Tools for Transformation

Funded Proposals

The UW Center at Heritage College:
Strengthening Outreach to the Yakima Valley

Office of Educational Partnerships

The University of Washington Office of Educational Partnerships, in collaboration with Heritage College, will establish a UW Center on the main Heritage campus in Toppenish, Washington. The Center will fuel the extension of academic and outreach programs to prospective students, K-12 audiences, the Yakama Indian Nation and other educationally isolated communities throughout the Yakima Valley. Over time, this joint UW/Heritage College venture will enlarge the pipeline through which prospective students from underrepresented groups access higher education programs and support services. This strategy also provides a model for heightened UW Involvement in underserved rural communities statewide.

Progress Report, August 2000

The UW @ Heritage College opened its doors in the winter of 2000 on the main Heritage campus in Toppenish, Washington. A grant from the UW Tools for Transformation fund, coupled with a gift from the Microsoft Corporation, made it possible to establish the UW @ Heritage, which houses a computer classroom, known as the Digital Learning Center, and a UW information office. The facility is staffed by a full-time director. As a point of presence for the University in the Yakima Valley, the UW @ Heritage promotes technology-supported teaching and learning, research, and outreach programs for Valley students, educators, and local communities. It supports collaboration between Heritage College and UW faculty and staff in order to help Valley communities attain their educational and economic aspirations.

About Heritage
Heritage College is a small four-year independent liberal arts college located in the Yakima Valley. The College serves a rural multicultural population, which is educationally isolated and underrepresented in traditional post-secondary educational institutions. Heritage serves the highest percentage of Latinos (31%), many whom are from farm-worker families, and Native Americans (20%) of any four-year educational institution in the state.

UW@ Heritage Activity Summary: January-June 2000
The UW @ Heritage has hosted a wide range of activities during its first six months of operation:

Outreach activities encompassed faculty, students and staff from Heritage College and the UW, as well as the Yakama Indian Nation and other Yakima Valley community members. UW@ Heritage staff met with faculty and admissions staff from the UW Evans School of Public Affairs, the Schools of Public Health & Community Medicine and Social Work, and Educational Outreach, as well as staff from the Office of Minority Affairs, Institute for K-12 Leadership and other departments. At Heritage College, outreach has included discussions with faculty from the Business Department, Math and Science, Computer Science, Social Work, Education, and English. Additionally, several UW admissions representatives have used the Center to meet with Heritage students interested in UW graduate and professional programs.

Faculty Development seminars were conducted for Heritage College faculty by the UW Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology. These sessions have exposed Heritage faculty to UW instructional technology resources while providing training on web teaching tools via UWired’s Catalyst web-site. An initial needs assessment of Heritage College faculty’s technology interests has been conducted and is being used to customize future faculty development sessions.

Heritage faculty and community educators have used the Digital Learning Center for technology- supported Teaching activities. The Center offers high-speed connectivity and software applications not otherwise available at Heritage College, and thus provides Heritage faculty with a new set of tools for enhancing their courses and outreach activities. A Heritage business instructor used the DLC to teach students how to use Office 2000 business applications; he also used the Center’s web-based resources to teach about current economic fluctuations and market conditions. In another class, the Yakama Indian Nation used the DLC to teach staff to use Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for mapping tribal lands. Finally, a Heritage College program is using the Center to teach migrant farm- workers to use the Internet as they prepare to obtain their GED.

Future Plans
During the next six months, the UW @ Heritage will continue to expand its outreach, faculty development, teaching, and research activities. These will include: developing student recruitment programs for UW graduate and professional schools, working with faculty to increase technology fluency among Yakima Valley students and educators, and pursuing external funding to support UW@ Heritage educational and technology access programs.

Tools for Transformation Funded Proposals

The Provost's Office
provost@u.washington.edu
Modified: September 14, 2000