Dear Colleague,
Welcome back to campus and to 2019! I hope the winter break provided you with time to rest, rejuvenate, reset, and enjoy quality time with family and friends. Fall quarter was a very busy time and I would like to acknowledge the hard work and commitment you brought to the first part of this academic year. Now that the start of winter quarter is upon us, I am confident we will continue to make positive improvements together, as we remain focused on our collective goals to help our students finish what they start. Here are a few updates about some of the key work we’ll continue together through the remainder of this academic year.
As we return from break, I want to remind you about a notice I shared in late December regarding Dr. Alison Stevens, Executive Vice President for Student Learning & Success, who is on medical leave winter quarter. The full announcement about the organizational structure during Dr. Stevens’s leave is available on DAAG. Dr. Bayta Maring has taken on the role of Acting Vice President for Student Learning during this time, which will allow the College to continue essential work focused on students and their learning. Dr. Maring will continue in her role as Accreditation Liaison Officer and will be part of the Joint Union/Management Committee with the Shoreline Community College Federation of Teachers. Please join me in thanking Dr. Maring for serving in this acting role and in sending Dr. Stevens healing thoughts during her medical leave and welcoming her back to campus in spring quarter.
Strategic Plan Goal 1: We attract students and community learners and ensure successful attainment of their goals through our programs, services, and teaching and learning environments.
Student Enrollment Update
Collaborative and responsive work continues to support our strategic enrollment efforts, both immediate and long-term. For example, an analysis of enrollment patterns indicated that for winter quarter enrollment, students will often wait to enroll until immediately before or after the holidays, so several areas including Enrollment & Financial Aid Services, Communications & Marketing, and Financial Services worked together to delay the deadline for students to pay tuition until the beginning of the year. We also performed a deeper analysis of our fall 2018 enrollment numbers, to identify root causes and trends.
Overall, winter enrollment is down compared to last winter. We are moving in the right direction to close the gap on domestic enrollment. After the opening of registration, our domestic enrollment was down 9% and our additional efforts have decreased that gap to 6% as of today. Our international enrollment is also down slightly (3%).
Looking ahead, we will continue to work thoughtfully and collaboratively across campus to ensure both the quarterly and annual schedules provide the classes that current students need while also promoting enrollment growth. I invite you to participate in these conversations as they are scheduled.
Accreditation Update
Our recent ad hoc self-study and visit provided clear direction for Shoreline to move forward for a successful comprehensive self-study in Fall 2020. The evaluator was very positive about the tremendous progress we have made to address remaining recommendations about (a) alignment of mission, core themes, strategic plan, and budget; (b) assessment of all services and programs; (c) college policies; and (d) core theme indicators. In addition, there were several key areas where additional attention is needed to meet all the standards of the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), particularly expanding efforts assessment efforts to “all programs and services,” as stated in an accreditation standard.
Accreditation efforts will continue in the coming months, most immediately with the core themes change proposal which is still under review by a NWCCU panel. In response to feedback from the recent ad hoc visit to scale up our assessment efforts, the Office of Institutional Assessment and Data Management, under the leadership of Dr. Lisa Malik, will be contacting different service areas on campus to help document assessment work that is already being done and develop a plan for gathering, analyzing, and reporting data to address standards related to assessment.
Vice President for Student Learning Recruitment Update
The application deadline for first consideration in the Vice President for Student Learning recruitment is January 7, 2019. Following this date, HR will be working with the President to identify those applicants which meet minimum qualifications to establish the candidate pool for screening committee review. Once the candidate pool is established, the President and screening committee will then work through the process of application review for interview selection. On-campus interviews are scheduled to occur in mid-late February 2019 and employees should look for the announcement of open forum times near the beginning of that month. Questions regarding the recruitment can be directed to Veronica Zura, Executive Director for Human Resources.
United Way of King County Grant
I am pleased to announce that the Shoreline Community College Foundation has been awarded a $75,000 grant from the United Way of King County to provide emergency funding to students in 2019, with the Foundation providing a $25,000 match. The United Way grant will complement existing Benefits Hub services and Foundation emergency funding to give our students a broader array of emergency and crisis support. For more information, please contact the Foundation Office.
Strategic Plan Goal 2: We continually strive for disciplined excellence and focused improvement in all that we do.
Housing Update
Construction continues to proceed on our new student residence hall, Building 7000. Most of the remaining work will be on the interior of the building as we prepare for occupancy in fall 2019. Promotions for leasing have begun, and a new website is taking contact information from students and parents at 7000campusliving.com. Leasing will begin in mid–Winter Quarter.
Capital Campaign Update
The Office of Advancement and the Foundation have started the first phase of the campaign to raise the $3 million match required by the state to receive the $37 million in state-appropriated funds for the Allied Health, Science & Advanced Manufacturing Classroom Complex. The first 90 days include developing the campaign timeline; campaign materials; donor and pledge cards; gift acceptance and accounting procedures; building, room and equipment naming and recognition opportunities; and recruiting and training the campaign cabinet and prospect task force. We will also conduct a return on investment (ROI) analysis for the donors regarding the economic value of the work force and innovation created from the programs housed in this building. This analysis will be included in the campaign brochure slated to be completed by April.
2019 aSAP Process
The Strategic Planning and Budget Committee will be rolling out the schedule for the abbreviated strategic action plan (aSAP) process this month. The aSAP process is used by campus departments and divisions to request new temporary or permanent funding for non-faculty positions and for expenditures over $50,000. Keeping with the streamlined Executive Team process for review, the due date for aSAPs will be in March. Additional information will be coming in the next two weeks.
Website Update
The College website is our largest public-facing outreach tool and is critical to our enrollment growth. The Program Navigation Work Group has been working intensively to overhaul the academic program and department pages to create a website that helps prospective and current students understand what they can study at Shoreline and how to enroll. The group has been meeting with many members of our campus community to envision a new information architecture that clarifies our instructional offerings, meets accessibility requirements, and aligns with college identity design standards.
In late January, test pages will be available for affected divisions and departments to review and provide feedback, with an anticipated launch date of late February. Once this phase of the work is complete, additional website redesign work will continue, such as overhauling other critical sections of the site, including the Apply & Aid pages, student services pages, and the Current Students page. Please watch for more messages about the changes to the academic program pages in the coming weeks.
Employee Communication Survey Update
In spring 2018, you were invited to complete a survey to establish a baseline on current internal communication satisfaction levels at the College and identify perceived challenges. The Communications, Marketing, and Community Engagement Steering Committee has been analyzing the results of this survey and will make recommendations to the Executive Team in mid-January. Information will be shared with the campus before the end of winter quarter. The survey will also be repeated in 2020 in order to measure the effectiveness of any changes implemented between now and then.
Courageous Conversations with Employees
We will continue our Courageous Conversations with each employee group in mid-January (and, during this time, our quarterly CommUnity Connection event will be on hiatus so we can focus on these important conversations). Dr. Gloria Ngezaho is a trained facilitator for Courageous Conversation™, a process developed to “support adults in having the conversations necessary to make progress on difficult subjects.” In addition, we are using a restorative circle approach to strengthen relationships through these conversations. Our process is as follows:
- Step 1: Listening sessions for Executive Team to listen to each employee group (the first of these were held at the end of fall quarter, with more to come in January – see the “Upcoming Winter Events” section below).
- Step 2: Reflecting sessions for Executive Team to reflect on what was shared from each employee group.
- Step 3: Additional sessions will focus on both employees and the Executive Team working together to identify and prioritize emerging themes, and start to work toward solutions.
This process ensures shared leadership and accountability in problem solving. I, along with the Executive Team, look forward to continuing these conversations during winter quarter.
Strategic Plan Goal 3: We ensure that a climate of intentional inclusion permeates our decisions and practices, which demonstrate principles of ecological integrity, social equity, and economic viability.
Reorganization of Students, Equity & Success Division
Beginning January 2, Dr. Marisa Herrera, Vice President for Students, Equity & Success, moved from reporting to the Executive Vice President of Student Learning & Success to President Roberts. During the fall, VP Herrera held discussions with the Students, Equity & Success Division to discuss and refine the reporting areas to be highly responsive to the needs of students and create positions that make sense to students and potential candidates for the positions. As part of this change, here are some important details to note:
- The search for the Dean of Access and Advising and Dean of Student Support and Success is ongoing with the first consideration on January 7, 2019.
- Under this new reporting structure, we will increase our efforts toward access, college success, and equity, with a strategy that includes the expansion of services in the Gender Equity Center, Multicultural Center, and Student Leadership & Residential Life areas. If you have any questions, please contact the Students, Equity & Success Division.
January 2019 Cost-Of-Living-Allocation (COLA) Increases
Classified staff, faculty, and administrators are set to receive a cost-of-living-allocation (COLA) increase beginning in January 2019. Following the 2% COLA received in July 2017 and July 2018, classified staff and administrators will receive an additional 2% beginning with their January 25 paycheck forward. Faculty will also receive a 0.7% COLA effective winter 2019 forward, which is in addition to the 2.3% COLA effective 2017-18 and the 3% COLA effective 2018-19. Questions regarding these COLA increases can be directed to Human Resources.
Upcoming Winter Events: Mark Your Calendars!
- Courageous Conversations with Faculty – January 22 (3:30-4:30 p.m., Room 2120) and February 1 (2:30-3:30 p.m., Room 9208)
- Courageous Conversations with Classified Staff – January 23 (1-2 p.m., Room 2120) and February 6 (2:30-3:30 p.m., Room 2120)
- Courageous Conversations with Admin Team – January 29 (11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Quiet Dining Room, 9208) and February 7 (2-3 p.m., Quiet Dining Room, 9208)
- Winter Campus Update & Professional Learning – March 8 (1:30-3 p.m., Room 9215)
As we begin a fresh quarter, I want to recognize that some students and employees will be impacted by the Alaskan Way Viaduct and State Route 99 closure that will take place for three weeks starting on January 11. Please encourage affected students and colleagues to plan their commute time carefully, look for alternate travel routes, and consider using public transit.
I look forward to our work together this quarter, all in the service of our diverse students and communities. I wish you all the best as we launch into 2019.
With warm regards,
Cheryl Roberts, Ed.D.
President
Recent Comments