Center for Teaching and Learning Fully Accredited and Among Nation's Elite The National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) recently completed its review of Central Washington University's Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) and awarded the institution full accreditation status. The report also finds CWU met 20 different NCATE standards without weakness, and that places the university's teacher preparation program among the nation's elite. "A very, very small percentage of universities receive 100 percent on their evaluations," Dr. Rebecca Bowers, Dean of the CWU College of Education and Professional Studies, explains. "Usually, from two to six weaknesses are identified. We have come through this rigorous evaluation assessment process without blemish. I am extraordinarily proud of the faculty and students in our professional education preparation programs."
Senator Cantwell Addresses CWU Veterans Medallion Ceremony U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, Washington state, was the featured speaker at Central Washington University's medallion ceremony on Saturday, Oct. 27, honoring CWU alumni, faculty, staff and students for their participation in the U.S. armed forces. The event was part of the university's Homecoming 2001. About 150 men and women - from all branches of the armed services - received medallions during the ceremony at CWU's International Flag Pavilion. The Vietnam Veterans Moving Wall Memorial was on display as part of Homecoming festivities. More than 8,000 people viewed the wall during the week.
Key Olympia Staff Members Visit CWU Campus To learn more about the positive things happening at CWU, several influential legislative and agency staff members recently toured campus. On Aug. 15, John Fricke, Associate Director, and Kathy Raudenbusch, Policy Associate for the Higher Education Coordinating Board's Fiscal and Policy Division, met with the President's Cabinet to discuss capital and operating budget requests for fiscal year 2002. Karen Barrett, Senate Ways and Means Higher Education Fiscal Analyst, and Jean Six, Senate Higher Education Committee Staff Coordinator/Analyst, visited Sept. 27. They met with administrators, staff, faculty and students to discuss issues for the upcoming legislative session. To prepare our 2002 budget for presentation to Gov. Locke, Theo Yu, Office of Financial Management (OFM) Higher Education Budget Assistant, met with several people on campus Nov. 5.
State Agencies Told to Prepare for Budget Cuts The latest Washington state economic forecast shows an $813 million drop in tax revenue since the September estimate. Officials report the revenue decline is due to a weak economy, the events of Sept. 11 and the passage of Initiatives 747 and 773. Based on a state revenue shortfall of close to $1.2 billion, Marty Brown, director of the Office of Financial Management (OFM), directed the seven largest state agencies to propose budget cuts of 15 percent. While Gov. Locke expressed his intent to protect higher education from comparable cuts, OFM has asked each public university to explore the impacts of a 5-10 percent budget cut next year.