REASON TO CHEER | Hazen graduate Errin Williams is getting used to being a Sea Gal [3]
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RALLY! | Hazen scored three times in the final three minutes to come back and beat Renton on Tuesday. [Sports 15]
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FRIDAY, OCT. 3, 2014
Renton Technical College begins search for next president First forum featured input from staff and administrators as college looks to replace the retiring Steve Hanson BY TRACEY COMPTON tcompton@rentonreporter.com
Renton Technical College hosted the first of its community forums for the search for a new college president last week, as current President Steve Hanson is set to retire June 30, 2015. The school hosted two sessions, in the morning and afternoon, to capture community input. The morning’s session was well-attended with mostly staff and administrators. Some of the top priorities addressed by the
audience for the school to focus on were the college’s image, morale, pay, parking and the president’s ability to collaborate with industry leaders and big business to name a few. Donna Duncan, in enrollment services, has been employed at RTC for 16 years and said lately, morale needs to improve. “That is, for me, one of the biggest issues that needs to be addressed,” Duncan said. “Because if you’re going to be at a place for as long as I’ve been here, you need to enjoy working here.” Some recent turnovers at the top seem to have upset the balance in her department, as she said the school needs to “build our morale and get people loving what they do.” Susan Palmer, RTC chairperson of the Board of Trustees, said there have been some staffing challenges.
“People have gotten better jobs, better pay,” she said. “And that’s what I’ve heard the reasoning is other than regular staff issues.” Palmer did state that pay is an issue the school hopes to address with the new president, how are they going to hold on to staff and is there a way to increase pay for current staff. Human Resources Director Lesley Hogan said that technical colleges are often the training ground for community colleges and universities for staff. She described a trend that doesn’t sound specific to just RTC. “People leave our institution and get those better, bigger, great opportunities, which you never want to hold people back, but it’s also one of those things where we’re going to have to think of how do we transition to one of [ more RTC page 11 ]
Power strip blamed for Monday house fire BY DEAN A. RADFORD dradford@rentonreporter.com
Ready to run More than 100 runners, including members of the Renton Fire Department, who ran in full gear, and several who ran in costume, raised $3,500 for Washington Special Olympics this past weekend during the second Run From the Cops 5K fundraiser. BRIAN BECKLEY, Renton Reporter
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A family of four, including two children, was displaced early Monday morning by a fire that heavily damaged their home, according to the Renton Fire Department. The fire started when a power strip drew too much electricity, overheated and caught fire, according to fire officials. “The inexpensive power strip did not appear to have circuit protection and ran an entertainment system, including a television, video games and other components,” said Deputy Fire Chief Erik Wallgren. The fire had already spread quickly when fire crews arrived at about 3 a.m. at the home in the 10300 block of Southeast 185th Place, according to Wallgren. The family had escaped from the house before fire crews arrived. The American Red Cross was called in to provide a place to stay. Firefighters took a defensive strategy because of the fire’s extent and in order to protect other structures, he said. The loss is estimated at $450,000. No one was injured.