SBCTC NEWS LINKS | Articles about – and of interest to – Washington state community and technical colleges
SYSTEM NEWS - BUDGET-RELATED, ECONOMIC IMPACT
Education bracing for 'impossible' budget cuts
With the governor predicting a "brutal" special budget session in November, local educators are bracing for cuts they say their systems cannot absorb. Yakima Valley Community College, for example, has already lost a third of its budget since 2008 when the recession first hit. "I think we're way beyond being able to say, 'Can we handle it?' I mean, we can't. It's impossible," YVCC President Linda Kaminski said. In the last round of budget cuts by the Legislature, YVCC lost $2.5 million. With Gov. Chris Gregoire asking state agencies to prepare for up to 10 percent in additional cuts, Kaminski said another $2 million might have to come out of the college's $24 million budget.
Yakima Herald-Republic, September 23, 2011
http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2011/09/22/education-bracing-for-impossible-budget-cuts
Legislators talk higher ed at Central
Speakers included Higher Education Committee Chairman Rep. Larry Seaquist, D-Gig Harbor, Central Washington University President Jim Gaudino, Research Analyst Madeleine Thompson and representatives from other universities and community colleges, the agriculture industry and the energy industry. Representatives from the agriculture industry, including Washington's wine industry, told legislators about their needs. An educated work force trained by the state's universities, community colleges and technical schools is needed, they said. … The series of meetings continues in October at Seattle University and Skagit Valley College. In November a culminating meeting is scheduled at South Puget Sound Community College.
The Daily Record, September 23, 2011
Budget Cuts Make for Full Classrooms at CBC
Almost 100 teacher cut-backs, including all part-time and adjunct teachers are leaving classrooms especially full this year. Enrollment is slightly up and CBC is now at 103 percent of student capacity. Teachers can bring in extra students even if the class is full, as long as there's an empty chair. President Cummins explains, "It's pretty packed, waiting in line for the bookstore. Admissions, registration, counseling, all of these kinds of services."
KEPR TV, September 19, 2011
http://www.keprtv.com/news/130169408.html
No more higher ed cuts, lawmakers say
Legislators visiting the Tri-Cities on Thursday vowed to dig in their heels and fight against any further cuts to higher education in a coming special session. But the reality is that cuts are likely and could run deep. Seaquist, along with Reps. Larry Haler, R-Richland, and Susan Fagan, R-Pullman, toured Washington State University Tri-Cities and Columbia Basin College and heard from educators about the challenges facing faculty and students in the wake of significant cuts made since 2009.
Tri-City Herald, September 23, 2011
http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/09/23/1836173/no-more-higher-ed-cuts-lawmakers.html
To land Boeing's next plane factory, Washington's training system must drill down
Boeing may need 5,000 workers a year with aerospace manufacturing skills in coming years. The state’s colleges and technical schools graduate half that number.… “Already there is a shortage of people trained in blue collar trades such as assemblers and white collar jobs such as aerospace engineers,” said Bryan Wilson, deputy director of the state Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board. That puts Washington leaders in a bind.
… Given the state’s budget problems, improving aerospace education may be one of the few tangibles the state can offer to keep the 737 MAX in Washington, Washburn said in a recent interview. What’s needed, said Dixie Simmons, director for work force education at the State Board of Community and Technical Colleges, is an infusion of workers trained in five categories of factory skills: composites manufacturing, electronics, industrial manufacturing technology, machine tool technology and airframe mechanics. “If we look at projected needs with baby boom retirement,” Simmons said, “we will need to produce closer to 4,000 to 5,000 graduates a year — and we’re producing about 2,500.”
… Statistics suggest the shortfall is even more dire. Of the 55,951 full time equivalent students in “career and technical education” classes in community and technical colleges last year, just 12 percent of them, or 6,569, were in aerospace programs, said Janelle Runyon, director of communications for the community colleges board. Washington state’s 34 community colleges and technical colleges — 22 of which train people for aerospace work — are suffering from budget cuts. Statewide funding for postsecondary career and technical education dropped 31 percent, to $242 million, from 2005 to 2010, according to the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board.
… The conundrum of falling resources and rising need is inspiring a hunt for ideas. There’s a Sept. 27 legislative hearing at Paine Field organized by Rep. Mike Sells (D), chairman of the House Labor and Workforce Committee. … “We’re trying to have a skilled work force, and it’s difficult when higher education is being cut. .. We as a system are truly trying to be more efficient with less,” said Mary Kaye Bredeson, director of the Everett-based Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing, which coordinates aerospace-related training.
… One shift emerging from these meetings is diverting resources to compressed training that prepares students for assembly jobs in six months rather than the year or more required by previous programs. … Even shorter are the three-month training programs for Boeing line workers being offered to high school graduates by the Washington Aerospace Training and Research Center, in Everett. The center, run by Edmonds Community College in a former aerospace plant on Paine Field, is funded partly by more than $2 million in funds from Gregoire. Since it started operations in June 2010, the facility has graduated 357 people, of whom 324 have snagged job interviews, said center director Larry Cluphf. Of those, 232 have taken union assembly jobs with Boeing, and Cluphf expects that number to rise.
Puget Sound Business Journal, September 23, 2011 [subscription required]
Columbia River Economic Development Council adopts economic development plan
The plan … calls on local jurisdictions to collaborate to build Clark County's information technology industry, to harness the economic development potential of WSU-Vancouver and Clark College, to assure needed infrastructure and to creatively support the growth of new and existing businesses.
Vancouver Business Journal, September 15, 2011
Experience Pays Off/ Dedication, commitment leads to a thriving laser contract manufacturer.
A 25-year commitment to Laserdyne multi-axis laser technology is paying off for Steve Leitner, founder and president of Rentiel Precision Laser Cutting LLC. After years of watching and participating in the growth of laser processing technology as an employee of a successful fabricator, Leitner decided his accumulated laser knowledge was sufficient to start his own laser shop. … Today, Leitner operates his own four-man contract laser business specializing in laser processing 3D parts primarily for the aerospace industry, while also expanding into different industries including medical and electronics. Relocated from humble beginnings to a 3,500ft² facility in an industrial park [in Federal Way], the operation is well-equipped with multiple laser systems, milling machines, and support equipment. ... Leitner grew up with Laserdyne systems starting as a 5-axis laser system operator fresh out of Green River Community College.
Aerospace Manufacturing and Design Magazine, September 2011
http://www.onlineamd.com/amd-0911-experience-pays-off.aspx
SYSTEM NEWS | OPINIONS
Bates' top leader to step down
Lyle Quasim is leaving Bates Technical College after nearly two years at the top.
The News Tribune, September 23, 2011
http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/09/23/1836047/bates-top-leader-to-step-down.html
New Allied Health Building opens to students at Lake Washington Institute of Technology
Lake Washington Institute of Technology celebrated the grand opening of the school's new state-of-the-art Allied Health Building Sept. 14. The $35 million facility, which broke ground in October of 2009, was funded through a partnership between LWIT ($26 million) and the Washington Network for Innovative Careers (WaNIC) ($9 million), a consortium of seven K-12 school districts – including Bellevue – that offer high school students the opportunity to take college-level courses
Bellevue Reporter, September 22, 2011
http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/east_king/bel/community/130389058.html
Gregoire names new LCC Board of Trustees member
A Lower Columbia College alumnus and local business owner has been named to the college's Board of Trustees. Gov. Chris Gregoire appointed Steve Vincent to replace Mindi Linquist, who resigned in August. Vincent is co-founder and director of Columbia Analytical Services, a Kelso-based scientific testing lab.
The Daily News, September 22, 2011
http://tdn.com/news/local/article_19222054-e4c5-11e0-a0ba-001cc4c002e0.html
“Science” magazine features BC program
Bellevue College’s ComGen project, in which the college’s students conduct genetic research, is featured in the September 16 issue of “Science” magazine article about two-year colleges involving students in research. The project, funded with a $500,000 National Science Foundation grant, is a graduate-school type project. Students maintain a lab notebook, isolate plasmid DVA, and run PCR while they sequence the genome of Pseudomonas fluorescens L5, 1-96, a bacterium that fights off a fungus that attacks wheat.
KOMO News, September 20, 2011
http://bellevue.komonews.com/news/events/670393-science-magazine-features-bc-program
Two-Year Colleges Are Jumping Into the U.S. Research Pool / A growing number of community colleges hope to improve instruction and train a more diverse cadre of scientists by involving students in research.
When M. Gita Bangera accepted a faculty position at Bellevue College outside Seattle, Washington, she assumed her students at the 2-year college would be perfectly capable of doing research. “I'd always done research, so I didn't see why that wouldn't be necessary,” says Bangera, a molecular biologist who had completed multiple postdoctoral fellowships and worked as a senior scientist at a micro-array manufacturer. In 2007, Bangera and fellow Bellevue faculty members Jim Ellinger and Chris Shelley obtained a $500,000 NSF grant to start a graduate school–type project called ComGen
… Hewlett and his colleagues hope to inspire their students not only to stay in school but also to view science as a viable career option. Their success could mean new opportunities for groups traditionally underrepresented in the sciences and engineering. Some 30% are African American or Hispanic, and nearly 60% are women. There is preliminary evidence that community college students who engage in research are more likely to stay in science, transfer to a 4-year school, and pursue a higher degree. Those outcomes suggest to Hewlett and others that research experiences can be a valuable tool to broaden the U.S. scientific talent pool.
Science, September 16, 2011
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/333/6049/1572.full
Surry partners for national viticulture and enology initiative
Surry Community College (NC) has received a $213,000 grant from the National Science Foundation and joins a 17-state partnership to deliver distance education opportunities for the emerging grape and wine industry. The project, a part of the Viticulture Enology Science and Technology Alliance (VESTA), focuses on the establishment of programs of study in viticulture and enology through collaborations with educational institutions, government an industry across the country. National partners who will share in the $4.3 million National Science Foundation grant with Surry Community College include … Yakima Valley Community College, Wash.
Mount Airy News, September 23, 2011
Peninsula college to offer alternative fuels program
The program got a boost last year when Peninsula College was awarded a $150,000 National Science Foundation Advanced Technology Education Small Projects Grant. The two-year grant, which started in October 2010, provides $75,000 each year to the college. … “We’re very proud to be among the few colleges in the country to receive the NSF ATE grant,” said Peninsula College President Dr. Thomas Keegan. “It fits very well into our strategic priorities of environmental sustainability and providing leadership and support for rural economic development. It also will place us at the forefront in training men and women for careers in the rapidly expanding field of alternative fuel vehicles.
The Sequim Gazette, September 20, 2011
EvCC nursing students prepare for medical aid mission to Dominican Republic
Compassion is a big part of nursing. That's the feeling that guides two dozen Everett Community College nursing students as they prepare for a volunteer trip to the Dominican Republic. The students will bring over-the-counter medications, hygiene kits and provide medical care to hundreds of families in poor communities surrounding the capital city of Santo Domingo, said Candace Whedon, a third-quarter instructor in the college's two-year nursing program
The Herald, September 22, 2011
http://heraldnet.com/article/20110922/NEWS01/709229945/-1/COMM03
CBC's first Study Abroad student helps fight cavities in Bolivia
KEPR learned CBC's [Columbia Basin College] first study abroad student just returned from Bolivia. The dental hygiene student spent time at the only modern dental hygiene school in South America's poorest country.
KEPR TV, September 22, 2011
http://www.keprtv.com/news/local/130395128.html?tab=video
EdCC teacher has exhibit at IDEA Odyssey in Seattle
Edmonds Community College visual arts instructor Minh Carrico’s video installation “States of Demise” is showing at IDEA Odyssey Gallery in Seattle. Carrico’s work was inspired by recurring topics in the daily news over the course of a year that addressed the present state of society and the events of 9/11
The Weekly Herald, September 21, 2011
http://heraldnet.com/article/20110921/TWH05/709219939/-1/News
Art as large as life
Some of the area's larger-than-life pieces come out of the south Everett studio of mixed-media artists Sarah Maki and Travis Hough. The couple, who met while in graduate school, are both on the faculty at Edmonds Community College. They work out of a garage space to accommodate their sizeable creations.
The Weekly Herald, September 21, 2011
http://heraldnet.com/article/20110914/TWH01/709149875/-1/news01
Chasing a country dream
Kate Turner is on a musical mission she hopes will take her all the way to a Nashville record contract. After graduating from Columbia High School in Burbank, she attended Columbia Basin College for a short time where she sang with the award-winning FreeForm jazz band.
Tri-City Herald, September 23, 2011
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2011/09/23/1651936/chasing-a-country-dream.html
Salute to the South at SSCC breaks out into dance
South Seattle Community College President Gary Oertli invited the community to an afternoon reception on campus today to celebrate the start of a new College year. After giving his gracious speech, a surprise dancer appeared, circled the floor in front of the podium, and got a dozen or more attendees to dance and clap.
West Seattle Herald, September 22, 2011
http://www.westseattleherald.com/2011/09/22/news/salute-south-party-sscc-breaks-out-dance
TRENDS| HORIZONS | EDUCATION
Op-Ed Contributor: For-Profit Colleges, Vulnerable G.I.'s
The desire for learning among service members and veterans is too often exploited by unscrupulous schools.
The New York Times, September 22, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/22/opinion/for-profit-colleges-vulnerable-gis.html?emc=eta1
A Multi-Part Question
Wording in the Common Application regarding ethnicity is causing headaches for students and institutions trying to gauge diversity.
Inside Higher Ed, September 23, 2011
The Education Issue: Why We Need For-Profit Colleges
To start with the obvious, a college education has never been more necessary for a decent life in America. Many manufacturing jobs now demand a level of skill and education that virtually requires a college degree. A lot of white-collar employers won’t even consider a job applicant who hasn’t graduated from college. And yet for the poor and the working class, that education is not easy to attain. State university systems have become increasingly expensive. Community colleges are terribly overcrowded. The schools most capable of meeting the country’s growing education needs are the for-profits.
… What’s more, the traditional university isn’t really set up to educate a person who has a full-time job. … The bad part, of course, is that capitalists will always behave more or less like greyhounds chasing a mechanical rabbit, motivated by whatever incentives are put in front of them. Just as the federal government created perverse incentives that helped bring about the subprime crisis, so have the government’s rules for the for-profit industry unwittingly led to its excesses. When industry reaps all the profit from student loans and the taxpayer has to pick up the losses, how can we be surprised when things turn out badly? What is needed now is creative, enlightened policymaking that will change the incentives so that good outcomes matter more than sheer volume. … Unfortunately, the new rules are cumbersome, complicated — and more than a little punitive. The most controversial of them, known as the gainful employment rule, is built in part on the actual earnings of all the graduates of a given for-profit college.
The New York Times, September 18, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/18/magazine/why-we-need-for-profit-colleges.html?_r=1&emc=eta1
Want free pizza? Hazy about last night? Try these apps for students
Scott Dobson-Mitchell reviews five apps for students
MacLeans Oncampus, September 12, 2011
College can add more earnings than university
[Note how Canada differentiates between the terms “college” and “university.” ]
MacLeans Oncampus, September 23, 2011
http://oncampus.macleans.ca/education/2011/09/23/college-can-add-more-earnings-than-university/
POLITICS | LOCAL, STATE, NATIONAL
Drew Hansen to replace Rolfes in state house
Rep. Christine Rolfes was appointed two months ago to succeed former Sen. Phil Rockefeller. Rolfes said Hansen's involvement in higher education and workforce training in Kitsap County likely will lead to him being effective in those areas. "The House has had a strong history of putting new legislators to work in areas where they have the most skills, talent and enthusiasm," said Rolfes, who expects Hansen to eventually be a leader in environmental, education and job training issues. … "I have a track record in this area as a member of the state's economic board and I'm aware of the problems," he said. "For example, we literally can't find enough qualified engineers and nurses in our county to fill the jobs available. Our naval bases and hospitals are forced to recruit people from out of state to fill their vacancies. We need to fund higher education in areas where specific jobs are available so we can employee our own people. It's a big problem here, but it's solvable."
Bainbridge Island Review, September 21, 2011
http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/kitsap/bir/news/130321563.html
FRIDAY LITE
Satellite To Hit Earth This Week
http://www.theonion.com/articles/satellite-to-hit-earth-this-week,26137/
Autumn leaves ~ your choice |::| Les feuilles mortes ~ votre choix
Nat King Cole http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlC-tT5ukrg
Iggy Pop - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxiBNBP5SH8&feature=related
Mireille Mathieu (my fave)- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIg6YrdICrY
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