Baker U. president to receive award

Dan Lambert, president of Baker University, will receive a national award for leadership next month.

The Council for Advancement and Support of Education named Lambert one of nine recipients of this year’s executive leadership award to be presented during the organization’s annual conference Jan. 10 in Kansas City, Mo.

Created in 1999, the award honors leaders for advancing their campuses by establishing positive images of the institutions, increasing stature within the community, cultivating private support and encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship among employees.

Lambert has been president of Baker University since 1987. His accomplishments include creating the School of Professional and Graduate Studies and School of Nursing, construction of $25 million in campus improvements and increasing the endowment from $5 million to more than $30 million.

Health policy program slated for lawmakers

Topeka — State lawmakers will go to health care school next month.

The Legislative Research Department and Kansas Health Institute will sponsor a health policy orientation from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 19, at the Capitol.

The purpose of the orientation is to provide basic health policy information for legislators.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has already proposed an expansion of health insurance that would require a 50-cent increase in the cigarette tax.

State loans available for ‘green’ care facilities

Topeka — The state is providing $700,000 in low-interest loans for development of a cutting-edge nursing care facility called “The Green House Project.”

The model is intended to de-institutionalize long-term care by eliminating large nursing homes with smaller group homes, according to the Kansas Department on Aging.

In a departure from traditional nursing homes, each resident would have their own bedroom and bathroom, medication and supplies would be located in each room so there would be no central nurses’ station, and staff members would provide direct care and other services.

“A Green House Project in Mississippi has had phenomenal success in improving the lives of frail elders,” Secretary of Aging Pamela Johnson-Betts said.

Eligible applicants for loans are owners of nursing facilities or hospital-based long-term care units.