News and Updates

On Wednesday night presidents of Washington’s six public colleges and universities gathered to discuss funding for higher education.  Among the concerns expressed by the presidents was the ability to retain faculty and providing access to low and middle-income students.  Business leaders from REI, Boeing and Microsoft also spoke about their concern about the future of Washington’s workforce – if the state does not have the capacity to educate its citizens, companies may be forced to search elsewhere for educated workers.

Video of the forum is available from TVW.

The Greater Good Campaign is hosting a conversation with six Washington public university and college presidents on Wednesday at Town Hall.  The talk is titled “Six Presidents: An Unprecedented Conversation on Higher Education Funding in Washington State.” Read more about it here.

Governor Gregoire announced appointments to the University of Washington Board of Regents. Read the press release here.

In November legislators visited iLabs – see what they learned about and hear what they had to say.

Legislative visit to iLabs

Washington’s chief economist, Dr. Arun Raha, announced today that he is resigning after three years effective Jan. 31.

Steve Lerch, who previously served as interim chief economic before Raha came on board, will fill the position temporarily during the search for a replacement.

More details are available from The Seattle Times, Tacoma News Tribune and PublicCola.

Yesterday The Seattle Times published an article about a new report on higher education in Washington state.  The report focuses on the number of Washington students graduating college and concluded that the system does not produce enough bachelor’s degrees. You can read the article here.

The press release, executive summary and full report are available from the Institute for Research on Higher Education.

The Washington state Legislature opened a new session today.

Throughout the 60-day session current budget information will be available from the Office of Planning and Budgeting via OPBlog . Check here for updates.

Information about UW and our legislative message can be found on the Office of External Affairs site.

Curious about what it means to adopt a bill? Or what “bumping” means? How about the hopper?

Check out the TNT’s guide to the Washington legislature’s lingo.

State Senator Margarita Prentice (D, 11th District) confirmed that she will not seek re-election in 2012. Prentice has served in the state senate for 20 years – this is her fifth term.

Read more from the Renton Reporter and PubliCola.

We invite you to enjoy our year-end video, which celebrates 150 years of innovation and creativity and demonstrates our spirit of hope for the future.