Area Report for Board of Trustees

Dear Board of Trustees,

I would like to thank you for your continued support of our students and programs. During the month of February, the Student Services Division continued to advance work aligned with Highline College’s core themes of Access, Student Learning, Community Partnerships, and Culture and Capacity. Across the division, teams focused on improving student access to financial resources, strengthening advising and enrollment practices, expanding leadership and engagement opportunities for students, and building partnerships that support long term student success.

This month we saw a notable increase in financial aid applications compared to last fall, continued efforts to streamline enrollment and advising processes in preparation for spring registration, and expanded scholarship outreach designed to increase student awareness and completion of scholarship applications. Student engagement remained strong, with participation in Legislative Day, leadership programming, and cultural and educational events that foster belonging and civic engagement.

In addition, several departments made progress in strengthening cross functional collaboration, particularly between advising, enrollment, and outreach teams, to improve service delivery and Guided Pathways implementation. We also continue to build external partnerships that support federal grant opportunities and student success initiatives. Finally, we are proud to recognize students and staff who have received scholarships and regional honors for their achievements.

Additional details on these efforts and outcomes are provided in the sections below.

Core Theme 1: ACCESS, Reduce Barriers and close equity gaps to access for all community members

• Financial Aid applications increased by approximately 17 percent compared to last fall, representing roughly 1,100 additional applications. This growth reflects continued outreach efforts and increased student awareness of funding opportunities.
• Admissions and Enrollment Services continue to support strategic enrollment and service delivery improvements. Spring quarter registration preparations are complete, and term activation and registration appointments have been successfully implemented. Spring registration begins February 12.
• Enrollment Services has also continued addressing application processing challenges, including a growing number of suspected fraudulent applications, while maintaining service levels for legitimate applicants.
• Entry Advising and Orientation teams are piloting a high school focused orientation model that is gaining traction and improving onboarding for new students. We have been working with local high schools and have their commitment to bus graduating seniors to our campus in the spring to help them see the campus and apply and enroll during that visit if they wish to do so. 

Core Theme 2: STUDENT LEARNING, Increase educational success, collaborate to improve

• Student Support and Funding Services launched Highline College’s first open scholarship workshop, attended by 31 students. Previously, scholarship workshops were limited to specific support programs. This expanded access initiative is intended to increase scholarship awareness and application completion among all students.
• TRIO Student Support Services will host the UW Martin Family Scholarship workshop on February 24 to support students who are interested in attending the University of Washington and in preparing competitive scholarship applications.
• Advising teams continue to support Guided Pathways implementation. Pathway Advising and Running Start have begun cross-training to improve service delivery and student referrals, and advisors are participating in outreach and academic planning workshops in classrooms and orientation sessions.
• Career and Transfer Services are preparing for the upcoming NWSTEP Transfer Fair on Feb 12th. 
•  Career and Transfer Center have onboarded a new Program Specialist to expand student support capacity.
• Student Life continues to provide high-impact co-curricular programming. Twenty-one students participated in Legislative Day, meeting with more than ten legislators to advocate on issues including transportation funding, housing affordability, tuition costs, and student representation.
• The Winter Leadership Retreat received a record number of applications, with 68 students applying for 25 available spaces, demonstrating strong student interest in leadership development.

Core Theme 3: COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS, Create a more inclusive working environment and a more valued , visible relationship with communities we serve

• TRIO Talent Search continues to build partnerships with Tukwila School District, Showalter Middle School, and Foster High School in preparation for the upcoming federal grant competition. Letters of commitment are being secured to strengthen the application.
• Student Life hosted community partners from the Tacoma Chapter of the Black Panther Party as part of the MLK Signature Series, fostering dialogue, historical awareness, and community engagement.
• Running Start staff are collaborating with Institutional Advancement to provide data and student experience insights related to funding discussions at the state level.
• Outreach and advising teams are distributing updated materials and information packets to regional high schools to improve communication and recruitment efforts.
• ISP Advising Team held a college fair where universities and colleges from across the United States visited Highline (40+ institutions attended). The university and college group will return next September.

Core Theme 4: CULTURE & CAPACITY, Become an anti-racist college through intentional development of employees, facilities, and systems that support student success and close equity gaps

• The Financial Aid Office is contracting with nationally recognized researcher Sara Goldrick-Rab to serve as an external thought partner to division leadership and the Financial Aid Advisory Committee. This work will help strengthen policies, practices, and long-term student financial support strategies.
• Advising teams are piloting expanded outreach models and exploring new approaches to advising week programming to increase visibility and access to academic planning services.
• Cross-department collaboration continues to improve service alignment between Pathway Advising, Running Start, Financial Aid, and Enrollment Services

Division Honors and Achievements

• Two students in Women’s Programs WorkFirst were awarded the Soroptimist Live Your Dream Scholarship, earning a combined total of $5,500.
• At the NWAC Winter Conference, Laura Rosa, Academic Advisor for Athletics and Women’s Commissioner, was recognized with the NWAC Difference Maker Coin, an honor awarded to only one administrator per division.
• Athletics reports that both men’s and women’s basketball teams remain competitive and in contention for playoff positions. 
• Softball has resumed practice following completion of field repairs.

Report submitted by Interim Vice President of Student Services, Tony Garcia