Area Report for Board of Trustees

As of June 3, 2019, Spring Quarter State funded enrollments are 4466.1 FTEs

Core Theme 4:  Model sustainability in human resources, operations, & teaching and learning

Last month’s trustee meeting included a presentation from geologist Dr. Eric Baer on his National Science Foundation work. While Dr. Baer’s track record with NSF is clearly exceptional, others regularly work with Institutional Advancement to secure grants support for new initiatives.  As one example, this year Highline’s Sustainable Agriculture program was received $90,000 from the King Conservation District Regional Food System Initiative to acquire more farmland as incubator plots for our students, to designate growing spaces for immigrants/refugees, and to purchase the state-of-the-art tools and equipment.  Also in 2018-19, the college secured three grants related to math:

• From the College Spark Foundation, Highline was awarded $150,000 for the Mathematics Co-Requisite Initiative to increase the number of students who earn their first college credit in math. The model places pre-college students directly into lower-division calculus sections, offered in conjunction with a developmental math course that supports the students’ success.
• Through another National Science Foundation initiative, Highline garnered a $100,000 STEM Core grant to assist pre-college math students in reaching calculus readiness by assisting with student support and connecting them with paid industry internships.
• The Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges granted Highline $10,000 as part of its Bridge to College initiative. The project, in partnership with Highline Public Schools, seeks to increase the numbers of students transitioning directly to college.

Faculty and staff initiatives

•  The third annual Urban Agriculture Summit, held June 1on campus, included presentations on organic farming, agroforestry and beekeeping from Highline College staff, community based organizations, and Decatur High School’s agriculture program.
• May 29’s MESA Graduation Dinner drew nearly 100 attendees. This event not only celebrated the program’s graduates but also the dedication of the MESA staff, student ambassadors, and Highline faculty Terry Meerdink (math), Syeda Nizami (computer science), Chris Boudreaux (engineering) and Sean Rogers (physics).
• The Art and Design Department hosted its annual Portfolio Show in Building 8 June 3-4. This year’s show included a People’s Choice competition.  The event was well attended and included recruiters from a major Tacoma firm seeking drafting graduates.

Report submitted June 06, 2019, by Vice President, Jeff Wagnitz, Ed.D.