CBC AG HONORS DON SLEIGHT

AgriNorthwest CEO Don Sleight was honored recently at the Columbia Basin College Ag Barbecue for his efforts in helping redesign the CBC Agriculture program.

Sleight, president of AgriNorthwest, has been promoted to president of AgReserves Inc., the parent company of AgriNorthwest.  He will be moving to Salt Lake City, Utah.

In addition to AgriNorthwest contributing more than one third of all outside funding for the program, Sleight served as the advisor for the new program, helped develop the program’s curriculum, and invited CBC to participate on the TRIDEC Ag committee.  Sleight’s understanding of the agriculture industry and its challenges helped CBC put together a program highlighting careers needed in the Ag industry.

AgriNorthwest funded five full scholarships and paid internships over the first two years on the new program.  Sleight’s leadership led other corporations to step forward and help the new CBC Ag program.
    

Columbia Basin College is partnering with Columbia Industries to increase student recruitment for the College’s Agriculture Education program.

Marie Lathim of Columbia Industries will work as a student recruiter.  Columbia Industries also partners with various Hanford contractors for student recruitment and was interested in expanding its recruiting efforts to support the local agriculture industry.

Columbia Industries is a non-profit agency that helps people with disabilities and other barriers in finding employment.  Funding for the new Agriculture Student Recruitment program with CBC and Columbia Industries is being provided by ConAgra.  

Columbia Industries will work with CBC’s Outreach program visiting high schools in Benton and Franklin counties, and their respective science and agriculture classes to inform students of career opportunities in agriculture.  The CI/CBC partnership will also take part in local farmers’ markets, fall corn mazes, and other harvest events.  They will also work to identify potential agribusiness partners to support scholarships and summer internships for CBC Ag students.

The 27-year-old nanny will begin nursing school in September at Columbia Basin College in Pasco.

"I think I could be good at it," said Rice, of Richland. "I am looking forward to a new challenge.

"I think I would like to stay here" in the Tri-Cities, she added. "I don't think I would ever move by myself just to make more money."

Rice will join about 50 other CBC nursing students this year to form a class that local health officials say bodes well for filling expected vacancies in nursing in the Tri-Cities, which is faring better than other regions of the country in addressing a potentially critical shortage nationwide.

As baby boomers age and require more health care, more doctors, nurses and other health care providers in the same generation are retiring. Their departures are leaving many in the industry wondering who will replace them.

The country's population also is expected to grow by 24 percent in the next decade, furthering the need to find replacements for the retiring professionals.

"That there will be a critical personnel shortage is known," according to the Health Work Force Institute and the Washington State Hospital Association's 2007 Hospital Work Force Survey. "When it will occur is not."

Steve Wartman, president and chief executive officer of the national Association of Academic Health Centers, said last month that without adequate staff and students to replace doctors and nurses, the health of the nation is at stake.

But in the Tri-Cities, hospitals and colleges have been working together for nearly a decade to address the skill shortage. And so far, it seems to be working.

"I would never say we have the staffing dilemma fixed," said Jeff Clark, Kadlec Medical Center's vice president of human resources. "But we are in a much better position in this community."

There were 40 vacant staff nurse positions in the bi-county area in 2007, according to the state Work Force Institute. There were about 1,700 registered nurses in the two counties in 2006, with about 400 more expected to be needed by 2016, state data says.

The 2007 average vacancy rate for nurses at the three Tri-City hospitals was 5 percent, with Lourdes Medical Center's rate about the same as the state vacancy rate of 7.2 percent. The state figure doubled for nurse practitioners, according to the Hospital Work Force Survey.

"The shortage here is more moderate, but it's still present," said Russ Keefer, Kennewick General Hospital's chief human resource officer.

There are about 51,000 nurses statewide. By 2016, the state Employment Security Department estimates nearly 11,000 more registered nurses will be needed.

Nationally, a 2007 projection that anticipates a shortfall of 340,000 registered nurses by 2020 is lower than previous estimates, but still suggests worrisome shortages.

About 3 million registered nurses are expected to be needed in the country by 2016, almost 500,000 more nurses than there were nationwide in 2006.

The country also could be short as many as 200,000 doctors by 2020, according to state medical societies.

"The marketplace has a way, so huge deficiencies in a particular job category don't really come about," Keefer said. "That's what we're going to see in the next 10 to 15 years."

The state Hospital Work Force Survey found that the largest number of physician vacancies were in family practice, internal medicine and pediatrics, with more than 20 people needed to fill open positions in each specialty in the Tri-City area.

There were nearly 450 physicians and surgeons in the two counties in 2003, the latest year statistics were available. About 550 physicians are expected to be working in the two counties by 2013, according to a report of compiled state and national data.

There were seven physician vacancies at area hospitals in 2007, the state Work Force Institute study said.

Nurses, physical therapists and pharmacists have been identified as "big areas" of need in the Tri-Cities, said Curt Freed, dean of CBC's health sciences and chair of the Benton-Franklin Community Health Alliance's workforce development committee.

"Those continue to just be huge needs for the community," he said. "I don't know that we're closer to solving that issue."

But CBC, Washington State University Tri-Cities and the hospitals have been working to put a dent in nursing vacancy and identify other needs.

The Community Health Alliance, which includes the hospitals' chief executive officers as members of its board of directors, decided to address the impending shortage several years ago and conducted communitywide surveys.

The Community Health Alliance's work force committee is preparing to do another survey of health care work force needs in the bi-county area, and will have a better idea of the needs when it is complete, Freed said.

The 2002 survey revealed that CBC and WSU Tri-Cities needed to increase their number of nursing school graduates to a total of 100 a year. Since the study, both schools have been working to graduate nearly 50 nursing students yearly.

"That's what we've been working toward," Freed said. "We've heard that the need is less intensified. People usually continue to nod and say, yep, we're headed in the right direction."

Community cooperation has contributed to the Tri-Cities' optimism about finding replacement skilled health care workers. The hospitals have shied away from poaching doctors and nurses from each other -- as many hospitals nationwide do -- and say they have concentrated on recruiting from schools and outside the community.

Poaching "doesn't fix anybody's problem," Clark said. "The three hospitals have worked very cooperatively and have been very cordial. All three hospitals are doing more than other hospitals in the country to address staffing."

In fact, human resource directors from the three hospitals meet at least once quarterly to identify community needs and ways to address them. A more recent collaboration resulted in the creation of CBC's surgical tech program.

"The community is going to be fine" if all the hospitals contribute to recruitment, Clark said.

Dr. Rod Coler, who retired in 2006 after practicing in the Tri-Cities for 48 years, remembers when providers came to the area almost coincidentally.

"Largely it was done as a doctor coming through the community," he said. Now, "Recruitment goes on, but it's mostly moved to the hospitals. In the past five or six years, the hospitals have been intensely recruiting."

"We want work force development to be more stable," said Deb Heintz, executive director of the Prosser Economic Development Association.

Representatives from CBC, the city, Prosser School District, Prosser Memorial Hospital, ConAgra, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Lamb Weston, WorkSource Columbia Basin and the Washington State University agriculture station attended the meeting.

Each got the chance to talk about their industries and needs for the future.

Making sure workers have access to trade skills training and reinforcing good work habits for younger employees are two important steps, Heintz said.

CBC President Rich Cummins said the meeting was the first of many to develop long-term strategies to meet the educational needs of people all over Benton and Franklin counties.

One issue discussed was facilities.

Offering more programming in existing space is a likely possibility, and Cummins gave the example of using the high school's welding equipment.

Adding additional classroom space also might be a possibility down the line, he said.

"If you want to be in a community, you have to have a place to be," Cummins said.

And since gas prices are still hovering near $4 a gallon, making a 35-mile commute to the Tri-Cities difficult for some potential students, "we want to figure out how to reduce that as a barrier to higher education," Cummins said.

Ray Tolcacher, superintendent of the Prosser School District, called the meeting "phenomenal."

"I'm really encouraged," he said.

"A lot of people would like to have higher education here," he said, and though most teachers already have college degrees, continuing education opportunities are important.

"I think it's going to really increase our quality of life," Tolcacher said.

Heintz said she'd like to keep the momentum going by starting soon to work on specific ideas from the meeting.

Cummins will continue to meet with community leaders and employers in other cities to hear the ideas and needs, he said.

Learn a new skill, or refine your knowledge of wine pouring, tasting and handling by taking a Wine Tasting Room Attendant course at Columbia Basin College.

The course is designed to prepare students to work in where wine is served or tasted, including wineries and restaurants. The major topics to be covered include the history of wine, major varietals, pouring and tasting techniques, pairing wine and food, plus the legal issues associated with wine service.

To complete the course students must attend classes in the fall and winter quarters. The classes will be from 5 to 9:30 p.m., Mondays, from Sept. 15 to Dec. 8, and 5 to 8 p.m., Mondays, from Jan. 4 to March 23.

Master Sommelier Angelo Tavernaro of Prosser, a certified wine educator, will be the instructor.

Cost for Washington residents is $340 for fall quarter, $260 for winter quarter. Out-of-state residents will pay $473 and $360. There's also a $60 lab fee for each class.

For more information or to register, contact Donna Campbell, Dean Professional Development, 542-4806, or e-mail dcampbell@columbiabasin.edu.

“We want workforce development to be more stable,” said Deb Heintz, executive director of the Prosser Economic Development Association.

Representatives from CBC, the city, Prosser School District, Prosser Memorial Hospital, ConAgra, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Lamb Weston, WorkSource Columbia Basin and the Washington State University agriculture station attended the meeting.

Each got the chance to talk about their industries and needs for the future.

Making sure workers have access to trade skills training and reinforcing good work habits for younger employees are two important steps, Heintz said.

CBC President Rich Cummins said the meeting was the first of many to develop long-term strategies to meet the educational needs of people all over Benton and Franklin counties.

Ray Tolcacher, superintendent of the Prosser School District, called the meeting “phenomenal.” “I’m really encouraged,” he said.

“A lot of people would like to have higher education here,” he said, and though most teachers already have college degrees, continuing education opportunities are important.

“I think it’s going to really increase our quality of life,” Tolcacher said.

For the full story, see Thursday's Herald and tricityherald.com.
By Ingrid Stegemoeller, Herald staff writer
Prosser A handful major Prosser employers met with the new president of Columbia Basin College today to talk about employment and education needs in their industries.

“We want workforce development to be more stable,” said Deb Heintz, executive director of the Prosser Economic Development Association.

Representatives from CBC, the city, Prosser School District, Prosser Memorial Hospital, ConAgra, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Lamb Weston, WorkSource Columbia Basin and the Washington State University agriculture station attended the meeting.

Each got the chance to talk about their industries and needs for the future.

Making sure workers have access to trade skills training and reinforcing good work habits for younger employees are two important steps, Heintz said.

CBC President Rich Cummins said the meeting was the first of many to develop long-term strategies to meet the educational needs of people all over Benton and Franklin counties.

Ray Tolcacher, superintendent of the Prosser School District, called the meeting “phenomenal.” “I’m really encouraged,” he said.

“A lot of people would like to have higher education here,” he said, and though most teachers already have college degrees, continuing education opportunities are important.

“I think it’s going to really increase our quality of life,” Tolcacher said.

For the full story, see Thursday's Herald and tricityherald.com.

Geoff Smith of Kennewick, left, gets advice from Mike Black at the end of a recent veterans resource panel at Columbia Basin College.(Richard Dickin/Tri-City Herald)

The jungles of Vietnam are a long way from the sands of Iraq or the mountains of Afghanistan.

But in the Tri-Cities, veterans of those faraway wars have found enough in common to support each other as they readjust to life on the home front.

In particular, two veterans who served in Vietnam and Southeast Asia have been offering job assistance, educational advice and support to about six veterans of service in Iraq, Afghanistan and Bosnia for the past six months.

It's one of many ways the Tri-Cities' veteran community is coming together to pool resources and meet their respective needs.

Many of the newer veterans don't realize the variety of options they have or how to tap into the numerous resources available to them, said the mentors, Jack Carolla of Burbank and Mike Black of Kennewick.

"The young ones are clueless about what to do, where to go," Carolla said. "Older veterans that have scratched and clawed their way, they know where all the land mines are."

Carolla benefited from the help of an older veteran after getting back from Vietnam in 1969. He floundered for more than 10 years until a professor at the University of Idaho who was a former prisoner of war helped get him enrolled there.

Carolla and Black earned bachelor's degrees in engineering from the University of Idaho. Black went on to own a consulting business for 14 years until he sold it three years ago. Now the two are partners at Columbia Engineers, a civil engineering firm.

They often come into contact with younger veterans through Jeanie Nelson, a veterans advocate at WorkSource Columbia Basin. When she refers someone to them, they'll form a relationship with him, meeting him for lunch, getting together at his home or theirs, even rendezvousing at a parking lot just to exchange papers.

"It's not just a counseling office where a guy stops in," Carolla said. "You've got to make an effort one-on-one."

One such veteran, Scott Dawson, 26, of Kennewick, served with the Marines near Fallujah in 2004. He met Carolla at the VA's community-based outpatient clinic in Richland one day as they were both walking out.

Carolla overheard Dawson talking with Nelson about a land surveying class he was taking at Columbia Basin College, and Carolla ended up handing Dawson his card. A few days later, Dawson met Carolla and Black at a restaurant for lunch.

"I wish I'd met Jack and Mike when I got out of the service," Dawson said. Transitioning into civilian life was hard at the time, and it's still hard, he said.

"Those two being at least in the military and through some sort of hell, it makes things a lot better," Dawson said of their ability to relate to him.

Another veteran, Geoff Smith, 24, of Kennewick, said Black and Carolla don't presume to know exactly what it was like in the more recent wars.

"They always stress that 'This isn't about our war. This is about your war. This is about you guys and we don't want to leave you out in the wind like we got left,' " Smith said.

Smith served in Iraq almost all of 2005, working in convoy security about 60 miles south of Baghdad. Over that year, his convoy was hit by improvised explosive devices and rocket-propelled grenades 37 times, his own vehicle taking hits six times. Two years after he got out of the Army, he still struggles with problems of concentration, memory, anger and paranoia. When Nelson referred him to Black and Carolla, he had lost his job and was in danger of not having a place to live.

So they put him to work as a field technician at Columbia Engineers, and with their guidance, Smith plans to enroll at CBC this fall. On Wednesday, Smith attended a veterans forum at the college, at which Black was a panel speaker.

Veteran students and prospective students who attended learned about options such as the new Post-9/11 G.I. Bill that will go into effect next year, tuition waivers, and translating military training into college credits.

"Really, we have the support structures (for veterans) in place," said Jason Schlegel, CBC's director of student success and retention, who coordinated the forum.

"It's just the question is, are service members willing to take advantage of those and utilize those to help them? And I hope they do."

CBC itself could end up playing an even bigger role in serving veterans, Black said. He and Carolla are working on an arrangement to rent office space from CBC. With a more official home base from which to operate, they feel they could begin to reach hundreds of veterans.

And CBC could be in the cards as the Columbia Basin Veterans Coalition, which Black and Carolla support, continues exploring options for establishing a veterans resource center for the Tri-Cities, Black said.

Such a center would be a one-stop shop where veterans could get a variety of services, such as medical treatment, counseling, job assistance and educational resources.

Job openings exist in the large agricultural and industrially equipment industry.  The current pool of industrial technicians is reaching retirement age and new computerized technology used for solving mechanical problems needs a new generation of technicians to service the equipment.

Columbia Basin College is opening a new program - “Agriculture and Industrial Equipment Technology” this fall.  CBC is partnering with equipment dealerships in the northwest that carry Case/IH, New Holland, Kubota, AgCo, and Caterpillar brands.

Classes begin October 20 at CBC.  Instructor Dan Von Holton says, “The problem is not getting students employed, it’s getting them trained.”

Each student is sponsored by a dealership and will serve internships during the two-year degree program.  Enrollment in the program is accepted only during fall quarter.  For more information, call 542-4804 or email Dan Von Holten.

TCAJob:  Tell me about your background.
Cummins:  My family is from Ohio, western Pennsylvania and Kentucky.  I grew up mostly in Cincinnati, which is a lovely river city that sprawls along the hills of southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky.  My fondest memories of Cincinnati included watching the Big Red Machine dominate major league baseball in the 1970s and working my way through high school and college (BA, University of Cincinnati) in restaurants and by sorting boxes for United Parcel Service.  I moved west, to Tucson, for graduate school in 1982.  I began teaching that year as a graduate student (MFA, University of Arizona).  After graduate school, I taught and tutored but also worked as a secretary and library clerk.

TCAJob:  Have you made any changes to the current budget for CBC since arriving as president?
Cummins:  I have been on the job since (since July 1), but we are probably going to receive some budget cuts, as the projected biennial shortfall for the state budget is currently about $2.5 billion.  It is too soon to tell what the effect on us will be, but I am reviewing all of our expenditures very closely and will be making some decisions this fall.

TCAJob:  What is the current budget of the college?
Cummins:  Our current total budget is about $53 million, which includes not only operations, but budgets for capital projects, student government, direct financial aid to students, student work-study, numerous grants and contracts for targeted programs and scholarships.  What it doesn’t include is between $2-$3million per year in mandatory tuition waivers to special groups – our veterans, for example – as well as lots of unfunded mandates that occur in each legislative season.

The basic operation piece is about $32 million of this.  Approximately $22 million of this comes directly from the state, which sets a full-time equivalent (FTE) student allocation for us each year of each biennium.  The remaining approximately $10 million is from tuition and fees.

TCAJob:  How is CBC funded?
Cummins:  We are funded by the state through a biennial budgeting process whereby the Legislature sets our FTE student allocation for each year of each biennium.  Only new FTE are funded at a new amount, so we do not receive a new per-FTE funding amount each biennium.  In other words, our budget remains at its historically funded per-FTE level with new FTE added to the mix, as the Legislature deems appropriate for growth.  It’s far from ideal because we don’t receive reimbursement for the actual current cost of per-FTE education.  Instead, we constantly balance our enrollments between high- and low-cost programs, which sometimes causes problems by limiting the high-cost programs that are nonetheless in high demand by the community.

We sometimes joke that we used to be state-supported and are now state-assisted but that the prevailing trend will soon leave us state-located.  That is a humorous way of pointing out that our state support has declined from about 85 percent in the late 1980s to just above 50 percent in 2008, but the more serious point I’ll make is three-fold.
First, the paradigm of higher education as a public good has shifted quite a bit over the years, and the cost burden has likewise shifted largely to the individual student because higher education is now often seen as a private good.  Second, it’s not altogether a bad thing to lose some of our state support because it has made us smarter and more entrepreneurial.

We have done some wonderful things because great community partners have invested private dollars into the college’s infrastructure.  Finally, one of the reasons we are at roughly half instead of 60 percent is because we have expanded the total college pie with our community partners and through our substantial federal grants efforts, which currently add over $6 million each year to the community and our students through targeted student success programs.

TCAJob: Are there any changes in program offering at CBC?
Cummins:  The biggest programmatic news is that we will be starting a bachelor degree in applied management in the fall of 2009.  The Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Management degree will create a new four-year college pathway for graduates of our numerous Associate of Applied Science programs.  Individuals with rich experience in fields as diverse as computer science, automotive technology, marketing and many other professional and technical careers will be students in this applied management track that will lead to expanded career opportunities in supervision, management and entrepreneurship.

TCAJob:  Are there any plans in progress to make CBC a four-year college?
Cummins:  We are expanding our workforce mission through the bachelor’s program in applied management.  Properly understood, this is an expansion of our workforce education mission and not the development of a four-year college.

As part of the workforce development mission, the college provides programs for job preparation.  A program might be a yearlong certificate, a two-year degree or, in the case of many health science students, a three-year program that includes one year of prerequisite classes followed by two years of professional curriculum.  The proposed bachelor degree program simply extends that mission into a longer timeframe with curriculum that is designed to support the area’s employment needs.  In other words, the college is simply increasing the core of the community college mission to expand access, respond to community employers and remain flexible and adaptable to changing workforce education needs.

TCAJob:  Has CBC experienced an increase in attendance over the last year?
Cummins:  Yes, we have been running at about 105 percent of our state allocation target.  Fall 2008 is looking like we may be as high as 107 percent of target.

TCAJob:  How does CBC work with WSU Tri-Cities?
Cummins:  Very well!  And a larger enrollment for us means larger enrollment for them two years hence.

TCAJob:  Is there any specific type of partnership between the two colleges?
Cummins:  We have the Bridges program that spells out the specific CBC coursework needed to matriculate into one of WSU Tri-Cities’ numerous bachelor degree programs.  WSU Tri-Cities has a permanent counseling presence, the “Cougar Connection,” in our Student Services Building, and our staffs coordinate information with one another on a regular basis.

TCAJob:  Does CBC have any expansion plans?
Cummins:  We are a community college, which is to say that in a growing community like the Tri-Cities, we are always expanding because the foundational principle of the community college is access.  We are here to be the front door to higher education four our community.  We are starting an agricultural technology program with farm equipment partners like New Holland, and we are researching the professional and technical program possibilities for “green collar” jobs that are looming on the economic development horizon.

We have three building projects funded: a renovation of our business building; a replacement of our vocational building; and a new Social Sciences, World Languages, and Cultural building that will come online over the next six or so years.  We are also rewriting our proposal to the state for a new Fine Arts Facility that would replace and expand our current Performing Arts Building.  We have also been approached by community members who would like to develop funds to build a planetarium to adjoin our Moore Observatory.  Onward and upward!

TCAJob:  Since arriving in the Tri-Cities, what do you enjoy most about the community?
Cummins:  I am always so impressed by the number of people who say, ‘Yes, I can help.’  We have a great spirit for public service here that makes the community very special.  I also love the desert.  I moved to the intermountain west 26 years ago and thought, ‘I don’t ever want to leave.’

TCAJob:  Do you have any vacation plans this year?
Cummins:  We are taking a road trip for a week.  My (two) kids will get to visit Yellowstone and other great natural spaces as well as five state capitols:  Boise, Helena, Cheyenne, Denver and Salt Lake City.  I am excited for them because trips like this let them experience the vastness and beauty of the West.

TCAJob:  If you could teach any subject at CBC, what would it be and why?
Cummins:  I originally came here to teach English but since then I have acquired a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies from Gonzaga.  I hope to teach some of the management and leadership curriculum in our new bachelor degree program.

TCAJob:  What is your favorite book?
Cummins:  I have hundreds of favorite books.  How much time do you have for me to explain my choices?

Columbia Basin College’s Business “B” building, originally constructed in 1958, is under renovation.

“How we educate students has changed a lot in the last 50 years and the building was not only showing its age but starting to fail our mission to provide access to quality education,” said Al Downs, CBC director of capital projects.

The renovated facility will consist of new classrooms, learning labs and faculty office space equipped with the appropriate technology to support effective modern teaching and learning in three programs:  business, criminal justice and digital media/marketing, Downs said.  “Renovation of the building will support growth in CBC programs that are supporting the community economic diversification efforts, support WSU Tri-Cities’ transfer requirements and a new baccalaureate program in business,” he said.
More than 6,000 square feet of additional space will be added to the existing facility to support building services and student learning, bringing the building to 22,000 square feet total.  This $4.5-million project will also replace failing HVAC units on two neighboring buildings, Downs said.

Construction officially started on July 1 and is expected to be complete and ready for students the fall of 2009.  The project was funded as part of the State of Washington’s Capital Construction Co. was awarded the construction contract.  RGU Architecture and Planning, based in Asotin, provided project and design development services and will continue consulting through construction completion, Downs said.

When completed, the building will be LEED Silver Certified, as determined by the U.S. Green Building Council and will set the standard for all future construction on campus.

PASCO, Wash. -- Close to 50 veterans got a chance to learn about a variety of services they're entitled to, including money to pay for school.

It happened on the campus of Columbia Basin College (CBC) in Pasco Wednesday (August 13th) night.

Counseling programs were explained along with how military members can receive tuition assistance.

A post 9-11 GI Bill taking effect in 2009 will pay up to the most expensive in-state tuition for military servicemen and women.

Although, there is a time frame to receive those benefits.

"They're cutting into that time frame," says Jason Schlegel, Director of CBC's Student Success & Retention department. They're about 1/2 way through so some who are just now coming back, they still have 15 years on top of that."

Leaders with the program say they encourage veterans to take advantage of the benefits.

They want veterans to go to college so they can potentially earn a higher income with a two or four-year degree.

Schlegel refers to a college degree as "social currency."

U.S. Senator Patty Murray met with Columbia Basin College officials and community leaders in workforce development August 7 at the Pasco campus.

Senator Murray’s topic was filling jobs in healthcare and skilled labor careers in the future.  She listened as CBC deans and leading employers in economic and workforce development explained their coordinated efforts to increase skilled labor in local industry.  Participants spoke about the urgent need for trades, apprenticeship training, and other forms of vocational education and to get the message out that there are many educational pathways besides a traditional four-year degree.  CBC President Richard Cummins was also able to brief the Senator about the College’s new Bachelor of Applied Management Degree, which will start in Fall 2009.  The Applied Management degree will prepare associate of applied science degree recipients for management and entrepreneurial skills to take on supervisory positions within their craft. 

Murray was then given a tour of the CBC Pasco campus by President Cummins.  Senator Murray spent about 90 minutes on the CBC Pasco campus.

TRI-CITIES-- Identity thieves are turning away from seniors and targeting college students, according to recent reports.

"I'm really bad with keeping things documented and spending online with debit cards, things like that," said Casey Roberts, a Columbia Basin College student.

Roberts could be a prime target. While she's busy studying to be a nurse, she doesn't have time to monitor her credit. It's a habit thieves have caught on to.

"I think a lot of times, the college students are awful trusting and they're very close to their friends, and sometimes that can get them in trouble," said Laurie Tufford, CEO of Consumer Credit Counseling Services in Kennewick.

Students like Tahnia Jensen take steps to protect themselves.

"I don't use my credit card online and I have passwords for everything, and I change it up," she said.

Students and experts will tell you, the idea of a "struggling student" isn't always true to life.

"I think a lot of college students probably have a lot of money they're spending that their parents might give them, or they're working over the summer," said Roberts.

Many students are already victims of identity theft by the time they get to college, and thousands more will fall prey to scammers while they're there. That's why colleges like CBC provide them with tip sheets and offer classes to educate and protect students.

The pros say if students have to take out loans, they should make sure they're guaranteed federal loans. They shouldn't leave their personal information around-- even roommates may not be entirely trustworthy. Experts also warn, be weary of the people who cosign documents.

"You're probably not going to find out about it for a while, until things start going wrong on their end," said Tufford. "Til they've maxed out that credit card."

That means checking credit reports at least once a year as soon as people open their first credit card.

Columbia Basin College is doing its part to combat identity theft. It adopted a policy of random number IDs a few years ago, and it's no longer legal to use social security numbers on most school forms. Teachers there also host clinics on identity theft.

As of 3:00 p.m., we are continuing to work with the Pasco Police Department to ensure the safety of our students and staff.  The police will continue to provide an increased presence on campus, and we will continue with adding all available CBC security personnel to the evening shift.  

While the police department has identified this event as “low risk,” please know that your safety is our primary concern.  Please be vigilant and do not hesitate to contact the police if the need arises.  We also urge everyone to refresh their knowledge of the College’s safety plan and to discuss with your co-workers ways to best respond to emergency scenarios.

Columbia Basin College received a telephone threat this morning from an unidentified caller stating there would be a shooting on campus today.  The caller did not state a specific target, nor was any other information provided before the call ended.

The Pasco Police Department was contacted and the College’s Emergency Operations Center under the College’s Safety Plan was immediately activated.  Pasco Police determined the threat to be “low-risk.”  Police reported to the College that they arrested a suspect.  Pasco Police are continuing their investigation.

The College is following through to ensure the campus remains safe.  The campus remains open with increased security and police patrols.

Columbia Basin College received a telephone threat this morning from an unidentified caller stating there would be a shooting on campus today.  The caller did not state a specific target, nor was any other information provided before the call ended.

The Pasco Police Department was contacted and the College’s Emergency Operations Center under the College’s Safety Plan was immediately activated.  Pasco Police determined the threat to be “low-risk.”  Police reported to the College that they arrested a suspect.

The College is following through to ensure the campus remains safe.  The campus remains open with increased security and police patrols.

Columbia Basin College will present the Veterans Forum August 13 in Gjerde Center to inform veterans and current service members of new and existing higher education benefits available to them.

The forum begins at 6:30 p.m.  Information will be presented about new GI Bill benefits, the Washington State Veterans Waiver, Reserve and National Guard tuition assistance, CBC Disability Support Services, and Veterans Affairs Vocational Rehabilitation.     

The forum is open to veterans, service members, and their families.  For more information, email jschlegel@columbiabasin.edu, or call 542-4390.

David Arnold wonders what the world would be like if small, local food producers were lost.

The Columbia Basin College history instructor believes independent farmers and fishermen interact directly with nature in a way corporate farms and fisheries don't, and that the loss of small producers means society as a whole is becoming disconnected from the food people consume.

"I ascribe to the belief that local communities can create better models of environmental stewardship than multinational corporations or government bureaucracies," he said. "Small farmers are better environmental stewards than agribusiness. They're better connected to the landscape. It's the same with fishermen."

The Richland man's book, The Fishermen's Frontier: People and Salmon in Southeast Alaska, focuses on the history of how fisheries affect the environment and how local fishermen are being edged out by industrial fish farms, but he said the questions it raises are applicable right here in the Mid-Columbia.

"I think it's relevant to any place, because it deals with traditions and how traditions are changed or destroyed by modernization or globalization," Arnold said.

Arnold worked summers in Alaska's fishing industry from the time he was 19 until he was 34 in 2000. He took the work because he needed the money for college, but kept doing it because he developed a fascination for the culture he found in small fishing towns.

"I got interested in the fishing communities and the people who make their living against the modern trend of work," he said. "Most of us sit in an office or work for someone else. ... There's something about fishing that takes us back in time almost. There's something romantic about it."

But Arnold said he doesn't romanticize fishermen in the book, nor does he paint human beings as villains enslaving their environment.

What he does is give a picture of an industry that is still alive, although morphed into something new.

"People and nature have changed and adapted over time," he said. "They are bound and always will be. ... One thing that is positive about this book is that both nature and humans are resilient."

Arnold will receive an award from the Washington Community College Humanities Association in October for the contribution his book makes to the field.

Martin Valadez, CBC's vice president for diversity and outreach, said he nominated Arnold for the award because the book adds to the knowledge and understanding of salmon fishing, and Native American, western and environmental history.

"This book should be used as a required (or supplementary/recommended) book in history as well as Native American, ethnic and environmental studies courses," said Valadez, who taught history at CBC before becoming vice president.

PROSSER -- For nearly a decade, the slim, dark wine bottles that hold Kestrel Vintners' signature wines have been etched with a falcon in flight.

But it wasn't until a group of college kids came up with a new brand featuring a 1940s-style pinup girl that the winery really took off.

The winery's Lady in Red blended wine has enabled the winery to increase its production from 6,000 to 32,000 cases per year in the past four years.

Now Kestrel has added a small event center -- perfect for small parties -- a commercial kitchen and a picturesque grotto to its main building. And construction is under way on a 20,000-square-foot building for production, doubling the size of the current winery.

The expansion began two years ago, with a 3,000-square-foot addition to the original building, said Mike Birdlebough, Kestrel's general manager.

But the real transformation began in 2000, said Flint Nelson, the winemaker. The boutique winery was struggling and managers were looking for a way to expose more people to Kestrel wines.

The winery's business manager, Gudrun Parker, attended a wine and food show at Columbia Basin College, where she met Gene Holand, a CBC business professor, whose class had organized the event for the Washington Wine Commission.

Holand, a business professor at Columbia Basin College, developed a special course to allow students to work directly with business owners to create marketing packages.

"I got kind of weary of teaching the same way and it was time for a change," Holand said.

He even let the students give the class a "business" name -- Creative Marketing Consultants.

"(Parker and Birdlebough) said they needed something new and unusual and wanted us to come up with something that was going to sell wine," he said.

Holand said the students came up with the idea of Drop Dead Red.

"We had some bulk wine that we didn't know what to do with and they came up with a name, found the artist and even told us how much we should sell it for," Nelson said.

Holand said one of the young men in the class came up with the idea of using 1940s-Vargas style pinup girls. The students and Michael Rastovich, a local artist, created the original artwork for the bottles.

Drop Dead Red, now called Lady in Red, was unveiled in July 2004.

"The first year we produced 3,000 cases, which was a tremendous amount for us," Nelson said. "And we sold out of that wine in three months. We did another bottling and sold out of that in three months."

The brand has been "wildly successful," he said.

"They really hit the mark," Nelson said. "It's a stunning package and so eye-catching."

Which makes selling a single bottle of wine to a single consumer easy, but there must be quality in the bottle to sell a second bottle. That's Nelson's job.

"We have always strived to make sure we are putting the very best wine in, so people are not only pleased with the bottle, but what's inside," he said.

Now the winery has added Platinum, a white blend, and a holiday edition.

And Lady in Red, which retails for under $20, has introduced a lot more wine drinkers to Kestrel's other offerings, allowing Nelson to be a little more creative.

"It's allowed me to create my Winemaker Select series of wines," Nelson said.

It's the exciting part of his job. He gets to experiment, creating interesting blends and varietals, like his Two-Ton Cab.

For that wine, Nelson experimented in Kestrel's Yakima Valley estate vineyard, cropping some old vine cabernet down to where it would produce only 2 tons of grapes per acre to increase the quality of the grapes.

He bottled a cabernet franc and co-fermented a syrah and a viogner. The wines are being bottled in limited quantities of 200 to 300 cases and sold for about $40 a bottle.

"The wines have been so well received and usually sell out very quickly, and it's been so much fun for me to get to experiment and play," he said.

And the success has allowed the winery to expand its production area, to Nelson's relief.

"We really had outgrown our footprint," he said. "The winery was designed to produce a maximum of 10,000 cases, and we were pushing 32,000."

The winery's main building and tasting room have been expanded and spruced up with the addition of a commercial kitchen attached to an intimate dining gallery. It's perfect for cocktail parties, private dinners or small receptions, Birdlebough said.

At the wineries' entrance, grape vines wrap around a stone patio with round tables shaded by large umbrellas, providing a perfect place to sample Kestrel's wines aside a plate of artisan cheeses, which also are available in the tasting room.

And a 20,000-square-foot production and storage facility is under construction behind the winery.

"I'll have state-of-the-art equipment and more space," Birdlebough said.

Holand said Drop Dead Red has not only been positive for the winery, but for the college marketing program, too, which is attracting more and more clients.

"It gave them a whole new product and at the same time gave us new breath," he said.

Kestrel Vintners, at 2890 Lee Road in Prosser, is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Columbia Basin College associate professor Dr. David Arnold is receiving an Exemplary Status Award from the Washington Community College Humanities Association (WCCHA).

Arnold’s book, The Fishermen’s Frontier – People and Salmon in Southeast Alaska, has been published by the University of Washington Press of Seattle and London.

Dr. Arnold has been an associate professor of history at CBC since 1998.  The Fisherman’s Frontier examines the economic, social, cultural, and political context in which salmon have been harvested in Southeast Alaska over the past 250 years.

Dr. Arnold’s award will be presented at the Awards Banquet of WCCHA Fall Conference on Friday, October 17 at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma.

The Columbia Basin College Speech program is providing a free five-day Debate Camp open to all middle, high school, and college students.

Debate camp will meet Monday through Friday, August 4-8, from 4:00-6:00 p.m. in room K-101 on the CBC Pasco campus.  World style parliamentary debate, a basic approach to argumentation, will be emphasized and practice rounds of debate will be held.  Students need to bring a notebook and a pen.

For more information, call Sallie Fisher at 542-4413 or email her at sfisher@columbiabasin.edu.

David Spiel, single father of two and a Columbia Basin College student, talks about the inspiration, challenges and advantages of going back to finish higher education.

Sitting in a half-empty theater in Pasco's Columbia Basin College was disheartening, especially knowing the quality of theater so many were missing out on.

Assassins, a musical by Stephen Sondheim, kicked off CBC's 2008 Summer Showcase with, quite literally, a bang. Several in fact.

Assassins is a quirky yet sharply politically-pointed musical following the actions, horrors, excuses and failures of attempted or tragically successful American presidential assassins.

The show takes an extreme look at politics and patriotism, perhaps in the hopes of bringing perspective to our current reality when the gunsmoke clears.

This darkly comical musical ties these infamous American men and women together in their twisted quest for acceptance, recognition and attention.

Does the show glorify these villains and their acts, or pull focus to current politics, past tragedies and our own patriotism? This show, as all theater and art should, sparks conversation, debate and ultimately reflective thought.

What's more is the perspective, however extreme, is captured by a talented cast and crew. Korry Watkins leads the band of killers as John Wilkes Booth, oozing vanity and charm; he creeps under the skin masterfully singing Sondheim's difficult material with a wink.

Sergio Bueno as Zangara masters an Italian accent through his mile-a-minute solo, while Robbie Heegle as Czogosh stoically grapples with a polish accent and the power of a gun.

William Lenzky as Charles Guiteau plays a maniacally comical character who may be "going to the lordy" but he's going with a smile. Hippy Squeaky Fromme played by Stephanie Fanning and housewife Sara Jane Moore, played by Barb Parsons, find ways to pull laugh after laugh at their bumbling, ditzy, KFC-fueled conversations. Sam Turner as John Hinkley is oddly sweet and awkward as he professes his "unworthy" love for Jodie Foster.

Kirk Fletcher as the Santa suit-clad mentally unbalanced Sam Byck brings realism, humor and insanity that are chilling snaps back to reality in a show that makes you forget what you're laughing at.

Rounding out Assassins, of course, is Lee Harvey Oswald, played by Nathan Morris who creates a taut, nostril-flaring Oswald pleading for sympathy but ultimately getting none.

Richard Reuther's carnival barker Proprietor deftly lures the rabble down the road to ruin. While Chuck Williams' Balladeer weaves us through the stories with a deeply soulful blues and folk voice that chastises, pokes fun and pleads for the rest of us.

CBC's Assassins was a thought-provoking pleasure, with its fair share of laughs, jumps, unsettling moments and witty, powerful songs. The show is rated PG-13 and contains strong language and adult content as well as some very loud noise makers, but if you're looking to be entertained and challenged, feed your twisted sensibilities and come see a great evening of theater.

*William Geisel lives in the Lower Valley and has volunteered with theater groups and schools for 24 years.

A "beautiful evolution" is under way at Columbia Basin College in Pasco.

The school is home to a new bachelor's of applied science degree in applied management, which offers associate's degree holders a new avenue for educational and career advancement.

"It creates a bachelor's track for people who wouldn't have a bachelor's track," said CBC President Rich Cummins.

The Washington Higher Education Coordinating Board approved the degree in applied management at its Monday meeting, giving the school approval to prepare for the first class of students in fall 2009.

"Well done to CBC," said Jim Toomey, Port of Pasco executive director. "This is good news."

Toomey spoke in support of the program to the State Board for Community & Technical Colleges in Olympia earlier this year because he believes the new degree offering will boost local businesses and the Tri-City economy.

"Businesses in order to remain competitive have to receive more value from and add value to their employees," Toomey said. "A major component of that is education of the work force."

Cummins' eyes light up when he talks about the positive effects of the program on students, businesses and employers and the community.

"The most exciting thing about it is an expansion of the community college mission," he said. "The target we're looking for is students who are out there working ... individuals who already have jobs ... and want to develop themselves professionally."

Work force development is a key part of CBC's mission and the new four-year program fills a need for skilled workers with management experience.

There are up to 94 openings for such jobs in the region, according to a draft program plan prepared for the HEC Board.

"Increasingly, employers are seeking individuals as front-line supervisors and managers who have a mix of technical and management skills," says the draft.

For that reason, the program will involve continuous interaction among faculty, students and employers to ensure students are learning pertinent information and skills.

For example, a class project could involve creating a strategic planning analysis based on a student's employer, Cummins said.

CBC will get $226,000 from the state to cover startup costs, then continued funding to help pay for the program once it has started. Initial money will cover hiring a lead instructor and a recruiting and retention specialist, as well as building the library's collection and other administrative costs.

Tuition for the program will be about $4,000 per year. The CBC Foundation has pledged $20,000 for student scholarships.

The first year of the program can accommodate up to the equivalent of 20 full-time students, a number that is expected to double the second year.

Because the program is designed primarily for working students, classes will be offered evenings, weekends and online.

Encouraging a diverse student pool is another important part of the program, Cummins said.

"We want to make sure ... that we're serving the entire community," he said.

The program's success will be measured by the students' employment.

"The proof in the pudding will be those students graduating and getting jobs," he said. "It's proactive. It's thinking about the future, trying to shape the future."

Robert Pritchett says he's been able to double fuel mileage on his Ford E-350 diesel van to about 20 mpg with an investment of about $400.

The Richland resident recently installed a hydrogen booster system on his van that takes water and separates out hydrogen to be burned in the engine. Pritchett is testing the system for an alternative energy group and selling it as an independent dealer. He insists the system, plus a special oil he uses called Power Up, can save a lot of fuel.

But officials say those feeling the pinch at the pump should be skeptical of the hundreds of purported fuel-saving devices that are on the market.

Cathy Milbourn, Washington D.C.-based spokeswoman for the Environmental Protection Agency, which has tested hundreds of so-called fuel-saving devices, said consumers should be skeptical, especially of those that claim to improve mileage 25 percent or more.

EPA tests have not found any device that does that, although there were no recent reports available on testing of hydrogen boosters.

Do so-called gas-saving devices work?

"Generally, no," Milbourn said.

She said EPA tests of many of these products found no improvement in performance or fuel efficiency. Also, some devices can harm the engine, void the manufacturer's warranty and violate pollution control laws, she said.

Milbourn said fuel-saving devices have been around since the 1970s at least, and whenever fuel prices increase substantially there's a rush of such products to the market.

For instance, gadgets like the Turbonator, SpiralMax and CycloneFuelSaver are installed in a vehicle's air intake and claim to provide a swirling motion to maximize gas vaporization and improve combustion. Other products, which are tied or connected to the fuel line such as the Magnetizer and the Vitalizer, claim to change fuel molecules and boost mileage.

Monty Prather, an automotive technology instructor at Columbia Basin College, is among those who are skeptical of fuel-saving devices.

He believes that if any of the advertised fuel-saving gizmos worked perfectly, auto manufacturers would have adopted the technology.

That includes hydrogen boosters.

Prather said one of his students recently installed a similar self-built system on his car, and while the device may have slightly improved the car's power, there's no evidence mileage is better.

Another thing to consider is it's not easy for an amateur to accurately track fuel mileage, and there's a tendency for someone who installs one of the fuel-saving devices to want to believe it works.

Prather said the fuel-saving devices tend to have a "placebo effect" because their users often change their driving habits, which can quickly reduce gas consumption.

His advice: Drive your vehicle like the manufacturer designed it to be run.

But auto enthusiasts love to tinker and experiment in the search for improved mileage.

One of those is Richland resident Brad Woodworth, who's interested in the hydrogen booster systems and thinks they need to be scientifically investigated.

In the 1990s, Woodworth said, he installed the Vitalizer gas-saving device in his vehicles with positive results. He said mileage on his old Mazda GLC increased from 30 mpg to 33 mpg and his Jeep Cherokee increased from 17 mpg to 21 mpg.

That's why he's planning to test a hydrogen booster system. He recently spent about $50 on the Internet to buy a design manual on how to build his own booster system.

The computer science expert said he plans to install the system on his SUV, which has 180,000 miles. "I don't care if the engine blows," he said.

However, Woodworth said he knows he needs to be careful because hydrogen can rust the exhaust system and can cause an engine to overheat. Because of that, he thinks hydrogen boosters may be just an intermediate step until hybrids or electric cars become prevalent.

But Gary Hall Jr., who owns Walla Walla-based H2O Hybrid Pro that sold the hydrogen booster kit to Pritchett, says hydrogen is the technology of the future. He began manufacturing his kits in March and said he's selling 20 to 25 of them a week. He says they're safe and have been popular in Europe and Australia for decades.

The systems sell for $150 to $1,300 and cost about $150 to install on most vehicles, he said.

A serious auto enthusiast, Hall said he studied the concept for five years before he came up with his kit, which he said is more user-friendly than others on the market.

He insists the hydrogen booster system will improve fuel efficiency from 25 percent to 50 percent, but adds, "Each car is going to react differently."

Pritchett, meanwhile, says he's a convert to hydrogen. He also admits fuel efficiency is the result of many factors, including good driving habits.