��ý awarded Workforce Development funds

September 10, 2025 &�Բ��;

Media Contacts:    &�Բ��;

Tracy Donnelly, Dean, Workforce Education and Allied Health, 509-682-6614, tdonnelly@wvc.edu

Marcine Miller, Executive Director, Public Information Office, 509-682-6582, mmiller2@wvc.edu

��ý is one of twelve community and technical colleges to receive workforce development funds from the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC). The college was awarded $130,000 and the funds will be used for WVC’s Competency-Based Education for Industry and Degree Seeking Students project.

In a recent press release, the SBCTC stated that the funds “aim to help industry thrive and expand in Washington state while continuing to support the development of a skilled workforce. The awards support projects that address the changing needs and expectations of industry and prospective students, or that bolster local workforce and economic development initiatives.”

The WVC Workforce Education department will work with faculty on various programs including the recently suspended programs such as machining, graphic design, and engineering to redesign them as Continuing Education workforce courses with clear competencies and assessments. These offerings will maintain credit alignment for co-enrollment, while using a competency-based education (CBE) model that breaks mastery into smaller sections—creating flexible, stackable opportunities that allow students to progress at their own pace and allow industry to meet their needs more directly.

“We know that success in non-credit workforce programs often leads to longer-term enrollment,” said WVC Workforce Education Dean Tracy Donnelly. “And as an industry begins to engage with these offerings, especially when timed to their schedules or delivered as contract training, we’ll gain clearer insight into what they truly need.”

Donnelly will also work with industry leaders so that they can share what they need to remain competitive.

“This approach gives us the flexibility we need as a rural college to truly become a college of choice for students and industry alike,” Donnelly said.

Funding for the project comes from the program, which includes funding that the SBCTC uses for supporting customized training programs, job skills programs, job readiness training, workforce professional development, and assisting employers with state-approved apprenticeship programs for manufacturing and production occupations.

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��ý is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in employment and student enrollment. All programs are free from discrimination and harassment against any person because of race, creed, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a service animal by a person with a disability, age, parental status or families with children, marital status, religion, genetic information, honorably discharged veteran or military status or any other prohibited basis per RCW 49.60.030, 040 and other federal and state laws and regulations, or participation in the complaint process. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies and Title IX compliance for both the Wenatchee and Omak campuses:

To report discrimination or harassment: Title IX Coordinator, Human Resources, Wenatchi Hall 2322M, (509) 682-6445, title9@wvc.edu

To request disability accommodations: Student Access Manager, Wenatchi Hall 2133, (509) 682-6854, TTY/TTD: dial 711, sas@wvc.edu

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