October 2014
TO:
Student Services Councils
FROM:
Student Services Team
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC)
RE:
2014 Fall State Board Report
ANNOUNCEMENT
LEGISLATIVE NEWS
2014 Legislation of Note
SSB 5669: Signed into law. The statute will provide for awarding academic credit for military
training applicable to the student's certificate or degree requirements. A military credit policy
survey was completed and will be forwarded to the Instruction Commission for review and
next steps, prior to the December 31, 2015 effective date.
SB 5318: Signed into law and in effect since July 1. The statute removed the one-year waiting period for
veterans or active members of the military and spouse and/or dependent(s) by expanding the definition of
"resident student," for purposes of eligibility for resident tuition. Recently passed and signed federal statute
currently being reviewed and compared to state law. Potential changes to come via a bill this legislative
session.
SB 6358: Signed into law and in effect since June 14. Requires institutions of higher education to provide
certain financial aid information to admitted and prospective students. Requires community and technical
colleges to provide financial aid application due dates and information on whether or not financial aid will be
awarded on a rolling basis to their admitted students at the time of acceptance.
SB 6523: Signed into law and in effect since June 12. Expanded the definition of “resident student” for State
Need Grant eligibility by including “Dreamers.” Also adds $5 million to the State Need Grant allocation.
DREAMer Training Days are noted below.
ESSB 6002: $410,000 was appropriated for the Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement
Community College Program (MCCP) to extend the current pilots at six colleges where federal NSF funds
are set to expire in 2015: Columbia Basin, Edmonds, Highline, Olympic, Seattle Central, and Yakima Valley.
MCCP aims to increase the number of underrepresented (African American, Native American, Latino, and
Pacific Islander/Hawaiian) community college students who successfully transfer to four-year institutions and
earn STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) bachelor’s degrees. For more information, go
to http://depts.washington.edu/mesaweb/mccp/
Fall State Board Report
October 2014
Page 2
Student Services Decision Package
One feature of SBCTC’s 2015-17 Decision Package proposes to strengthen the current efforts of academic,
completion and career counseling in the CTCs. The request would fund an increase in staff and support the
implementation of strategies to increase the academic and career preparedness of first year students, improve
persistence and momentum of students toward completion and entry into the workplace. The biennial request
is for $17,952,000. The funds would be distributed to the campuses for staffing, program development, and
leveraging of technology to connect students with career resources such as labor market and occupational
information and career assessment tools. Colleges would create student cohort groups using a common
assessment designed to identify students with low career confidence. The students served will complete the
same assessment at the end of their first year (in spring term). It is anticipated that students will demonstrate
significantly higher career confidence and contribute to an increase in the first-year fall-to-spring retention
rate, to 67 percent in 2015-16 and 69 percent in 2016-17.
POLICY UPDATES
Awarding Prior Credit
Instruction Commission approved a system-wide approach to defining, coding, and standardized transcripting
prior learning credit. The policy includes credit awards via Testing (AP, IB, CLEP, etc…), Experiential Learning
(Portfolio) and Extra-Institutional (occupational crosswalks). The approved plan is currently in final
configuration stages for PeopleSoft conversion.
Competency-Based Education Projects
System Shared Competency-Based Business Transfer Degree: System colleges are developing a completely
online, openly licensed, competency-based business transfer degree program. The program will be designed so
students can work through an 18-credit transfer degree at their own pace, taking advantage of prior
experience and college credit where appropriate.
Columbia Basin College will hire the first instructors for this program, and other pilot colleges will be able to
enroll students using the system shared-course programming. The program will be available to students
starting January 2015.
The CBE blog will serve as a repository for the development documents for the pilot institutions, and is
designed for college staff rather than for students. It is managed by project staff.
Competency-Based Degree Program – Update Fall 2014
List of webinars and system meetings: CBE Pilot Conversations – Fall 2014
Reverse Transfer Project
Central Washington University, Eastern Washington University, Washington State University, and Western
Governors’ University have partnered with a dozen of our colleges. The pilot project team begins planning in
November.
Fall State Board Report
October 2014
Page 3
Smarter Balance Exams
Washington 11th graders who score at a college-ready level on new assessments this spring will automatically
place into college-level math and English language classes when they enroll in college, thanks to a statewide
agreement announced by Washington’s community and technical colleges and public four-year universities.
The agreement applies to students who score at the top two levels – levels four and three – on the new
“Smarter Balanced Assessments” that will be given to all Washington 11th graders this spring. Those students
will be able to skip the standard placement tests. Full press release details
TECHNOLOGY
Tacoma Community College and the Spokane District Colleges continue to lead the way in the system
conversion. Follow the progress at ctcLink Connect.
COLLEGE BOUND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
The third class of College Bound Scholarship students arrived on your campus this fall. As a reminder, the
College Bound Scholarship students receive college tuition and a yearly $500 book allowance. To qualify as a
College Bound scholar, student must have a GPA of 2.0 or higher.
Begin recruiting the next class now. The Washington Student Achievement Council can provide you with an
EXCEL spreadsheet the following information about the College Bound Scholarship students in your area:



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Name (Last, First)
Mailing address
Email address
High School Attending
Please contact Chris Richmond, christinar@wsac.wa.gov or 360.753-7785, for the list of College Bound
students.
LEGISLATIVE INTERNSHIP PROGRAM
State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) office of Legislative Affairs is implanting an
Internship opportunity for two-year college students to learn about the legislative process, gain professional
work experience, and earn college credit towards a certificate or degree.
Based at the State Capitol in Olympia, interns will be responsible for tracking legislative proposals, advocating
for two-year college student priorities, and interacting with elected officials. Work includes attending and
participating in legislative committee hearings, monitoring floor action, and ensuring community and technical
college (CTC) students are represented throughout the legislative session.
The internship will commence at the beginning of January and last through the end of the regular legislative
session. The number of hours worked per week will be determined by college credit requirements.
Students will complete an application package and submit a signed copy of the learning agreement, including
an essay, to register for the internship and academic credit. Interested students should contact their Career
Development Center or a faculty advisor at least one quarter before serving in an internship. The internship
Fall State Board Report
October 2014
Page 4
Application and Learning Agreement is available on the Council for Union and Student Programs (CUSP)
website.
WORKING FAMILIES SUCCESS NETWORK (WFSN)
Achieving the Dream Announces the Selection of Washington Colleges for the National Community College
Expansion of the Working Families Success Network Strategy
Washington community colleges commit to implementing the WFSN strategy to support more low-income
students and their families achieve their academic and financial goals
Achieving the Dream today announced a national community college expansion of the Working Families
Success Network (WFSN) strategy. The State Board for Community and Technical Colleges partnered with four
community colleges – Big Bend, Clark, Highline and Walla Walla – to help implement the strategy to promote
postsecondary completion for students whose economic challenges can thwart their academic and career
goals. The strategy is used at more than 100 sites in the nation to help low-income individuals and families
achieve financial stability.
The WFSN strategy involves intentionally integrating and sequencing three distinct but related services:
Education and employment advancement—education, job readiness, training, and placement;
Income and work supports—access to student financial aid, public benefits, tax credits, and free tax
assistance; and
Financial services and asset building—financial education and coaching linked to affordable products and
services to help families build self-sufficiency, stabilize their finances, and become more economically
competitive.
REPORTS
The Applied Baccalaureate programs continue to grow and supply Washington State with both needed
qualified employees as well as addressing the statewide baccalaureate attainment goals. The SBCTC research
staff completed a study to show how the outcomes align with SBCTC’s policy goals.

Bachelor of Applied Sciences: Policy and Outcomes Evaluation (Research Report 14-14)
UPCOMING CONFERENCES & EVENTS
Gear Up West 2014
DREAMer Training Days
October 26-28, 2014
The Westin Seattle
Eastern Region
October 14, 2014 - Yakima Valley
Best Practices Exchange
North Puget Sound Region
October 23, 2014 - Skagit Valley
October 28, 2014
McGavick Center, Clover Park Technical College
Sexual Assault Prevention & Response Conference
October 30, 2014
University of Washington, Husky Union Building
Seattle, WA
Eastern Puget Sound Region
Friday, October 24, 2014 – Bellevue
South Puget Sound Region
Friday, October 31, 2014 - Green River-Kent Station
Fall State Board Report
October 2014
Page 5
Faculty & Staff of Color Conference
November 5-7, 2014
Hilton Conference Center
Vancouver, WA
CUSP Student Legislative Academy
November 21-22, 2014
Olympia, WA