washington business higher education in order to get a good job , and to support their family and gain entry into the workforce .
That ’ s why for all of our academic programs , we have advisory boards composed of business leaders across all of our colleges . But I think other partnership opportunities with the business community would be mentorship opportunities . Getting mentored by a business leader I think is really powerful . Internship opportunities are always really terrific , especially paid internship opportunities . Another way to get involved is to advocate for community and technical colleges in Olympia .
Hiring our graduates is another one , not only mentoring our students , but hiring our graduates is another way for business and industry to show their support for community and technical college students .
What are micro-credentials and why are they important ?
It ’ s shorter term training that one could obtain , whether it ’ s a month , three months , or six months , that are stackable , that lead to maybe an associate ’ s degree over time , or a bachelor ’ s degree and beyond . I think there are a lot of people that want to get into the workforce early . So I think micro-credentials can be a tool to do that , to get that training that can really propel you toward career success .
AWB has toured innovative programs from robotics to precision agriculture on our annual Manufacturing Week bus tour . In your opinion , what are some of the coolest offerings ?
Walla Walla Community College has a John Deere tractor program that I think it ’ s really amazing .
I think of a program like the Seattle Maritime Academy , which prepares people to work in the ferry system , the Coast Guard or other maritime industries , that ’ s through Seattle Colleges .
I was at Lake Washington Institute of Technology the other day and they were telling me they have the only bachelor ’ s degree in the nation that ’ s offered by a community or technical college in public health .
Bates Technical College in Tacoma offers a six-quarter program for those who want to go into fire science and firefighting . When I was at Bates , I asked them “ How much does your most recent graduate make ?” And they said paul francis at a glance
$ 76,000 . So I think it shows you there are a lot of good paying jobs that don ’ t require a four-year degree .
Applied bachelor ’ s degree programs continue to grow . What is their history in Washington and how many do you offer ?
About 20 years ago , we did a study and found that about 10 % of those who graduate with a technical associate degree wanted to continue their education . In many cases , they needed additional education for their job , but they didn ’ t have anywhere to go to get that bachelor ’ s degree , because their credits didn ’ t easily transfer into a lot of academic bachelor ’ s degree programs . We proposed to the Legislature some pilot programs . They ’ re applied bachelor ’ s degrees , meaning they ’ re technical in nature , they build off of technical associate degrees .
We started off with four originally and they started to grow and to grow and to grow … I think we ’ re at 140 separate programs now at 33 out of the 34 colleges .
What kind of students typically enroll in your applied bachelor ’ s programs ?
I think it ’ s a really geared to students who may be place-bound . “ Hey , I ’ ve got a family , I can ’ t move to Seattle to get a four-year degree , I need to be able to stay home .”
We see a lot of students of color who enroll in them . There are often times older students who will do it . I think many times
Paul Francis is a first-generation college student and son of immigrants .
He previously served as executive director of the Council of Presidents , which represents the state ’ s four-year public universities . He took the helm of the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges ( SBCTC ) last August .
In his new role , he looks forward to serving the 278,000 students across the state ’ s 34 public community and technical colleges , “ which serve everybody in Washington ,” he notes . The colleges offer about 500 programs and graduates earned an average salary of $ 63,000 in 2022 .
Community and technical colleges offer more than two-year transfer degrees to four-year universities , Francis explains . They offer a growing list of bachelor ’ s degree programs from public health to fire science , apprenticeships in skilled trades , micro-credentials and more . spring 2023 19