Area Report for Board of Trustees

IA is excited to report this month on grants and government relations activities including the soccer and sports field complex, emergency funding for students and TRiO prep.  IA also continues to be engaged in supporting, promoting and leading numerous activities that happen on campus during Spring Quarter and a variety of events in the community including the 10th Annual YELL Summit, Native Student Success Summit, Legal Studies Alumni Gathering and hosting of a delegation from Yangzhou Polytechnic College. Communications and Marketing has been helping prepare for Commencement and a series of year-end activities celebrating student accomplishments.

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

• Foundation staff, board members and volunteers continue to review scholarship applications and during a recent Foundation Board Meeting it was shared that the Foundation has awarded more than $477,835 to students through scholarships and emergency aid to date.
• Dave O’Keeffe, Grants Resource Manager, worked closely with Mariela Barriga to submit a $180,000 grant application to United Way of King County for continued funding of emergency support for students and staffing support for the Benefits Hub.
• Sharon Vail, Director of Philanthropy, has been working with a series of donors to increase scholarship and program support. One recent success is the Soroptimist Club of Seattle Southside providing approximately $5,000 in support of scholarships for summer STEM camps being offered through the Highline CE program. The Foundation agreed to match this gift so that more than 20  can have the opportunity to attend camp.

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

• Thanks to Government Relations, our request to Congressman Adam Smith’s office for funding support for the Soccer and Sports Field Complex was included in the list of 15 projects Congressman Smith is moving forward in the Community Investment Fund Process. This funding will be a cornerstone to attracting additional state, county and private funding for the field project and adding much needed field space for Des Moines and South King County.
• The Center of Excellence team (Sam Kaplan and Kaitlin Bermingham) and Government Relations (Shakira Ericksen) played vital roles in working with VP Pham in the hosting of a delegation from Yangzhou Polytechnic College to help further the collaboration and program development with one of our key international partners.

Core Theme 4: CULTURE & CAPACITY: Promote a campus culture which fosters equity and inclusivity supporting employee growth and development, and institutional capacity for transformation

• Thanks to Ashley Kerr, EA to the VP, for organizing IA Division meetings that have included IA team members planning a series of presentations on special topics, including a recent presentation by Larissa Wendfelt on mental health awareness and our first in person division meeting in 2024 that focused on Institutional Effectiveness Reporting and Budget Development.

Division Honors and Achievements

• We want to recognize Tanisha Williams as one of the leaders who have helped shape and grow the YELL Summit as it celebrated the 10th Annual Summit on May 18, 2024.
• Sam Kaplan, Director of the Center of Excellence for Global Trade and Supply Chain Management has been serving in the role of Chair of the Board for Port Jobs, a vital workforce program in our region that promotes advancement and upskilling for employees throughout SeaTac Airport and the Port of Seattle.
• VP Josh Gerstman was selected to serve as vice-chair for the Policy Committee of Soundside Alliance, which advances economic development in the cities of Burien, Des Moines, Seatac, Normandy Park, Seatac and Tukwila, with participation by the Port of Seattle, Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce and Highline College.

Report submitted by Vice President of Institutional Advancement, Joshua Gerstman