including solo parenting, parent education, premarital groups, and family life. Services are available to K-State students and the general public. A fee is assessed based on a sliding scale.
Lafene Health Center. The Lafene Health Center is a modern ambulatory healthcare facility designed to provide for most student outpatient health needs. The health center is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Non-student spouses, university conference participants, and other campus visitors may receive care upon payment of a special fee.
Lafene Health Center provides, through a full complement of medical and other professional personnel, a range of services that includes special clinics for sports-related injuries, women, and allergies and immunizations, as well as a clinic for general care.
Also included are services in health education, nutrition, and physical therapy. The services of a pharmacy, laboratory, and x-ray are available at reduced rates.
The Center is staffed by full-time physicians with medical support personnel. When necessary, the student is referred to specialists for treatment at the student's expense.
After regular clinic hours (8:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Monday thru Friday and 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Saturday; hours during the summer vary), a student who is ill or injured may receive medical care at a local hospital, at the student's expense. Home visits are not made. The local ambulance service is available, when needed, to transport patients to the appropriate health care facility, at the student's expense. Home Page: http://www.k-state.edu/lafene/
Medical Insurance
It is REQUIRED that all international students at K-State carry medical insurance and it is strongly recommended that domestic students carry insurance as well. A University-sponsored student health insurance plan is available at special rates. There are less expensive programs, but it is important to understand that a less expensive program may not offer the same benefits as the one designed by the State of Kansas Health Care Commission. This plan covers most services provided at Lafene Health Center and allows for medical expenses if the students requires care away from the campus. Each full time student enrolled at Kansas State is eligible to participate in the Student Health Insurance Program. Dependent coverage is also available.
Each student participating in the program pays the full costs of the coverage, except if the student is enrolled and employed by Kansas State as a graduate teaching or graduate research assistant. Each student who is in at least a half-time graduate teaching or graduate research position or combination, and employed a minimum of 750 hours over two consecutive semesters and is equivalent to 1,000 hours for an entire one-year period, is eligible for an employer contribution toward the cost of coverage. The reduced premimum rates for graduate teaching and graduate research assistants program reflects the cost to the student after the employer contribution has been made. Enrollment materials and information are available at Lafene Health Center and will be distributed to individual departments before the fall semester begins. For more information contact http://www.k-state.edu/hr/benefits/gta.html. For insurance vocabulary view Glossary of Terms (PDF).
Medical history
K-State requires a complete medical history, including a current immunization record, on all new students or transfer students. This history must be completed on the Kansas State University medical history form and is required prior to provision of non-emergency treatment at the Health Center. A physical examination is not required, but encouraged, and a copy of this examination assists the staff in evaluating illnesses. If a student has a continuing medical problem, a summary from the attending physician is helpful should treatment at the Center be needed. Students receiving allergy injections must furnish instructions from their allergist before injections can be administered at the Health Center.
Speech and Hearing. The Speech and Hearing Center provides evaluation, management, and consultation services to university students with articulation, fluency, voice, language, or hearing impairments. These clinical services are also available to children and adults from the surrounding communities. The center provides educational and clinical experiences for K-State students preparing for careers in speech-language pathology and audiology.
University Counseling Services. The Counseling Service is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tuesday evening appointments are offered from 5 to 7 p.m. during the academic year. Professional counselors and psychologists assist K-State students with academic, career, and personal concerns. Psychiatric consultation is available through referral from UCS counselors. The mission of University Counseling Services is to provide short-term assistance in areas of decision-making, crisis intervention, problem solution, adjustment, or matters of personal concern that could interfere with academic success. Treatment options include individual, couple, and/or group counseling. Psychological testing may be used as an adjunct to career or personal counseling. In addition, programs using a workshop or seminar format are offered to enhance personal growth and skill development; these may include stress management, biofeedback, or relationship enhancement, among others. When such time-limited service is not sufficient to meet your needs, the staff will help identify referral alternatives within the community.
Consultation by center staff members is offered to individual students, staff, or faculty members concerning their work and living environments. Additionally, the staff is available for class or group presentations and workshops upon request.
Women's Center. The Women's Center works with individual students and the KSU community to promote the well-being of K-State students through advocacy, programming, training, information and referral services. The Center works closely with offices and agencies to help women who are in crisis for reasons of violence and abuse. We provide free self-defense classes for women students. Our staff facilitates presentations on topics relevant to women and we are building a video library that we share with groups. We support students who are undertaking justice- and gender-related research projects and programs. We provide a safe environment for students who want to discuss issues related to sexuality. Our goals are to raise the level of awareness and understanding of issues relevant to women; to motivate both women and men toward improvement of circumstances that adversely affect women; and to help women find and explore options in their lives. We edit an interactive newsletter, Women's Circle Online, on our home page as a means of informing and building a sense of community among the 2,400-plus KSU women faculty and staff on campus and around the state.