News Links | April 30, 2020
System News | Opinion
Wenatchee Valley College: Spring graduation ceremonies will be online
Graduating Wenatchee Valley College students will don a cap and gown from the confines of home this year. Earlier this
week, Wenatchee Valley College announced that its spring commencement ceremonies for
both campuses will be conducted online. The decision to hold a remote graduation ceremony
was done out of precaution in light of the coronavirus pandemic. “This decision wasn’t
easy, but it comes from a place of concern for the safety of our students, their families
and the community at large,” Erin Tofte, associate dean of campus life, equity and
inclusion, wrote in an email to students this week.
iFiber One, April 30, 2020
Big Bend delivers over 1,000 to local elementary schools
Big Bend Community College, in partnership with First Book, delivered more than 1,200 books for Larson Heights
Elementary and North Elementary students. This is the fourth year the college has
sponsored the neighboring Moses Lake elementary schools. “It really allows us to provide
these books for free for students to take home with them,” said Tiffany Fondren, communications
coordinator.
560 KPQ, April 29, 2020
TCC Foundation institutes employee emergency fund
With large numbers of employees being laid off across wide sectors of the economy,
it’s not just students who could use some extra financial assistance during the COVID-19
outbreak. Tacoma Community College employees are also experiencing financial hardships as other members of their households
lose jobs or have to cut back their hours. So, the TCC Foundation has instituted an
Employee Emergency Fund, which allows employees to apply for a $500 grant during any
calendar year.
The Suburban Times, April 29, 2020
Walla Walla Community College must renew budget battle
For the first time in years, Walla Walla Community College officials were on the doorstep of presenting a balanced budget to its board of trustees
just 10 days ago. Now more deep cuts are needed, which potentially means additional
layoffs or program changes, officials said this week. At this moment, state finance
officials are not offering concrete guidance, other than to start with a 10% cut across
a broad base for now. That creates a hiccup in the planning process, as no one yet
knows real money numbers, said the college’s acting President Chad Hickox.
Union-Bulletin, April 29, 2020
Blazing their own trail
... Chio Flores, vice president of student services and enrollment management at Wenatchee Valley College in Washington, began her career at Big Bend Community College, which she also attended as a student, then spent six years at Eastern Washington
University and 20 years at Washington State University before returning to the two-year
system.
Community College Daily, April 28, 2020
Pandemic results in big changes to the program training people how to run ventilators
... Colleges have shifted courses online, and that includes the respiratory care program
at Seattle Central College. In addition, students in the program normally do a lot of clinical training in hospitals,
but those opportunities are limited right now in part because hospitals are trying
to conserve personal protective equipment. Jennifer Clark is program director for
the Seattle Central College respiratory care program. “This is a very hands-on job.
It requires a lot of hands-on learning, and we’re not allowed to bring them into our
program to do this hands-on learning,” Clark said. “It is impossible to learn how
to use a ventilator solely from looking at videos and talking about it.”
KNKX, April 27, 2020
Centralia College to offer fully online bachelor’s degree program
Centralia College has announced a fully online bachelor’s degree program which, for the first time,
will allow students to pursue their degree through a more flexible online format.
Starting in the fall, the Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Management will be
available in a fully online version.
“With everything happening in the world right now, there is an increased demand for
online programs. We saw that our students needed even more flexibility and we needed
to respond to that by eliminating their need to come to campus at all,” said Centralia
College Dean of Business, Teacher Education and Early Learning Programs Connie Smejkal.
The Daily Chronicle, April 27, 2020
Centralia College childcare facility 'Children's Lab School' receives highest rating in Lewis County from state agency
... “We’re celebrating now because we know a four reflects the quality of our center
and our amazing teachers and staff,” said Schneider. The Lab School is located on
the Centralia College campus and provides childcare and education to the children of Centralia College
students and community members as well as serving as a child-study laboratory for
students within the Early Childhood Education program, stated a press release from
the college.
The Daily Chronicle, April 27, 2020
Columbia Basin College partners with STCU to raise emergency funds for students during COVID-19 pandemic
Columbia Basin College (CBC) has launched a CBC Cares Emergency Fund campaign to raise funds to support students
and their families who are experiencing financial hardships caused by the COVID-19
pandemic. “We hear from students daily who have lost their jobs, are struggling with
childcare or are uncertain of how they will pay next month’s rent,” said CBC’s President,
Dr. Rebekah Woods. “Many are one class or quarter from reaching their educational
dreams, and they are now facing the difficult decision between paying for basic needs
or continuing their education.”
FOX 41, April 27, 2010
New drive-through coronavirus testing site opens in Skagit Co.
A new drive-through testing site for coronavirus is opening up in Skagit County, where
the percentage of positive tests is more than the statewide average. The site opens
as the county is seeing a high percentage of tests come back positive. Starting Monday,
cars will be making their way to a parking lot at Skagit Valley College to see if that cough or shortness of breath are because of COVID-19.
KOMO News, April 26, 2020
College works to help students in need
As the COVID-19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders forced Walla Walla Community College to launch spring quarter classes entirely online this month, the college also received
more than 200 applications for emergency financial assistance. “WWCC staff members
are working long hours to triage those applications and quickly access the best available
options for each person,” Acting President Chad Hickox said.
My Columbia Basin, April 26, 2020
Washington nursing students adapt to online learning during coronavirus pandemic
As nurses and other medical professionals fight the coronavirus, the next generation
of medical personnel is taking their preparation online. It's the new normal as schools
in Washington have turned to online learning and that's no different for nursing students.
April Ambalina's Seattle apartment has turned into a teaching lab. The Bellevue College Nursing instructor moved her classes online shortly after the coronavirus began making
headlines just one town over in Kirkland.
K5 News, April 25, 2020
College wins part of $6.5 million grant to improve energy efficiency on campus
Shoreline Community College will reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by the equivalent of 10,000 lbs per year
thanks to a State Performance Improvement (SPI) grant awarded to the College by the
State of Washington. The College is one of 16 state agencies and institutions that
secured part of the SPI money, which is designated for projects that will result in
higher efficiency and better environmental performance in state-owned buildings.
Shoreline Area News, April 24, 2020
Trends | Horizons | Education
Free college: Can Washington keep that promise during a recession?
Last spring, Washington lawmakers made national headlines when they passed an innovative
plan to pay some or all of the tuition bill for low- to middle-income students and
adults returning to college. And just a few months earlier, Seattle voters approved
a massive education levy that included about $40 million to send Seattle public school
grads to community college tuition-free. Free college was a winner, politically speaking.
But now, a global pandemic threatens to wreak havoc on state and local budgets. Can
the city and state still keep those college promises?
The Seattle Times, April 30, 2020
Americans cancel education plans
An estimated 28 million Americans have canceled their education plans due to the coronavirus
pandemic, according to an ongoing Strada Education Network survey. And nearly one
in five Americans have changed their education plans. "We expect this is a wide range
of formal and informal education activities," Dave Clayton, senior vice president
for consumer insights at Strada, said in an email. "As we prepare for economic downturn,
everyone's wondering about the implications for education -- we don’t fully know the
impact yet, but we're tracking this closely."
Inside Higher Ed, April 30, 2020
Commentary: 'Alt-ed' ventures could gain traction in an uncertain fall
... The 2020 fall semester is still a giant question mark just about everywhere, but
one thing is certain: As survey after survey shows, students are challenging the idea
of paying full price for a less-than-full experience, even if it’s discounted by scholarships.
One possible result is that students will flock to established online providers. ... Several
alternative-education providers have already seen notable spikes in enrollments and
inquiries, albeit still mostly for services that are free or low cost.
The Chronicle of Higher Education, April 29, 2020
Zoom boom
There were lots of reasons for professors to avoid synchronous instruction at the
beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Students are scattered across different times
zones, their access to computers and reliable internet varies, and everyday schedules
have changed. ... Experts say this isn’t necessarily a bad thing in an emergency
situation. Among other benefits, synchronous instruction can provide socially isolated
students a schedule and sense of community. But it disadvantages some students, including
those with disabilities, and it can also overwhelm professors.
Inside Higher Ed, April 29, 2020
Politics | Local, State, National
DeVos criticized on emergency grants
About $4.7 billion, or three-fourths of the $6.3 billion in emergency student grant
funds Congress authorized in the CARES Act, has been sent to more than 2,000 colleges
and universities, according to the Education Department. In addition, 3,482 institutions,
or about two-thirds of the 5,136 eligible to get the grants to pass on to their students,
have now applied, up from a half a week ago, the department told Inside Higher Ed.
Inside Higher Ed, April 30, 2020
Gov. Inslee to extend coronavirus stay-at-home order, outline how Washington’s economy will reopen
Gov. Jay Inslee says he’ll extend his stay-at-home order for Washingtonians, but he
will also outline what reopening the state’s economy will look like once he and state
officials feel the threat from the new coronavirus has receded. The governor said
on Wednesday that public health data is leading him to extend the order, which has
closed thousands of businesses and limited large gatherings for more than a month.
The Seattle Times, April 29, 2020
