This afternoon Evergreen presented before the House Higher Education. In a focused presentation before the Committee, Provost Michael Zimmerman and Vice President Wendy Endress addressed the question posed by the Committee –  How will the College address the goals identified by the Washington Student Achievement Council in the Ten-Year Roadmap?

In December WASAC released a ten-year strategic plan for investing in and promoting access to higher education. The plan established two educational attainment goals for 2023.

• All adults in Washington will have a high school diploma or equivalent.
• At least 70 percent of Washington adults will have a postsecondary credential.

In the presentation Evergreen spoke to the College’s work to reach out to targeted populations to expand higher education enrollments and success. In particular Evergreen recognized the College’s work focused on expanding access to higher education to working adults and veterans, college-pipeline programs, and incarcerated youth.

In addition Evergreen highlighted specific retention initiatives that the College has implemented and show promising results, but will require additional state investment. Among the initiatives highlighted in the presentation included expansion of student orientation programming, reduced class size, the academic statement, and the Summer Undergraduate Research Program.

Evergreen was joined by colleagues from the other public baccalaureate institutions. On Friday, the Committee will hear from the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges and the independent colleges of Washington.