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News and Updates

News and Updates

UW wins national award for LEAN implementation

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It was announced this week that the University of Washington is one of two winners of the 2013 National Consortium for Continuous Improvement in Higher Education (NCCI) “Leveraging Excellence Award.”

The award recognizes best practices that have had broad impact within the higher education community.

In a statement from NCCI, the group details UW’s Finance and Facilities implementation of LEAN on campus:

Since January 2010, Finance & Facilities (F2) has deployed process improvement extensively, using Lean across all units in its 1,350-employee organization. Complementary goals of high employee engagement and dramatic performance gains have netted an over-400-percent return on investment, and over 12,000 employee ideas.

Lean Value-Stream Mapping, popularized as a sort of project-management launch techniques, is actually the entry-point to learning a work way-of-life at F2, where clear goals, visual management, idea systems, and daily huddles are simultaneously improving performance and team dynamics.

The award will be presented at the NCCI annual meeting in Indianapolis in July.

Read more at UW Today.

President Young in Spokane for meetings with region’s business and community leaders

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President Michael Young was in Spokane yesterday for meetings with local business and civic leaders.

President Young Spokane Pearson Packaging 5-20-13
President Young tours Pearson Packaging Systems.

Among other events, he spoke at a luncheon hosted by Greater Spokane Incorporated (GSI). In his remarks to the group, President Young highlighted UW’s growing impacts in the region, and discussed how the university’s cutting-edge research benefits the state economy.

Topics of conversation also included the growing range of UW education programs in local K-12 schools, and the UW’s enduring 40-year plus WWAMI program that provides medical education in Eastern Washington.

Later in the day, he toured Pearson Packaging Systems on Spokane’s West Plains with the company’s President & CEO Michael Senske.

Senske is a UW alum (’93), and the incoming Chairman of GSI.

New Chancellor named for UW Bothell

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Katherine Long of the Seattle Times reports on the New York technology leader selected to head UW Bothell as its next Chancellor:

Bjong Wolf Yeigh, professor and president of the State University of New York Institute of Technology (SUNYIT), will be the next UW-Bothell chancellor if approved by the Board of Regents. He will replace Kenyon Chan, who is stepping down to pursue his own scholarly work.

Yeigh has been president of SUNYIT, the only institute of technology at SUNY, since 2008. During his tenure, the campus received $15.5 million in capital grants for cybertechnology and nanotechnology, and led the effort to gain two rounds of funding for regional economic development projects totaling $119 million, according to the UW.

In a statement announcing Dr. Yeigh’s selection as the next Chancellor of UW Bothell, UW President Michael K. Young said:

“Dr. Yeigh has been a force of innovation and change throughout his career, particularly in positions of academic leadership. He has left a trail of success everywhere he has been, and we are very excited to have him join the University of Washington and lead our dynamic campus at Bothell as it continues to grow and develop.”

In terms of Dr. Yeigh’s academic background, he holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering science from Dartmouth, a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford and a master’s and doctorate in civil engineering and operations research from Princeton.

Read more about Dr. Bjong Wolf Yeigh in UW Today.

Everett Herald: Higher ed remains the key

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On its Sunday (May 19) opinion page, the Everett Herald published an editorial making the case that higher education is key to the state’s economy. The editorial opens with this point:

The mainspring for landing the Boeing 777X in Washington is higher ed and addressing the skills gap in engineering and technology. The best social program for self-sufficiency, the best business strategy for curtailing unemployment and goosing the economy, is higher ed.

The editorial goes on to cite a range of data that points to the need to reinvest in higher education in our state:

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Washington ranks 37th in public bachelors’ degrees produced per 1,000. Washington falls to 49th in participation in public graduate education. The state also sits, 49 out of 50, in total education funding per student. At UCLA, in a state that defines budget austerity, per-student funding is $11,850 compared to $6,751 at the UW.

For a generation in Washington, the cost (or funding per student) has remained flat. As state support nosedived, tuition ticked up to bridge the divide, pricing out many low and middle-income kids. In 2013, even after four years of double-digit tuition spikes, funding per student at places like the UW is $3,000 less (!) than it was in 2008.

We know the solution. Washington should appropriate $225 million to freeze resident undergrad tuition for the next two years, to make college a manageable option for middle class students. Student financial aid must be fully funded. And boosting capacity in engineering and computer science to align with student demand, a proposal floated by the Washington Roundtable, is the low-hanging strategy to remedy the skills crisis.

Read more.

The Daily: Balancing the budget

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The Daily, May 14, 2013
The Daily, May 14, 2013 Photo: dailyuw.com

Today’s front-page story in The Daily breaks down the House and Senate budget proposals being considered in Olympia.

The story tackles a number of topics that lawmakers are confronting in budget negotiations this special session, from levels of state support to tuition-setting, and a proposed 20 percent international student surcharge to computer science & engineering program funding.

President Michael K. Young, Angie Weiss, director of the ASUW Office of Government Relations, Melanie Mayock, vice president of the UW Graduate and Professional Student Senate (GPSS), Xinglu Yao, an international student at the UW from China, and Margaret Shepherd director of UW State Relations are quoted.

Special Session begins today

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After a two-week break following its adjournment April 28, the Washington State Legislature is set to begin  Special Session today (May 13).

The News Tribune reports that the first week of the 30-day session so far appears light on the legislative front, and mainly entails budget negotiators meeting to hash out agreement on a state budget. Schedules could change quickly, however, and some committees are set to meet later in the week.

The Associated Press reports that budget writers met a few times during the two week break, but no deal has yet been reached.

In addition to working on the state budget, the Governor has called on state lawmakers to work on a range of policy bills that didn’t make it out during the Regular Session, and to also focus on putting together a statewide transportation package.

Stay tuned to the blog for more updates!

Governor Inslee signs higher education operating efficiencies legislation

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Gov. Inslee signs H.B. 1736
Gov. Inslee signs H.B. 1736 Photo: Washington State Legislative Support Services

On Friday (May 10), Governor Jay Inslee signed HB 1736, sponsored by Representatives Hans Zeiger, Larry Seaquist, Larry Haler, Gerry Pollet, Cindy Ryu, David Sawyer, Steve Bergquist, Chad Magendanz, and Jessyn Farrell.ŸŸ

The central goal of the legislation is to enhance the efficiency of higher education institutions by better coordinating and streamlining certain state reporting requirements. The bill directs the Office of Financial Management, higher education institutions, and several state agencies to review reporting requirements, and report recommendations for changes by December 2013.

The bill was successfully amended in the State Senate to include a proposal from earlier legislation authored by Representative Marcus Riccelli, which allows for student advisory committees to be formed at each four-year institution of higher education. The purpose of the committees will be to advise and assist the administration of the institution on issues that directly affect students’ ability to access and succeed in their educational programs.

Among other provisions, the bill also allows institutions of higher education and state higher education agencies to use or accept secure electronic signatures.

The Olympian: Higher education a smart investment in state’s future

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The Olympian published an editorial today supporting reinvestment in higher education, and noting recent remarks given by President Young:

[W]e hope lawmakers will consider the remarks made by University of Washington President Michael Young at the Thurston County Chamber luncheon Wednesday. Young, who met earlier with The Olympian’s editorial board, laid out a convincing argument for increasing, not decreasing, the state’s investment in affordable higher education.

 

During a recent tour of countries in Asia, the UW president said he saw an urgency building in Korea, Japan and Taiwan to invest heavily in their higher education systems. Those countries see education and university-based research as the keys to America’s innovative and entrepreneurial advantages. In the long run, it’s the only model that works.

 

…

To retain our position as the world’s leader in innovation and science we must not let our investment in higher education stagnate. Investing in Washington’s higher education system today makes sense if we value sustained prosperity for all.

Read more.