Community

Partnerships

The college strives to always create partnerships, rather than competition, in order to best serve students. For example, the WorkFirst and Worker Retraining programs have created partnerships with three other local colleges where programs are marketed in an 'honest broker' fashion. Staff from Cascadia attends introductory sessions at the WorkSource offices to market the Worker Retraining program to newly laid-off workers. At this time we are representing all local colleges as partners and make referrals as appropriate. The vision behind this strategy is to provide each student with the most appropriate program that best meets their needs.

Another example of Cascadia's partnerships is a literacy brochure that was produced by a state partnership grant. This brochure includes three local colleges and a community based organization. Again, the purpose is to provide the most appropriate training program for the student, whether it be basic English skills, vocational training, job placement assistance or a transfer program.

Cascadia provided an ESL class to incumbent workers at their work site. This was offered two times a week, on company time, to support continued employment and company success.

In the 2001-2002 academic year, Cascadia partnered with two public elementary schools by offering free ESL classes to the parents of second language students attending those schools. While parents were in class, their children attended art and drama workshops with volunteer students from Cascadia. Cascadia has been asked to partner with the Bothell-King County library to offer ESL classes during the Winter 2003 quarter on-site.

There have also been partnerships created within the college to give underprepared students a connection to the college regardless of their learning level. An ESL class is helping to design and create a mural in the student lounge. The class is creating pictures that will be incorporated into the mural. Also, transfer students work 1:1 with ESL and GED students in support of classroom instruction. Every quarter an ESL class is linked to a transfer class via a learning community. Most recently, a class was paired with a Biology class to learn about ecosystems and an Astronomy class to learn about galaxies.

WorkSource Bellevue Class

Cascadia is currently offering open-entry / open-exit self-paced computer classes at Bellevue WorkSource. These classes carry college credit and are taught on Cascadia's state-of-the-art laptops, which are transported three days a week from Cascadia to the WorkSource training room. The classes have been successful to date, and form an excellent "bridge" from WorkSource to the campus. Students include TANF participants and low-income job seekers wishing to learn basic computer skills. Classes offered include Keyboarding, Windows Basic, Beginning Word, Beginning Spreadsheet, and Beginning Database. These classes are marketed as a short-term customized training option leading directly to employment.

Our WorkSource partner says "Cascadia's on-site training opportunities offered at WorkSource Bellevue enhances the customer's ability to access hands on learning in a familiar environment. Going from job seeker to student in a partnered seamless system makes good sense."
Dixie Owen-Perry Operations Manager, WorkSource Bellevue

Another partner states, "WorkFirst Participants have found it difficult to compete with other job seekers because of skills gaps. WorkFirst Participants are at times intimidated at the prospect of navigating through the process of college enrollment. The partnership between Employment Security, Department of Social and Health Services, WorkSource Bellevue, and Cascadia Community College created an understanding by all partners of our participant's needs and issues. Cascadia Community College creatively addressed these issues in developing computer training in modules that are offered at the WorkSource Bellevue Office. This location is closer to most of the students allowing them to continue their job search. These modules also offer an introduction to college classes that may result in Community Education and wage progression."
Sheryl Lamb WorkFirst Supervisor, King-Eastside CSO

Learn more about the WorkSource system in Washington state at www.go2worksource.com.

HUD Grant

Cascadia Community College been contracted by King County Housing Authority (KCHA) to participate in a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Resident Opportunities and Self-Sufficiency (ROSS) grant. The College has been awarded a 3-year, $186,409 grant. The college will have access to seven KCHA housing developments (197 units) with an opportunity to eventually serve all twelve (416 units) housing developments in our service area.

The purpose of the Public Housing ROSS Program is to link services to public housing residents by providing grants for supportive services, resident empowerment activities and activities to assist residents in becoming economically self-sufficient. This program is consistent with HUD's goal to most effectively focus resources on "welfare to work." This funding gives us the opportunity to build, nurture, and sustain a community-based program with very little restrictions. Most importantly, it offers KCHA residents many supportive services, which are not otherwise available, assisting in their efforts toward achieving self-sufficiency. Some of the activities to date have been a job search workshop at one of the complexes led with the assistance of Cascadia's Employment Security co-located staff. The focus of this was helping residents to complete employment applications and resume basics for non-native English speakers.

Co-located Employment Security staff

Cascadia has a co-located Employment Security staff member who offers an array of on-site services to students. These include:

Referrals to jobs listed within the Employment Security system
Receiving and distributing employment listings
Labor Market information and guidance
Job search assistance/employment services
Acting as advocate for the student when appropriate
Contacting employers to develop job referrals for clients
Work with local agencies on behalf of WorkFirst students to provide information and referral to services in a timely manner
Work with Cascadia Community College staff to identify students needing services
Contact student on an on-going basis to help them achieve goals.

To date our co-located staff member has assisted over 200 students, most of whom have been a part of the WorkFirst and Worker Retraining programs.

Outreach Committee

An internal Outreach Committee has been formed to better coordinate recruitment strategies by the college. One of this committee's main goals is to ensure that underprepared students are targeted for the same recruitment attention as those students who are considered prepared.

View these and other exciting initiatives by clicking on the options to the left.