The Weekly News: Week 27

This Week

What a week it has been!

I am so happy to see students and
faculty back in classes, and grateful for everyone who rolled up their sleeves
this past week and persevered.

The two-year faculty contract for
2018-2020 includes significant pay raises for full-time and adjunct professors.
It also spells out the distribution formula for the high-demand nursing stipend
funding as authorized by the legislature. 

The final signed copy of the
contract will be available once it has been finalized and posted on
clarknet.clark.edu under Faculty Resources.

Many of
you have expressed to me your concerns about how we will manage impacts on the
budget when we have made new commitments at the same time that our enrollment
and revenue are declining. This will likely require us to closely examine every
vacancy before we post it and to leave some positions unfilled. It will also
likely mean holding the line on other expenses, such as travel and goods and
services. I cannot promise that we will not feel a pinch this fiscal year but I
can assure you that we will explore all options.

Looking
ahead to the 2020-2021 budget, our Budget Committee is working on a process
that will engage the entire college community.  We will need everyone’s
ideas and contributions to help make the difficult budget decisions that lie
ahead. There are no magical answers out there, but I believe a budget process
that values openness, transparency and accountability will enable us to share
in the work of righting our financial picture for the near- and long-term.

Presidential Finalists

This week we also hosted two of
our three presidential candidates on campus.

Dr. Sara Thompson Tweedy, vice
president of student access, involvement, and success at SUNY Westchester
Community College and Dr. Karin Edwards, president of the Cascade Campus
of Portland Community College, have each participated in the two-day interview
process.

I encourage you to go online and
provide input on the forums for both candidates. We want to hear your feedback.
We have an easy-to-use link for you at www.clark.edu under
“Important Updates.” For those who were not able to attend the forums, videos
of the forums will be available as soon as all forums are completed and
captioned.

Next week, Dr. Lamata D.
Mitchell, vice president of instruction and academic operations at Pima
Community College, will visit the campus for the two-day long interview
process.

The student forum will be held
Tuesday January 21 at Foster Hall Auditorium from 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. The
college forum will be held Wednesday January 22, also at Foster Hall Auditorium
from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

We received word Wednesday that
finalists Dr. Joaquín G. Martínez, district vice provost of
institutional effectiveness at Miami Dade College, had removed his name from
consideration citing personal reasons. We thanked him for his interest. We are
confident that we have a slate of highly qualified candidates who are excited
about the opportunity to lead Clark College into the next decade.

The Board of Trustees is on
schedule to make a hiring decision by early March.

As a reminder, biographies and
resumes of our three finalists are available online atwww.clark.edu/presidential-search/search/finalists.php

Congratulations!

Such good news to report out of
our Welding Department that is working closely with a major manufacturer in our
region, Vigor. Vigor has a new large military contract to build boats and needs
skilled welders. They have toured our program and are excited to work with us.

Caleb White and his team are
creating curriculum that will ensure students have the skills that Vigor needs.
In addition to curriculum development, we are in the process of developing an
agreement with Vigor that will provide our welding students with an opportunity
to participate in interviews that could potentially lead to employment
opportunities. In addition, Vigor will send their current employees to Clark
for training.

This is exactly the kind of
partnership we want for our students and our employers.

I thank Mohammed Maraee of the
Southwest Washington Center of Excellence, who helps develop the relationship
between colleges and employers in this region. He helps us better understand
employers’ needs, while helping the employer understand the rules that govern
higher education and accreditation. He helps us find ways to work together.

None of this would be possible
without Welding Department Head Caleb White and our team of expert welding
faculty. They bring both vision and practical skills to lead the effort to
create curriculum that fits the needs of the employers.

Welding instructor Wade Housinger
was instrumental in showing Vigor what we do at Clark and our capacity to meet
their needs. It has been a team effort from the start. Thank you Vice President
of Instruction Sachi Horback and Interim Dean of WPTE Armetta Burney for making
this a high priority.

This is a big win for our
students, our college and our employers. Congratulations to our Welding Program
and Office of Instruction!

HS+ Student Success

Twenty-three Transitional Studies
students earned their high school diplomas through Clark College’s High School+
(HS+) Program following fall quarter.

HS+ is a competency-based high
school diploma program for adult learners age 18 and older who do not have a
high school diploma or equivalency.

The program was rebranded
statewide from High School 21+ to High School+, recognizing those 18-to-20 are
now eligible for the diploma provided they satisfy state requirements for their
graduating class.

Several of the graduates were
employed while completing their diplomas, had jobs lined up upon graduation, or
enlisted in the military. Congratulations to the graduates, and thank you to
our team for helping them succeed.

Clark Music Highlights

I know you will join me in
sending kudos to Professor Donald Appert. Our Clark College Orchestra Conductor
and Music Director is being honored internationally.

His latest composition Contrapunctus
(Mirrors) for Flute and Trombone, which was commissioned by Dr. Philip
Martinson and Dr. Shelly Martinson, will be premiered at the International
Trombone Festival in Osaka, Japan in summer of 2020. Congratulations, you
make Penguin Nation proud.

Jazz Festival next week

The 58th annual Jazz Festival is
nearly here – January 23-25 at Gaiser Student Center. It is free to all college
faculty, staff and students. It’s a three-day event jam-packed with outstanding
musical talent all in one place. For more information: www.clark.edu/cc/music.

Clark hosts regional equity conference

There
is an exciting conference coming up on campus next month. Registration is still
open for the inaugural Northwest Regional Equity Conference for Higher
Education.  There is depth, weight and real value in this inaugural event
organized and hosted by Clark College. Registration Fee is $250. This is a
great way to use professional development funds. However, if cost is a barrier
please contact the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at extension 2292.
More info: www.clark.edu/campus-life/student-support/diversity-and-equity/equity-conference/index.php

Upcoming events

I’m
looking forward to attending the 10th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Breakfast
Celebration held by iUrban Teen with a team from Clark College, as well as our
annual MLK event in the Gaiser Student Center on Tuesday, January 21, and
seeing the interactive hands-on display of the history of Buffalo
Soldiers/Black cowboys 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. and the Buffalo Soldiers of the
Pacific Northwest documentary discussion being held noon – 1:30 p.m.

Join
me in honoring Dr. King’s legacy of service to others by donating hair- and
skin-care products for African-American families served by YWCA Clark County.
Donations can be dropped off at the Student Center. More information at www.clark.edu/cc/mlk/

New date to be set for State of the College

A
reminder – we will be setting a new date for the State of the College, which
was rescheduled because of the strike this past week.

The
most exciting part, for me, is announcing the inaugural recipients of two new
employee awards: the  Lora Whitfield Social Equity Award and
the Exceptional Administrative Exempt Award.

I
will update you on the plans next week.

Also rescheduled

The
Student Involvement Fair has been moved to Wednesday, January 29 from 10 a.m. –
1 p.m.  in the PUB student center. We can encourage our students to check
it out, enjoy a free lunch, and learn about the clubs, programs and resources
available at Clark.

Also
a student resource for all of us to remember as we interact with students: the
Tutoring Centers at Clark. They provide free tutors to assist with most courses
offered at Clark. The centers also have computers, printers, calculators, and
other tools for students. The link is www.clark.edu/cc/tutoring.

I am
reminded of impermanence of all phenomena today as the Tibetan Monks destroy
the beautiful Sand Mandala in the closing ceremony. They will be taking a small
amount of the colored sand in a procession to Columbia River, where it will be
poured into the water for the health and well-being of our waterways and marine
life, ultimately making its way to the Pacific Ocean to benefit all beings
there.

As we
celebrate a new year, I hope we can move forward together supporting one
another to make Penguin Nation a great place to work and to learn. In honor of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of service to others, take time during this
long weekend pick up some hair- and skin-care products for African-American
families to donate to the YWCA Clark County and take time to recharge.

One
of Martin Luther King Jr.’s quotes that has guided me throughout my life is, “I
have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”