washington business
took them under their wings and it ’ s just amazing to watch the transformation of some of those students . I am going to miss it . And , I keep asking people “ What ’ s going to be our next thing ?” Ten years ago , we couldn ’ t even spell “ composites ” and now we have programs all over the state that train workers in that field . What are we going to be doing 10 years from now that we ’ re not even aware of today ?
You ’ re retiring after 40 years of service to Washington residents . What ’ s next ?
I have five grandkids that all live here in town . The oldest one will be 4 in October , so I assume the daughters-in-law have some schedules already set up for grandpa and I ’ m looking forward to it . I ’ ve been asked to be on a couple of boards , and I ’ m probably going to do that . Some folks have reached out about working as a consultant and I may think about doing some of that stuff , too . I ’ ve got a lot of experience around the Legislature , so I think I could help some people if they need it . And , hopefully , I can remember how to swing a golf club . It has been a while .
jan yoshiwara begins new role as sbctc ’ s executive director
Jan Yoshiwara , a 33-year veteran of Washington ’ s community and technical college system , is now the executive director of the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges ( SBCTC ). She was appointed to fill the job after former Executive Director Marty Brown announced his retirement in the spring . She officially took the helm July 1 .
Originally from northern California , Yoshiwara earned her undergraduate degree at the University of California , Davis , and moved to Washington state to attend Western Washington University , where she earned a master ’ s degree in education and higher education administration .
Yoshiwara ’ s first job after graduate school was at Pierce College in Lakewood . Her role in the community college system grew from there , starting at the State Board in 1984 as assistant director of student services and minority affairs . She rose to director of education services in 1994 . Today , she leads system-wide programs and policies that prepare students for college-level work , a career , or to transfer to a university .
Her passion is helping underserved minority , low-income and at-risk students reach their goal of obtaining a college certificate , associate or bachelor ’ s degree .
“ As an undergraduate , I was active in the whole idea of access to higher education ,” Yoshiwara said . “ I feel I was very fortunate to have gone to college in the time when the civil rights movement was hitting higher education and people were raising questions about who gets to go to college and how access to higher education provides opportunity for people to move up and change their socio-economic status .”
Yoshiwara said her attraction to community colleges stems from the fact that they serve every sector of the population and all income levels and they exist to give educational opportunity to everyone .
“ As a young graduate student , I thought , ‘ this is where I should go to work ,’” she said .
Now , Yoshiwara is looking ahead to what ’ s next for Washington ’ s community and technical college system under her and her team ’ s leadership .
Filling the workforce pipeline is one priority , Yoshiwara said , noting that there are substantial workforce shortages where employers need workers with an associate or bachelor ’ s degree .
“ Part of the challenge for higher education is to figure out how we close that gap between what the economy and employers need and what higher education is producing ,” Yoshiwara said .
SBCTC and AWB work closely together to align programs with employer needs and on outreach to employers on how community and technical colleges can help them improve worker skills and prepare their next generation workforce .
“ A big part of our mission is lining up our production of skilled people going out into the labor force to match the economy ,” she said . “ That ’ s one of the reasons working with state ’ s business sector through AWB is so important . It ’ s those partnerships that are going to make a difference .”.
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