The Seattle Central Griot - February 6, 2020
A message from the President
If you teach at Seattle Central College, you have probably noticed that many of our students this year seem younger.
You are not wrong – we are in the middle of a shift in our student population, thanks to the popularity of the Running Start program. Next year, we expect that population to grow by at least 5 percent.
We are also scheduled to see the first large class of the expanded Seattle Promise program. As of the end of January, the program had received more than 1,254 applications from the 17 high schools in the city. Of those, 545 expressed an interest in attending Seattle Central College.
This shift in our student population will require us to adjust the way we serve these students. Some changes have been fairly obvious, such as the redesign of the Summer Bridge program.
Other changes will be more targeted. Faculty will need to rethink how we teach classes, and how to make learning expectations clear to students unfamiliar with college. Staff in student services will have to navigate situations like the restrictions of working with minors, the lack of financial literacy of younger students, and the conduct issues that come up between younger students and older peers. Together with our sister colleges at North and South, we are designing new trainings for faculty and staff to address these issues. We will be releasing details of this effort soon.
In the meantime, I encourage you to research these issues on your own, and to consider how we can adapt to better serve a younger audience.
Sincerely,
Sheila Edwards Lange, PhD
President, Seattle Central College
News
Seattle Central College earns national transformation award
Seattle Central College has been awarded the inaugural Eduardo Padrón Award for Institutional Transformation.
The award recognizes community colleges that have undertaken comprehensive, planned efforts to advance a commitment to prepare students for lives of engaged citizenship, embrace place-based responsibilities to contribute to the health and strength of our communities, use the full capacity of the institution to challenge social and economic inequalities that threaten our democratic future, and undertake this work through mutually respectful partnerships.
The award will be formally presented at the Campus Compact Impact Awards Celebration on March 29 at the University of Washington.
Budget forum explains Seattle Central’s financial situation
We held a college-wide budget kick-off forum on Wednesday, January 29, to provide updates on this year’s budget and to share the process of developing the budget for the 2020-2021 academic year.
The presentation covered the effects of lower enrollments on our financial stability, especially the drop of international student enrollments, and how the college will work to mitigate the lost revenue.
For more details, check out the slide show of the presentation.
South Annex land sold
Seattle Central College has closed the sale of the South Annex on East Pine Street to Capitol Hill Housing for $9 million.
The land – covering 15,360 square feet - currently houses the Booth Building, the International Programs building, and a parking lot recently operated by the college. Seattle Central College identified the land as surplus in May 2017, and the buildings there would require extensive renovation to make them viable.
YouthCare and Capitol Hill Housing have proposed to build low-income housing and an education and employment academy for homeless youth and young adults.
Affordable housing opportunity
The Jackson Apartments, located at 2410 Jackson St., will start pre-leasing units this spring. The building will feature more than 100 income and rent-restricted units through the City of Seattle’s MFTE program. The project is scheduled to officially open early summer, but some units will be available for move-in as early as April.
To qualify for one of the affordable units, household income would need to fall between 65 - 80 percent of the King County Area Median Income.
For more details, visit https://jacksonseattle.com/.
Cold and flu season – prevention tips
We are in the middle of a heavy cold and flu season, which has been made more urgent by the rise of the new coronavirus in China.
With all respiratory infections, the best protection is to take basic precautions:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
- If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
For more information on the current risks, visit https://www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/Coronavirus