Bill to reduce funding for Running Start students passes in the Senate Dana Montevideo, James McCraw and Nyadeng Mal Managing Editor and Reporters The Washington state Senate passed the bill on Feb. 14 that alters funding to K-12 in Washington school districts, which may substantially affect funding for Running Start students. The Senate Bill 6362 is not a budget cut. Pierce College was expecting an increase in funding to provide for Running Start students that will not be allocated through this bill. Pierce College Chancellor and Professors from local community colleges lobby at the state Capitol CEO Michele Johnson sent an on Feb. 19 for bargaining rights. Those rights are expected to be email on Feb. 16 to notify all staff approved in both the House and Senate. Dana Montevideo photo. and faculty of the bill modifying
basic education provisions. Johnson warns that the bill is “addressing the Running Start reimburse to community and technical colleges would significantly reduce the funding coming to us to support our Running Start students,” Johnson said the school district is holding back about 7 percent of funding for K-12 students. With this bill, the college will not be able to provide suitable resources to serve Running Start students, which Johnson says is the primary issue. “They want to freeze the amount where it is at right now today,” Johnson said. “This would change what has been the history of the program for 20 years.”
The bill is a response to the K-12 McCleary Decision which resulted in the state Supreme Court stating that elected lawmakers can direct public education policy. The projected rates were originally going to go up because they were tied to the funding that was going to K-12 students. The court ruled that “fundamental reforms are needed for Washington to meet its constitutional obligation to its students. Pouring more money into an outmoded system will not succeed.” Originally, the colleges were supposed to get $8,347 in fiscal year 2018-2019. In three years, based on projection, the school Continued on page 5
Search for new campus president gets underway Daniel Pollock Editor-in-Chief A president search committee for the new Pierce College Puyallup is currently reviewing candidate application packets. So far, six candidates have applied. “That (numChoi Halladay ber of applicants) is pretty typical at this point in the recruitment,” Vice President of Administrative Services Choi Halladay said. Halladay is a co-chair of the search committee; he shares the position with Chancellor Michele Johnson. The new president is scheduled to begin at Pierce on July 1. Individuals who submit application packages before a certain day in March will receive guaranteed consideration. Committee members are required to read and score each application that is submitted before this deadline. There is a chance applications submitted after this date won’t be reviewed. “We probably will continue to (read applications), but at some point you’ve got to stop,” Halladay said. After the committee narrows
the field of applicants, candidates will participate in Skype interviews. After the finalists are selected, students and community members will be welcome to participate in open forums held at the college. Halladay says there are no set times for the forums yet, as it depends on the finalists’ schedules. ASPCP President Garrett Bown and Justin Malepe, equity, diversity and inclusion senator for the Office of Student Life, represent students on the committee. “It’s wonderful, actually, that we can have a say in this and that we can help determine a President that not only represents staff and faculty but also represents the best interests of students,” Bown said. “I’m happy to be part of the committee. It makes me feel like students are being heard.” Fifteen members make up the committee, which includes faculty, classified staff, an affirmative action representative, an administrator, students, community members, human resource representatives, and Halladay and Johnson. “We’re really looking forward to having a great process and getting a great president for the Puyallup campus,” Halladay said.
The recent snowfall took both students and administrators by surprise. The college delayed the start of classes until 10 a.m. on Feb. 22-23, but officials didn’t close unlike the surrounding school districts. Teresa Josten photo
Snow-covered parking lots lead to six auto collisions Daniel Pollock Editor-in-Chief Class start times were delayed two hours due to snow storms on Feb. 22 and 23. But icy conditions led to six car collisions in the campus parking lots. Campus safety SergeantSupervisor Maureen Rickertsen says the accidents all happened on the first day. “They were just fender benders, no injuries,” Rickertsen said of the accidents.
She said the collisions were due to the icy conditions and the speed at which students were driving. Philosophy professor Katrina Winzeler witnessed one of the accidents happen as she was leaving campus on Feb. 22. “I saw one person slide right into the back end of another person’s car and they both went off the side of the road,” Winzeler said. Winzeler also had to deal with the ice in the lots.
“When I drove into campus, my car slid two different times and I lost control of it,” Winzeler said. Parking lot A was closed, as the ice hadn’t melted in shaded areas. Winzeler said she believes the campus should have been closed. “The campus was not safe at that point; it would have been in the interest of the safety of students to have been closed,” Winzeler said.