News Links | September 12, 2017
System News | Opinion
Michigan provost to lead Columbia Basin College
A 20-year college administrator was chosen Monday morning to head Columbia Basin College in the Tri-Cities. The board of trustees picked Rebekah Woods as the sixth president
of the college, and the first woman to assume the role in its 62-year history. She
will take over for interim President Lee Thornton in November. Her annual salary will
be $220,000.
Tri-City Herald, Sept. 11, 2017
Insider Insight: Christine Johnson
As Chancellor of Community Colleges of Spokane since 2010, Christine Johnson oversees a system of thousands of students and employees
between Spokane Falls and Spokane community colleges. Johnson was a high school teacher, principal and then executive
director of K-12 education for a school district in Colorado. She has earned a doctorate
in educational administration from the University of Colorado Boulder, and has experience
as president of the Community College of Denver. According to Johnson, here are three
elements impacting the community college system in Spokane.
Inlander, Sept. 10, 2017
Western Governors University looks to expand local footprint
With Washington facing a historic teacher shortage crisis, there’s a new kid on the
block when it comes to certifying much-needed educators. Created by the state Legislature
in 2011, Western Governors University of Washington has become an increasingly popular
alternative for prospective teachers looking to earn a teaching certificate on their
own time and at a fraction of the regular cost. ... That footprint could grow even
larger now that WGU Chancellor Rich Cummins and Lower Columbia College President Chris Bailey are engaged in discussions that could lead to a physical presence
for the school in Longview.
Longview Daily News, Sept. 10, 2017
Lifelong learning
Whether you’re a career professional looking to climb the ladder of success or a retired
person eager to learn something new, local colleges and universities offer a wide
spectrum of courses and certificate programs designed to meet you where you are and
help you achieve your goals. With several colleges and satellite university campuses
right in our backyard, there is an abundance of continuing education opportunities
on the Eastside available to meet the needs of local learners. Bellevue College, for example, serves approximately 15,000 students annually through its continuing
education programs, according to Al Lewis, vice president of Economic and Workforce
Development.
425 Magazine, Sept. 10, 2017
DACA phase out: 'I am from here,' Bremerton Dreamer says
Karina Reyes vividly recalls the feeling, about five years ago, when she gained the
right to work in the United States. "It was such a relief," said Reyes, a Bremerton
High School graduate. "I couldn't get a job otherwise." The 24-year-old paraeducator
and aspiring teacher, whose parents brought her to America from Mexico in her early
teens, has since paid $500 every two years to be part of the Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals (DACA) program, often called the Dreamers. ... Olympic College, for its part, on Tuesday joined the state’s other community colleges and four-year
institutions in blasting the Trump administration’s DACA decision.
Kitsap Sun, Sept. 9, 2017
Teachers learn 3D printing at Edmonds CC
Community college faculty from across Washington state and several local high school
teachers learned how to build and use 3D printers July 25-26 at Edmonds Community College. Fifteen community and technical college instructors, from as close as Green River College to as far as Spokane Community College, and four high school teachers attended a workshop at the college’s materials science
lab.
Everett Herald, Sept. 9, 2017
McAuliffe inducted to the Northshore School District Wall of Honor
Rosemary McAuliffe was inducted to the Northshore School District Wall of Honor last
month in recognition of her lifelong dedication to K-12 and advanced education in
Washington. According to a press release, her commitment to higher education brought
Cascadia College and the University of Washington Bothell campus to town in 1990s and helped transform
the Lake Washington Institute of Technology from a technical college to an institute of technology.
Bothell Reporter, Sept. 8, 2017
Columbia Basin College nearing decision on new president
The Columbia Basin College Board of Trustees has selected a finalist for the post of president but it isn’t
saying who just yet. The board meets in executive session at 9 a.m. Monday in the
Beers Board Room to evaluate the qualifications of a “presidential candidate” to succeed
Rich Cummins as head of the Pasco community college. ... The candidates visited the
campus in August. They are Barbara Hanson of Louisiana Delta Community Colleges, Rebecca
Williamson of Green River College near Seattle, and Rebekah Woods, provost at Jackson College in Michigan.
Tri-City Herald, Sept. 8, 2017
Spokane Community College opens Pullman campus
Washington State University hosted the grand opening of the Spokane Falls Community College in Pullman on Thursday. The event began with refreshments served in every room and
attendees mingling. Darren Pitcher, acting president of SFCC, said he hoped the Pullman
branch would give students of all ages opportunities to grow.
The Daily Evergreen, Sept. 8, 2017
In the hands of homeless teens and refugees, cameras offer a different view of Spokane in Terrain’s ‘Snapshot’ exhibit
Anti-refugee posters popped up around Monroe Street and Riverside Avenue earlier this
year, and the Spokane City Council recently approved piling sharp rocks under bridges
to deter people seeking a place to lie down. When organizers of Terrain’s latest exhibit
“Snapshot: A Look at Spokane Right Now,” conceived of the project, they didn’t know
it would be so timely, as the city grapples with ways to serve two communities: the
homeless and refugees. ... Artist, photographer, and Spokane Falls Community College art professor Carl Richardson, who serves on Terrain’s advisory committee, volunteered
to teach a crash course to a dozen budding photographers. He also developed the resulting
photos and helped curate the show.
The Spokesman-Review, Sept. 8, 2017
How housing authorities can shape school outcomes
A year and a half ago, Tanisha Barden of Tacoma, Washington, found herself going through
a divorce and without a place to live. She and her three young children moved in with
her mother, but it wasn’t a good situation. “Other family members were living there,
too,” she says. “There were 13 people in a three-bedroom house.” Barden had heard
about a Tacoma Housing Authority (THA) initiative, the McCarver Elementary School
Housing Assistance Program, that provides rental assistance to homeless families with
children enrolled in kindergarten, first, or second grade at the school. Barden’s
daughters were in kindergarten and second grade, so she signed up. (Her son was an
infant at the time.) ... The McCarver program is one of several that fall under the
Tacoma Housing Authority’s “Education Project,” in which THA teams up with Tacoma
Public Schools and Tacoma Community College with the goal of improving school outcomes for low-income and homeless young people,
as well as helping their parents succeed as wage earners.
City Lab, Sept. 7, 2017
Walla Walla Vintners a Washington pioneer
It all began in 1981 when Gordy Venneri and Myles Anderson began making homemade wine.
Venneri is a second-generation Walla Walla, Wash., native whose roots go back to the
small Italian village of Serra Pedace. “After a trip to Italy, I got the wine ‘bug’
and enjoyed having table wine with meals,” he said. It was a life-changing visit to
meet his Italian relatives. When he got home, he looked for wine grapes so he could
make a barrel of wine for home use. He and Myles Anderson, a fellow teacher at Walla Walla Community College, started making wine for fun.
Capital Press, Sept. 7, 2017
Columbia Basin College is offering student housing this fall
Columbia Basin College held a ribbon cutting to officially open student resident life. The three story apartment
facility is across the street from the college and will house 126 students. Officials
say Sunhawk hall was built to promote student success. The facility offers a variety
of furnished bedrooms and access to outdoor activity space.
KEPR TV, Sept. 7, 2017
Five viticulture programs offered in Washington
In Washington state, five college or technical school programs are available to launch
students into careers in the wine industry. Once prepared, students can enjoy many
careers in the industry. ... South Seattle College, through its Northwest Wine Academy, features Puget Ridge Winery, the only complete
operating winery at a college in Western Washington. ... Yakima Valley College offers degrees in Agribusiness, Food Technology, Vineyard Technology, and Winery
Technology. ... Walla Walla Community College’s Institute for Enology and Viticulture includes a state-of-the-art winery at College
Cellars and 5 acres of teaching vineyards.
Capital Press, Sept. 7, 2017
Bates Technical College’s apprenticeship navigator receives accolades for re-entry work
Finding a meaningful career after incarceration is tough. That’s where Bates Technical College’s Apprenticeship Navigator Karen Dhaliwal steps in. Her role in helping those individuals
find long-term jobs in the apprenticeship field was recently recognized at the annual
Community Partnership for Transition Services (CPTS) Summer Institute.
The Suburban Times, Sept. 7, 2017
Trends | Horizons | Education
The next Yik Yak?
Islands app gains traction as it expands base of colleges. Its founder says he learned
from the controversial (and defunct) Yik Yak, but the new app gives users ability
to post anonymously — a trait many believe was at the root of why Yik Yak caused so
many problems on campuses.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 12, 2017
Expect more hate leaflets
A swastika was carved into an elevator wall at Georgetown University Tuesday. The
next day, two swastikas were painted in an elevator. About 800 miles away, the same
day as the first swastika was found at Georgetown, fliers for a white supremacist
organization were found at Webster University, just outside St. Louis. Such events
could be commonplace this academic year. Although the incidents haven’t been connected,
the Anti-Defamation League says the white supremacist group Identity Evropa, whose
fliers were found in 65 incidents on college campuses last year, is ramping up its
“Project Siege” campaign, “targeting campuses just as students arrive for the fall
term.” The group’s fliers have already appeared on a dozen college campuses in the
first few weeks the 2017-18 academic year.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 11, 2017
Report on underrepresented STEM students
A new 68-page report from the Pullias Center for Higher Education at the University
of Southern California hopes to address underrepresented students in STEM. The report,
part of a collaborative effort from eight California State University campuses, emphasizes
collaboration between existing academic affairs and student affairs programs — which
are often separated — as well as specific interventions for struggling students.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 11, 2017
For overwhelmed single mom: Here’s a road map to get your kids to college
The road to college has many pitfalls, from failure to take the right courses in high
school to fixating on unaffordable universities. Education Lab tapped the expertise
of two very different sources to help point the way.
The Seattle Times, Sept. 11, 2017
In U.S. News rankings, Washington colleges stay steady, but critics raise more questions about list’s criteria
Washington colleges and universities were ranked about the same as last year in the
much-watched annual U.S. News college rating. Meanwhile, a national political website
took the ranking to task this year, saying its rankings promote inequality.
The Seattle Times, Sept. 11, 2017
How U.S. News college rankings promote economic inequality on campus
America’s universities are getting two report cards this year. The first, from the
Equality of Opportunity Project, brought the shocking revelation that many top universities,
including Princeton and Yale, admit more students from the top 1 percent of earners
than the bottom 60 percent combined. The second, from U.S. News and World Report,
is due on Tuesday — with Princeton and Yale among the contenders for the top spot
in the annual rankings. The two are related: A POLITICO review shows that the criteria
used in the U.S. News rankings — a measure so closely followed in the academic world
that some colleges have built them into strategic plans — create incentives for schools
to favor wealthier students over less wealthy applicants.
Politico, Sept. 10, 2017
In the age of screen time, is paper dead?
Paper ... or glass? Advances in laptops and technology are pushing screens into schools
like never before. So what does this drive toward digital classrooms mean for that
oldest and simplest of touch screens: a plain old sheet of paper? It may seem a wasteful
and obsolete technology, ready to follow the slate chalkboard and the ditto machine
into the Smithsonian, or a flat, white invitation to creativity, just waiting for
some learning magic to happen. And when it comes to learning and retention, is there
any difference between reading and writing on an electronic "tablet" or a paper one?
NPR, Sept. 10, 2017
Report: Part-time students overlooked
A new report from the Center for American Progress reveals that part-time students
are often overlooked by colleges, policy makers and researchers who are looking to
increase national college attainment. The report revealed that about one-quarter of
exclusively part-time students graduate and slightly more than half of the students
who attend part-time during their college career earn a degree. However, 80 percent
of exclusively full-time students attain a degree. More than 60 percent of part-time
students attend community colleges, where they are the majority of the campus population.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 8, 2017
Opinion: Stop looking at rankings. Use academe’s own measures instead.
As the higher-education community begins the new academic year, we also prepare for
the latest round of college rankings from U.S. News & World Report. We can expect
coverage on which colleges have risen and which have fallen, followed by the usual
laments from institutions’ presidents about how meaningless these rankings really
are. My own perspective as a former university president differs, as I believe the
rankings play a useful, though imperfect, role in providing information. But the larger
concern is why, after all these years of criticism from authoritative voices and significant
progress on the part of academe in responding to external demands for more transparency,
the U.S. News rankings continue to play such a powerful role in shaping public perceptions
of institutional quality.
The Chronicle of Higher Education, Sept. 8, 2017
Opinion: Protecting due process in sexual-assault cases on campus
I used to wonder what was worse: Republican politicians ignoring women’s issues or
Republican politicians talking about them. The recent speech by Secretary of Education
Betsy DeVos is a welcome exception: Her address on the need to reform campus sexual-assault
procedures was empathetic and judicious. She offered a way forward that should appeal
to fair-minded people across political and cultural divides.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 8, 2017
People are putting less faith in four-year college degrees, poll finds
Americans are increasingly doubting the value of a four-year college degree, according
to an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released Thursday. The poll still tilts in favor
of the bachelor's degree, but by the slimmest of margins: Only 49 percent of the 1,200
adults surveyed think that a four-year degree is worth the cost because it will lead
to good jobs and higher lifetime earnings. Forty-seven percent doubt it will. Skepticism
about college degrees is particularly high among men, young adults, and people who
live in rural parts of the country, according to the Wall Street Journal. Majorities
of those groups doubt that a bachelor's degree is worth the cost.
Education Week, Sept. 7, 2017
Washington state students hold steady on state tests, making ‘little progress’
Washington students’ performance on Smarter Balanced tests — which cover English/language
arts and math — held steady this year, but education leaders say the results show
the state has a long way to go. Across the state, the only improvement from 2016 came
in seventh-grade reading, and sixth- and seventh-grade math, according to results
released Thursday from the state superintendent’s office. The largest gain was in
seventh-grade reading, where the passage rates were 60.1 percent, up 1.6 percentage
points from 2016. (The rate for high-school juniors in math also increased by 4 percentage
points, but those numbers are skewed because so many students opted out the exam in
2016, earning zeros.)
The Seattle Times, Sept. 7, 2017
The conversation about campus rape is so much bigger than Title IX
America just entered a new era in the campus rape debate. In a speech at George Mason
University on Thursday, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said she is rolling back Obama
administration rules on investigating campus sexual assaults, which she said created
a "failed system" that was unfair to students.
USA Today, Sept. 7, 2017
Politics | Local, State, National
What DeVos can't change
Betsy DeVos last week blasted guidance from the Obama administration on investigation
of campus sexual assault for creating a failed system. What she didn't note was that
many of the provisions covered in the 2011 guidelines — which she has vowed to rescind
and replace with new regulation — have since been enshrined in law. While DeVos has
the power to repeal current guidelines, that won't change many of the responsibilities
for institutions already in place.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 11, 2017
Senate bill includes restoration of Pell for defrauded borrowers
A Senate appropriations package approved last week would restore Pell Grant eligibility
for defrauded borrowers, among other boosts to financial aid and college-readiness
programs. The appropriations committee voted last week to approve the bill, which
most notably boosted the maximum value of the Pell Grant to $6,020. It also restores
Pell eligibility to student borrowers who were defrauded or misled by their institution
and were approved to have their student loans cleared through a borrower-defense claim.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 11, 2017
In our view: Fix for DACA benefits all
With the Trump administration planning to overturn protections for people brought
to this country illegally as children, Congress should work quickly to recognize the
value of those immigrants. Lawmakers must provide reassurance that such immigrants
are safe from being deported by the only country they have ever really known. Such
action has been a long time coming.
The Columbian, Sept. 10, 2017
Here's what 2 big college systems think of the end Of DACA
This week, President Trump finally made good on his campaign promise to end DACA —
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. This 2012 administrative program implemented
by President Obama, has allowed about 800,000 undocumented immigrants who were brought
to the U.S. as children to remain in the country. They're known as "DREAMers," after
a proposed law that never passed. At least a third of them are, or have been, enrolled
in college. So when U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions officially announced the end
of DACA at a news conference Tuesday, an avalanche of criticism from the higher education
community began in news releases, in emails to reporters and on social media. From
community colleges to some of the country's most selective institutions, higher ed
leaders were defiant.
NPR, Sept. 9, 2017
From anger to action for Dreamers
Where do we go from here? Having exhausted the vocabulary of outrage in reaction to
the contemptible decision of the Trump administration to rescind the Deferred Action
for Childhood Arrivals programs, or DACA — albeit with a six-month window daring Congress
to come up with legislation to save the day for Dreamers — we now must turn anger
into action to ensure the right outcome for our students and undocumented persons
throughout the United States.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 8, 2017
Senate panel backs increases for Pell Grants, NIH
The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee approved a 2018 spending bill Thursday that
would significantly increase discretionary funds for the Pell Grant program for needy
students and biomedical research at the National Institutes of Health and rejects
proposed cuts in research overhead reimbursements, continuing to put Republican congressional
leaders at odds with the Trump administration on programs important to higher education.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 8, 2017
DeVos to replace Obama-era sexual assault guidelines
The U.S. Department of Education said Thursday it will replace Obama-era federal guidelines
on campus sexual assault, with Betsy DeVos, the education secretary, describing the
guidelines as a "failed system" that has done a disservice to all sides. DeVos, in
a speech at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School, announced plans to
launch a public comment process that will precede the release of a new federal regulation.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 8, 2017
Pledges of continued vigilance
Following Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’s announcement that she will replace Obama
administration guidance on how colleges should adjudicate campus rape cases, administrators
across the country have begun assuring students and sexual assault victims that their
rights will be protected, while awaiting the federal department’s new orders.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 8, 2017
Citing Obama-era failures, DeVos will replace landmark directive on sexual assault
The Education Department will begin the process of replacing a signature Obama-era
piece of guidance that laid out expectations for colleges from the federal government
on protecting students from sexual violence, Betsy DeVos, the education secretary,
announced on Thursday during a speech at George Mason University. ... It wasn’t immediately
clear on Thursday whether it was possible that a 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter on complying
with the gender-equity law known as Title IX would be left in place after the department
put it through a process called notice-and-comment. But a department spokeswoman later
clarified that the guidance would be replaced, and that, "in the interim, the department
will make clear to schools how to fulfill their current obligations under Title IX."
The Chronicle of Higher Education, Sept. 7, 2017
Democrats begin legal assault on Trump’s move to end ‘Dreamer’ program
President Trump’s immigration policies faced a renewed legal onslaught on Wednesday,
as a coalition of Democratic attorneys general, nonprofit groups and private companies
announced they would oppose his rollback of Obama-era protections for people who entered
the country illegally as children. In an echo of the campaign against Mr. Trump’s
effort this year to ban travelers from parts of the Muslim world, a group of 16 attorneys
general — all Democrats — filed suit in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, claiming
that Mr. Trump had improperly upended the policy known as Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals or DACA.
The New York Times, Sept. 7, 2017
Rep. Hansen to press Legislature to protect DACA students
State Rep. Drew Hansen is reassuring students who are in the Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals program that he will fight to retain their financial aid for school. Hansen’s
promise Tuesday followed the Trump Administration’s announcement that it would rescind
the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also called DACA, which protects
undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children from immediate deportation.
Bainbridge Review, Sept. 6, 2017
Opinion: Congress has obligation to do right by Dreamers
Congress, not the president, establishes this nation’s immigration laws. So while
former President Obama’s executive order — the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
program — that shields young undocumented immigrants from deportation might be popular,
it isn’t the law. Law is needed. President Trump made a good call on Tuesday when
he ordered an end to DACA in six months while calling on Congress to replace it with
legislation before it ends on March 5, 2018. This is an opportunity for Congress to
make immigration law that serves the best interest of the nation and its immigrants.
Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, Sept. 6, 2017
