Area Report for Board of Trustees

As we end the 25-26 academic year, I want to share my deepest thanks to our Academic Affairs division as they continue to advance Highline College’s mission and strategic priorities during this busy year! Key highlights this month include the launch of Highline’s first annual MESA Advisory Board, Compassionate Math professional development and student workshops, and the significant community partnerships supporting Native student success, clean energy innovation, and experiential STEM learning for local K–12 students. Lastly, the Academic Affairs division also supported a nationally unique accessibility-focused public art collaboration with Sound Transit that centered blind and low-vision student voices in the design process. 

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

• Jenee Stanfield and Tammy Hauge (Federal Way Higher Education Center) and Dr. Aleya Dhanji (Physics faculty) collaborated to bring Dr. Geillan Aly, from Compassionate Math to Highline to deliver a student workshop on math trauma, followed by professional development for faculty and staff. The student workshop, “Math Confidence Lab: Reset Your Relationship with Math”, helped students reflect on past math experiences, understand the systemic roots of math anxiety, and reframe their identity as math learners, while providing practical learning strategies and a supportive, collaborative experience. Faculty and staff observed the student session to see effective practices in action and receive follow-up consultation, personalized guidance, and a take-home toolkit. Dr. Aly also led an EDI workshop, “Teaching Science and Mathematics with Compassion”, which introduced the Compassionate Math Framework and the Cycle of Benign Neglect, to help faculty work through or around the emotional challenges of learning and teaching math so that students can be their best mathematical selves. A set of practical micro-interventions for both advisors and instructors on math anxiety is being compiled to distribute across the campus community. A big thank you to the President’s Office, Academic Affairs, the Foundation and the EDI committee for providing funds to support this effort.  

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

• Highline College established and implemented its first annual MESA Advisory Board to strengthen student programming, improve retention and transfer rates to four-year universities, and ensure the program remains responsive to current and emerging STEM career pathways. The advisory board meets one to two times each quarter to discuss trends and challenges impacting Highline STEM students, identify program improvements, and expand opportunities such as internships, mentorships, research experiences, and university partnerships.
  • The Highline MESA Advisory Board specifically focuses on addressing the needs and challenges faced by MESA students, many of whom identify as first-generation, underrepresented, and/or low-income students pursuing STEM degrees. Discussions center on improving student success, increasing access to resources, and building stronger academic and professional support systems.
  • An Advisory Board Chair has been identified to lead quarterly meetings, coordinate discussion topics, and work collaboratively with the MESA Director to gather and present relevant student and program data to board members.
  • The board is composed of representatives from both education and industry, including a Highline STEM faculty member serving as Board Chair, the MESA Faculty Sponsor, the Dean of Student Support and Funding Services, an industry partner from Fred Hutch, a four-year institution representative from University of Washington Admissions, a Highline MESA Alumni & current UW student, and an additional industry partner yet to be identified.

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

• The Kent Des Moines Light Rail Station Plaza will soon feature a uniquely inclusive public art asset: one of only a few intentionally “Tactile-Please Touch” installations within the entire Sound Transit system! This partnership, supported by Highline College’s Accessibility Resources, included meaningful contributions from our blind and low-vision students, who played a significant role in the design. The artwork consists of permanent mosaic walls utilizing ceramic tile and embedded glass, ceramic, aluminum, and natural stone / beach rock components designed specifically for tactile interpretation by blind and low-vision audiences and community members.
  • Highline College students guided the design, providing crucial feedback on material textures, clay prototypes, and physical layouts over six sessions spanning the 2024–2025 academic year. The students were paid by Sound Transit for their input and participation.
  • Highline students, commissioned artists Sarah Kavage and Charan Sachar, and Ashley Long from Sound Transit will share about the project and give a sneak peek of the artwork at the final Board of Trustees meeting on June 11, before its permanent installation at the Kent-Des Moines Light Rail station.
• Highline College held the 10th Annual Native Student Success Summit on May 12th. This event was the vision of Sara Marie Ortiz and Tanya Powers, twelve years ago. This was a collaboration between Highline School District and Highline College that soon expanded to include the Muckleshoot Tribe, Federal Way, UW-Seattle, UW-Tacoma, Urban Native Education Alliance, Green River College, Eastside Native American Education Program, Renton School District, Kent School District, Seattle Indian Health Board, Indigenous People’s Institute at Seattle University and Fife School District. This year we had over 25 Native presenters who shared their knowledge and wisdom with 110 attendees.
• During the 2026 Washington MESA Day event at Green River College, Highline MESA proudly participated in the inaugural Clean Energy Initiative Capstone Showcase.
  • Through a partnership with the University of Washington Clean Energy Institute, Highline MESA students were provided the opportunity to collaborate with current engineering graduate students and CEI staff to develop innovative solutions addressing energy challenges impacting local communities.
  • Representing Team Highline, Megan Talty, Armita Fattahi, and Devin Amaro partnered with Puget Sound Solar to explore the challenges and opportunities of solar power implementation in the Puget Sound region. Their project focused on improving solar cell energy absorption and the conversion of solar energy into physical energy applications.
  • The team presented their research and findings through both a professional poster presentation and formal presentation before peers, judges, and leadership from Washington MESA. In addition, the students designed and built a fully functional solar car prototype that showcased their creativity, technical skills, and passion for pursuing future careers in solar energy, electrical engineering, and related engineering fields.
• Tenth grade students from several partner high schools visited Highline College on May 20th as part of the Highline College Promise program. Stephaney Puchalski (PAS Lab Manager) and Sam Baker (Geology Student) organized and led three STEM activities for ~100 promise scholars including building spaghetti-marshmallow towers and then testing them using earthquake shake tables.

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

• Amy Rider King (Communications) and Monica Twork (Library) collaborated with Academic Success Center student tutors to host a May 20 campus read-aloud and conversation exploring help and help-seeking in academic spaces, Highline Reads at the Public Speaking Center: Help as an Umbrella.
  • Over 25 participants (students, faculty, and staff) listened to passages from Brene Brown’s Daring Greatly, original student poetry, and krar music (traditional Ethiopian/Eritrean harp) as part of our exploration of help-seeking in college.

Division Honors and Achievements

As mentioned above, I want to take a moment to extend my deepest gratitude and appreciation to Dr. Tanya Powers for her steadfast leadership, care, and unwavering commitment in leading the annual Native Student Success Summit. The summit reflects years of relationship-building, vision, collaboration, and intentional work centered on Native and Indigenous students, families, and communities. Dr. Powers continues to lead this work with authenticity, humility, compassion, and deep respect for Indigenous ways of knowing, community, and belonging.

For Dr. Powers, the summit illuminated the transformative power of creating culturally grounded spaces—places where Indigenous students are not only seen but celebrated; not only supported, but uplifted as they pursue higher education while staying rooted in the strength of their identities and communities. “When Native students see themselves reflected in leadership, education, and community advocacy, it ignites possibility,” said Dr. Tanya Powers. “This summit was a powerful reminder that they belong in these spaces, and that their voices, cultures, and lived experiences are essential to shaping the future.”

Just as important, Native Student Success Summit was generously sponsored by the Muckleshoot Tribe and Muckleshoot Tribal College. This is reflective of deep relationship building that encompasses the traditional value of tribal communities supporting tribal families and youth.

Report submitted by Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. Rolita Ezeonu