Board to vote on 2019 college system legislative priorities

OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges will meet for its regular business meeting Thursday, Dec. 6 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. It is scheduled to give final approval to the community and technical college system's 2019 legislative priorities, including its operating and capital budget requests. The operating budget includes funding requests for:

• faculty compensation
• “guided pathways” — a redesign of course sequencing and student advising. This includes expanded outreach and partnerships with K-12 and universities to increase enrollment and success of diverse students
• capacity expansion in high-demand programs like allied health, advanced manufacturing and information technology

The capital budget request of $627 million would fund 37 major projects at 29 colleges and minor projects at all 34 community and technical colleges.

The State Board will also meet Wednesday, Dec. 5 to discuss college real estate and the work of the system's strategic enrollment task force.

The study session and business meeting will be held at Edmonds Community College's Office of the President, 6600 196th Street SW in Lynnwood. Meeting agenda and background materials are posted at the State Board website.

Both meetings are open to the public.