This week

Welcome back from the holidays! I hope you had time to rest and enjoy time with friends and family. I enjoyed volunteering delivering Meals on Wheels in Hillsboro with my husband and finalizing plans for my daughter’s wedding in January. It was wonderful having 4 days to spend with family.

This morning our student leaders hosted Washington State Legislators at the Clark College annual legislative breakfast. They talked to our elected officials about their priorities, specifically college accessibility and affordability. We have a strong ASCC leadership team this year, and they were excellent representatives of our college students.

Also today, we are meeting with our AACC Guided Pathways coach, Dr. Chris Hill. She is on campus today and tomorrow to review our work to date and assist us in moving this important work forward. Dr. Hill will be meeting with the Guided Pathways Core Leadership Team; Pillar 1, 2, 3 and 4 Teams; Board of Trustees; faculty; students; and professional development teams to learn more about our progress and plans for implementing Guided Pathways. Everyone is invited to attend the College Debrief at the conclusion of her two-day visit on Tuesday at 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. in GHL 213.

Career Launch at Clark College

Our Mechatronics Program has been endorsed as a Career Launch Program by the SBCTC. This is exciting news for several reasons.

• It formally acknowledges our partnership with SEH America to provide students with real work experience while pursuing their AA degree.
• It also opens the door for state grants to provide equipment for the program.
• It provides incentives for additional businesses to participate in the Career Launch program.

A formal announcement will be made next week. I wanted to give you advance notice of this great news. It signals a new chapter in our partnerships with local employers.

I want to acknowledge the work of Mohammed Maraee, who has brought the Center of Excellence for Semiconductors and Electronic Manufacturing to Southwest Washington. He is working closely with Clark College and area employers to build these important relationships.

I want to thank our team at Clark—Julie Robertson, Genevieve Howard, Armetta Burney, Sachi Horback, and the mechatronics faculty—for your work in responding to industry and moving this important initiative forward.

Presidential Search Milestone

On November 25, the Presidential Search Advisory Committee, having reviewed 65 applications, selected ten semifinalists to be considered as our college’s next president!

The next step will be confidential semifinalist video interviews conducted by the Search Advisory Committee during the second week of December.

Three or four finalist candidates will then be advanced to the Board of Trustees for their approval at their December meeting.

During January, approved finalists will participate in constituent panel interviews and public forums at Clark College. Evaluation visits to finalists’ colleges will also take place in January.

It is expected that the Board of Trustees will make their selection by the end of February 2020, and that our new President will begin onboarding in the summer of 2020 in preparation for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Thank you everyone who is supporting this important work for the College, our students, staff and community. More information on Clark’s presidential search can be found at www.clark.edu/presidential-search.

Grant Awards

Clark College was awarded $100,000 from SBCTC to expand access to the college’s Student Emergency Grant Program.

This funding is $50,000 per year for two years, starting January 2020.

This funding provides monetary assistance to students experiencing unforeseen emergencies or situations that affect the student’s ability to attend classes (e.g., paying for food, transportation, childcare, or other goods or services needed in order for the student to continue attending classes). This funding will provide low-barrier access for students (with no income restrictions), even if they do not meet the traditional definition of a “high-need” student. To date, Clark College has awarded over $44,000 in emergency grant assistance, and this additional funding will allow the program to prevent even more students from dropping out due to financial emergencies.

The Emergency Grant fund includes support from Clark County Community Action Fund Grant, SBCTC Student Emergency Assistance Grant, and Clark College Foundation. Combined, these funds provide approximately $100,000 each year to support our students! Starting in January, all Emergency Grants will be administered through the Financial Wellness Program in Student Affairs.

Thank you to the team who helped write the grant: Julie Robertson, Kevin Thomas, Edie Blakely, Selena Castro and Cath Busha. Well done!

Concerts this week

The Clark College Orchestra Fall Concert is set for Wednesday evening at 7:30pm on December 4. Our congratulations to Dr. Donald Appert: This is his 30th anniversary leading the orchestra. The performance begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Skyview High School Auditorium, 1300 NW 139th St., Vancouver. Free Admission.

The Clark College Women’s Choral Ensemble and Chorale, under the direction of Dr. Jacob Funk, will perform their Fall Concert on Thursday, December 5, at 7:30 p.m. in the Vancouver First United Methodist Church, 401 E. 33rd St, Vancouver. A second concert is scheduled for Saturday, December 7 at 7:00 p.m., also at Vancouver First United Methodist Church. Admission to both concerts is free.

The Clark College Concert Band, under the direction of Dr. Doug Harris, will perform “Fanfares & Dances” on Friday, December 6, at 7:30 p.m. in the Durst Theatre of the Vancouver School of Arts and Academics, 3101 Main St. Free admission.

I want to thank everyone in the Clark College Music Department for their talents and time in creating memorable moments for our students and our audience. Congratulations!

Giving Tuesday

Tomorrow is Giving Tuesday – a global generosity movement encouraging people to contribute time and treasure to their favorite charities. As a reminder, we have an employee giving campaign at Clark College supporting students through the Foundation.

You can choose where and how your gift is used. There is a match program ongoing for the Penguin Pantry. A generous donor has committed to a $5,000 match for the pantry if we reach our goal of 220 donors who make a gift of $10 or more by June 18, 2020. You can make a gift here any time.

However you choose to observe Giving Tuesday, I appreciate all the ways you support our students at Clark College.

Next week for your planning

You are all invited to the Winter Social Tuesday December 10, 2019 at Gaiser Student Center. The reception begins at 2:00 p.m. and the program begins around 2:30 p.m.

As is the tradition, we will honor our Clark College employees who have retired in 2019. I am looking forward to carrying on this Penguin Nation tradition.