International students make new friends in the International Student Lounge on the first day of fall quarter. Fall 2013 marks record enrollment for International Programs.

On Monday, September 23, Clark College opened the doors for its 2013-2014 academic year. The college welcomed 13,373 students on opening day, down slightly from fall 2012, when the college welcomed 13,927 students.

The start of fall quarter is always a time of new beginnings at the college, but this year is seeing a number of changes to the way the college enhances student learning. Some highlights:

• Expanded hours at CTC: For the first time, Clark College at Columbia Tech Center will be open for credit classes on Fridays. The expanded schedule will make it easier for residents of East Vancouver to complete their degrees entirely at CTC, without traveling to take classes on Clark’s main campus.
• Expansion into the Gorge: In response to demand from local businesses and residents, Clark College is offering college-level classes to the communities of the Columbia River Gorge through its new satellite location in the Wind River Education Center in Carson. Until now, residents had to travel 20 miles or more to attend the nearest community college—and that college is located out of state, in Oregon.
• New Phlebotomy program: Clark College has redesigned its Phlebotomy certification program and relocated it to specially configured classrooms and labs on the campus of Washington State University Vancouver in the college’s health care instruction building, which also houses the college’s Nursing and Pharmacy Technician programs.
• Bachelor’s degrees in Health Informatics : Clark College and Bellevue College have signed an articulation agreement that allows students at Clark to earn a bachelor’s degree in Health Informatics Information Technology (HIIT) from Bellevue through online and remote classes—without leaving the Clark College campus. “In our ongoing conversations with regional employers, we realized there was a need for Health Informatics Information Technology professionals and responded quickly to that need, but we also realized that there would be a need for students to take their education to the next level,” said Debra Ortiz, director of allied health programs at Clark College.
• Record number of Running Start and international students: Clark expects to see more than 1,770 students enrolled in Washington state’s popular Running Start program, which allows high school students to earn college credit for little or no cost. This number is a 5-percent increase over last year’s Running Start enrollment. Meanwhile, Clark is also seeing a record number of international students at the college this year. A total of 103 students from 31 different countries are attending the college this quarter.
• Mechatronics offers evening classes: Clark College’s state-of-the-art Mechatronics program will begin offering evening course, allowing workers to retrain for modern industrial jobs without leaving their current positions. This expansion is designed to boost the region’s economy; it was prompted by local businesses who wanted more opportunities to retrain their employees.
  

  Food carts make their debut on campus.

• New food carts serve campus while Culinary Arts program is on hiatus: Clark is discontinuing its Culinary Arts – Food program while it launches an ambitious new redesign of the program that will make it more responsive to modern culinary trends. Three privately owned food carts are supplying food service to the college while the program is overhauled. The college’s widely respected Culinary Arts – Bakery program will continue operating during this time.
• Water-bottle filling stations: Students and college administration have worked together to help preserve the environment by setting up water-bottle filling stations around the main campus, thereby reducing the number of disposable plastic water bottles bought and discarded at the college.

Arriving in late August, The Mighty Bowl was the first food cart to move onto campus, opening September 13.

This past fall, the Culinary Arts Taskforce was formed to work on two things: revamping the Culinary Arts, Food program and improving food-service options on the main campus. Recently the Taskforce released its findings, and they could indicate dramatic changes not just in the program and the college’s dining options, but in the look and shape of the campus as well.

The Taskforce quickly recognized one major challenge facing the current Culinary Arts program: In order to stay up-to-date with modern culinary trends, students needed instructional time to develop skills and learn about new tools and technology, theories, dietary restrictions, and global cuisine. However, the program was also responsible for most of the food production at the college, which left little time for purely instructional lab activities and skill development.

At the same time, because Culinary Arts students were responsible for producing most of the food at campus, food service was limited to their class hours—and both students and employees often need to eat at times outside those hours.

Looking at these challenges, it became clear to the Taskforce that the Culinary Arts program needed to stop being the sole source of food on campus. The solution: Bring in local vendors, in a limited capacity, to augment food service for the campus community. Meanwhile, Culinary Arts students would take part in more-rigorous academics and updated lab activities—while still gaining hands-on experience by providing some food service to the college. The program would also move to a cohort model and be designed to qualify for accreditation by the American Culinary Federation.

In order to accomplish all this, however, something else needed to change: the facility itself. Students would need access to SMART classrooms and a demonstration kitchen (currently the program has neither) to learn the new curriculum, and outside vendors would want a larger, more inviting space in which to set up shop. So the Taskforce also recommended adding a second story to the northwest corner of Gaiser Hall and remodeling the first-floor section to house a modern food court with different cook-to-order kiosks, a new bakery area, and a modern dining room. The second floor would include the SMART classrooms, offices, and other facilities required for a modern Culinary Arts program.

“[A] renovation, while costly, is an investment in the program, an investment in student retention, and an investment in the goals of the Strategic Plan,” the Taskforce’s final proposal concludes. “The creation of an inviting space for students, faculty, and staff to congregate as members of a community will serve Clark College for decades to come.”

The next step will be  a predesign study to accurately budget for these renovations—after that, the fundraising process to make these proposals reality can begin. Meanwhile, the Culinary Arts, Food program is not taking new students. Learn more about the proposed changes online at http://www.clark.edu/academics/programs/culinary_arts/Taskforce_Proposal.pdf.

Meet Your (Lunch) Makers

So where will students and employees eat while the Culinary Arts, Food program goes through its transformation? In addition to currently existing food kiosks around campus and the Bakery (which will continue service during the revamp), three new food carts will set up shop on the walkway on the east side of Gaiser Hall. Here they are, with links to their websites and expected beginning month of service:

• Foody Blues BBQ
• Mighty Bowl
• Chewy’s Really Big Burritos

Photo: Clark College/Hannah Erickson