The Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) has prepared this analysis in collaboration with the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC), the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board (Workforce Board), and the Association of Washington Business, as part of a broad educational needs assessment outlined in RCW…

The underrepresentation of minorities from rural communities in U.S. health professions has resulted in a lack of cultural understanding and inadequate healthcare for people of color and the poor. Described is the Roots to Wings (RTW) program, a partnership between higher education institutions and Native American tribes and schools. The heart of…

The Washington State Encyclopedia of Education Data uses data from a variety of sources to present a holistic look at educational outcomes in the state organized around the Washington Student Achievement Council's Strategic Framework. The key areas addressed in the Encyclopedia are educational attainment and outcomes, state investment and…

The Covid-19 pandemic has vividly illustrated the centrality of frontline workers to the everyday functioning of the American economy and daily life. But while some articles have mentioned the high proportion of immigrant workers in these roles, there has been much less attention paid to the high number of English learners in particular. The…

The Washington legislature has requested the production of a forecast of net job openings for occupations that require higher education and training and the number of individuals who will have the education and training that is required to fill the openings. State agencies have produced to date four studies to meet the legislative mandate. All…

One of the most serious challenges facing higher education today is the erosion of academic culture--a declining sense that faculty form a community whose members reflect, deliberate, and make decisions together in the name of a shared educational vision. Our experience with Gonzaga University's Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)…

The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the current status of workforce preparation in Washington; identify high employer demand occupations, as well as fields in which academic degree production is failing to keep pace with demand; and highlight occupation fields in which students may find expanding employment opportunities. This…

This case study explored the gendered performances of five female backline classified staff members who work in non-traditional fields within a community college. More specifically, this study defined gendered behaviors at a community college, and explored how these behaviors have affected the identities of women working in non-traditional fields…

Many Latina students overcome multiple obstacles to earn university degrees. Five married Latina women with children and seasonal farmworker backgrounds are the focus of this study which is analyzed through resiliency theory to understand factors contributing to their academic resilience. Variables connected to academic success are explored and…

The Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) is required to develop a comprehensive and ongoing needs assessment process to analyze demand for additional degrees and programs [RCW 28B.76.230 (1)]. This report fulfills a portion of that mandate by focusing on employer demand on the regional level, but also includes additional information on…

There has been renewed interest in regional cooperation since the economic downturn began in late 2007. In 2012, 14 of 15 Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) states are facing dramatic cuts in their budgets, and economists are cautious about predicting exactly when the economy might begin to improve. Fortunately, the…

When the Legislature and Governor enacted House Bill 3103 in 2004, they intended to improve the quality of information available to help policymakers determine how well Washington's higher education system was meeting employer demand for skilled workers. This is the second joint report published by the three agencies in response to the 2004…

Regional cooperation is crucial in times of economic downturn. In 2011, 14 out of 15 of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) states are facing dramatic cuts in their budgets and the trend is expected to continue. Despite hard times, students and their families in the West continue to benefit from hundreds of millions of…

This report is one of several efforts designed to monitor outcomes in Washington's higher education system, and fulfills the biennial requirement that the Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) inform the higher education and fiscal committees of the legislature of progress toward goals. The portrait that emerges from this review of…

This report investigates the training and retaining of physicians for Washington. The report concludes: (1) Washington does not have a desperate overall shortage of physicians, but the state is faced with serious physician distribution problems, particularly in urban ghetto and rural areas. (2) The University of Washington's School of Medicine is…