Area Report for Board of Trustees

The Equity, Diversity, and Transformation (EDT) Division is charged with embedding equity in everything we do at Highline College. Below are updates of the ongoing work.

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

• On Saturday November 16^th Highline hosted its 15^th Annual Black & Brown Male Summit. With the support of over 40+ chaperones, we were able to welcome 200 students who traveled from communities as far as Everett and Puyallup. The students engaged with the powerful keynote Christian Paige, participated in 10 interactive workshops, and gained wisdom from our panel of diverse men of color who shared words of encouragement on how to Stand on Business and ended the day with a resource fair with HC programs and community organization.

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

• We had our first Juntos en Familia event on October 30^th. We had about 30 attendees including students and their families. In this Juntos en Familia event, we reviewed the Juntos program, talked about the different ways families can support their students, and had a gallery walk. There were great questions around resources specifically for housing and academic support. We ended the evening with a few rounds of Loteria. We plan to host evening events like these about once a quarter.

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

• Highline College staff, along with partners from Highline Public Schools, Federal Way Public Schools, Tukwila School District, and Puget Sound Educational District, attended the third in-person Limitless Learning Network convening at Ilani on the Cowlitz Reservation in Ridgefield, WA. The gathering focused on strengthening partnerships to address barriers and increase postsecondary enrollment for Black, Latino, Native, low-income, and rural students. Attendees participated in equity-driven workshops and activities designed to foster connections and support educational success across Washington State.
• Mariela Barriga was invited by the Des Moines Rotary to be their guest speaker. She shared information about our Support Center work and particularly the Community Pantry. As an immediate result, the host site, Des Moines Mercantile will now be donating fresh items to the Highline Pantry weekly.

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

• In observance of Washington State’s first Basic Needs Awareness Week, our Community Pantry hosted a screening of Hungry to Learn. Students, faculty, staff, and Foundation Board were all invited to attend. Hungry to Learn (2019) is a 84-minute documentary about college student food insecurity produced by Soledad O’Brien.  This documentary is a strong way to engage stakeholders and leaders on campus and in the community about the issues of Postsecondary Basic Needs and hunger.  As Washington is recognizing its first Postsecondary Basic Needs Awareness Week (November 18-22), sharing the Hungry to Learn documentary among campus and community partners is a way to increase awareness on campus and in the community and encourage conversations about increasing support.
• Highline College was proud to send 8 students, along with 5 faculty/staff members to the Umoja XX Conference that was in conjunction with a Faculty Institute. The inspiring keynotes bridged the rich legacy of Black history with Afrofuturism, offering powerful insights for the future. Breakout sessions further deepened engagement, providing actionable strategies to support student success and elevate culturally responsive practices.

Report submitted by Vice President of Equity, Diversity and Transformation, Dra. Maribel Jimenéz