News Links | September 28, 2021
System News | Opinion
Everett Community College clears student debt from pandemic
Everett Community College has cancelled student debt for more than 3,400 people. Using money from the American
Rescue Plan Act, the college cleared any outstanding balance for students who took
classes during the pandemic. ... Laura McDowell, a spokesperson for the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, said colleges have a lot of flexibility in how they spend the money on students.
Everett Herald, Sept. 27, 2021
WCC gets national recognition for this program that could boost local economy
Being recognized nationally for its cybersecurity program and receiving a $7.5 million
grant is not just a big deal for Whatcom Community College, but it could have a ripple effect across the county for years to come. Last month
the community college received the grant from the National Science Foundation and
WCC President Kathi Hiyane-Brown met with industry leaders, government officials and
President Joe Biden ...
Bellingham Herald, Sept. 27, 2021
Editorial: Students, economy need boost of free college
Students at Everett Community College — 3,342 of them — received a welcomed email recently, informing them that their student
debt, owed for tuition and fees during the covid-19 pandemic from spring quarter 2020
through summer quarter 2021, had been wiped clean.
Everett Herald, Sept. 24, 2021
President Kimberlee Messina of Spokane Falls Community College chosen for Aspen Institute's New Presidents Fellowship
The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021 announced
that Kimberlee Messina, President of Spokane Falls Community College, is one of 25 leaders selected for the 2021-22 class of the Aspen New Presidents
Fellowship.
Patch, Sept. 23, 2021
$1.3 million in federal grant funding awarded to Peninsula College
On-demand remote learning pathways, enhanced student supports, waived text book fees,
and culturally responsive curriculum are just some of the benefits students will see
as a result of a $1.3 million grant recently awarded to Peninsula College by the US Department of Education, Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education
(FIPSE).
Forks Forum, Sept. 23, 2021
New trustee joins board at Big Bend Community College
Big Bend Community College on Tuesday announced Amy Parris as a new trustee, replacing Stephen McFadden, who
resigned after taking a job with the Port of Pasco in the Tri-Cities. Gov. Jay Inslee
confirmed the appointment last week.
Columbia Basin Herald, Sept. 22, 2021
Three new light rail stations to open in North Seattle next month
... The 4.3-mile Northgate Link Extension will open on Oct. 2 with new stations in
Northgate, the University District and Roosevelt. The U-District and Roosevelt stations
are underground. The Northgate station is elevated and will act as a transit hub with
frequent bus connections, a park-and-ride, and a bicycle and pedestrian bridge to
North Seattle College.
KIRO 7, Sept. 22, 2021
Weekend with kids: Seattle Southside
For an overview of the Pacific Northwest’s species-rich marine habitat, the MaST Center
Aquarium in coastal Des Moines has more than 15 tanks that collectively hold approximately
3,000 gallons of water, where more than 250 native Pacific Northwest marine species
reside. The free center also happens to be the working lab for nearby Highline College.
The Seattle Times, Sept. 21, 2021
Trends | Horizons | Education
Collaboration is key to thwart cyber threats
To thwart cyber threats, colleges need to partner with other institutions and work
better internally among their departments, according to a panel of cyber experts in
the higher education field. Cyber criminals are working in organized groups and recruiting
talent ...
Community College Daily, Sept. 27, 2021
Commentary: Design for equity, enrollments will follow
There are two questions that probably every community college president in America
has likely been asked by the local media in the past few months. “What’s the impact
of Covid-19 on enrollment?” “What could be the impact of federal legislation that
makes community colleges tuition free, raises the minimum Pell Grant and invests in
student retention?”
Community College Daily, Sept. 27, 2021
What’s changing in the new FAFSA and what’s not
Big changes are coming to a notoriously complex form that students need to submit
to qualify for college financial aid — but the changes will mostly appear gradually,
over the next few years.
The Seattle Times, Sept. 25, 2021
Evolving on guided pathways
In 2015, the Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Columbia University published
a book that catalyzed the movement at community colleges in developing guide pathways,
which were designed to help students focus more on potential career paths and required
courses.
Community College Daily, Sept. 23, 2021
Reducing the risk of funding fraud
Colleges have received and distributed a lot of federal pandemic relief money in the
last 18 months. And criminals are already trying to tap that money and other federal
funding. Just as with fraud involving Pell grants and Title IV funds, the fraud can
come from external and internal sources ...
Community College Daily, Sept. 22, 2021
Politics | Local, State, National
What the debt ceiling debate means for higher ed
At the same time that Congress is trying to keep the federal government from shutting
down at the end of this week, it’s also facing a deadline to keep the United States
from defaulting on its loans -- a never-before-seen outcome that would impact higher
education, and the economy over all, in disastrous but still mostly unknown ways.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 28, 2021
States will need to pony up for Biden's free college plan
America’s College Promise -- the Democratic-backed plan to provide tuition for all
community college students -- could allow more than nine million students to pursue
an associate degree for free. States, on the other hand, will have to open their wallets.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 28, 2021
Groups ask Senate to repeal Pell Grant taxability
Nineteen higher education organizations and associations are urging senators to preserve
a provision in the Build Back Better Act that would repeal the taxability of Pell
Grants once the upper chamber begins its work on the budget reconciliation bill.
Inside Higher Ed, Sept. 24, 2021
