News at WWU

Contact: Wendy Bohlke, Senior Counsel and Assistant Attorney General, (360) 650-2040

BELLINGHAM – Wendy Bohlke, legal counsel for Western Washington University for 30 years, will be retiring from the Office of the Washington State Attorney General, effective July 1.

“For three decades, Wendy Bohlke has provided wise, prudent legal counsel to Western trustees, administrators and many others on campus. Her contributions to the university and to the state of Washington are significant,” said Western President Bruce Shepard. “Wendy is well known for her integrity and commitment to giving back to the community. I thank Wendy for her caring and professional service to the university and wish her the best of good fortune in future endeavors.”

Bohlke, senior counsel and assistant attorney general, serves as legal counsel to Western’s trustees and, through the trustees, President Shepard. She is also responsible for a host of other legal duties on behalf of the university.

She has worked with four Western presidents (and two interim Western presidents), nine WWU provosts, three community college presidents and many trustees, administrators, faculty, staff and students. She has served five Washington state attorney generals – Gorton, Eikenberry, Gregoire, McKenna and Ferguson.

“Every day has offered new challenges and interesting situations,” Bohlke said. “Working with educators and other public servants has been an honor and a privilege. Being part of the best public law office in the country hasn’t hurt either.”

On July 1, 1983, Bohlke was assigned to represent Western, Whatcom Community College and Skagit Valley College out of offices at the University of Washington and Western. Her first day representing Western was spent in Port Angeles at a meeting of the WWU Board of Trustees held at Peninsula College. After nearly a year of commuting, the position was transferred to Bellingham. On May 15, 1984, she and her husband attorney Brian Hansen sailed their 27-foot sailboat to Bellingham, where they and their first son lived aboard for a time in Squalicum Harbor.

Bohlke opened the Bellingham Regional Office for the Office of the Attorney General in September 1984 at WWU, taking on responsibility to also represent DSHS in child dependency matters in Island County. The office grew from Bohlke and her assistant Gloria McDonald to include nine attorneys, 11 staff and a dozen volunteers who worked in the Consumer Resources Center. As section chief until 2006, she supervised the work of the office, which included workers compensation litigation, dependencies in Whatcom, Skagit, Island and San Juan counties, day care and foster care licensing matters, tort cases, child support litigation and Bellingham Technical College.

She has worked on a wide range of legal issues, and has argued cases before the state appellate courts. She received several honors and recognitions, including the Attorney General’s Golden Gavel and Steward of Justice awards.

Bohlke has been active with the Washington and Whatcom County Bar Associations, as well as the National Association of College and University Attorneys, the LAW Fund of Washington, Washington Women’s Lawyers and as a volunteer for Law Advocates for Whatcom County. She is active in a number of civic and community organizations.

After retiring from the Attorney General’s Office, Bohlke said she initially plans to spend time with family and to enjoy her many interests, which include hosting Bellingham Festival of Music musicians, studying Japanese and performing with the Bellingham Ukulele Group ensemble.

The Attorney General’s Office will designate a successor to Bohlke at Western.

Bohlke

Contact: Western Washington University’s Huxley College of the Environment at (360) 650-3520.

BELLINGHAM – Western Washington University will host a presentation by Ross Macfarlane titled “Climate Solutions in an Era of Consequences” as part of Western’s Huxley College of the Environment Speaker Series at 4 p.m. on May 23 in Western’s Biology Building room 212.

The presentation is free and open to the public. The presentation will include a question-and-answer period. 

Macfarlane’s presentation will focus on global efforts to shift from fossil fuels to cleaner and more efficient sources of energy.  His main topic will be the urgent need for an energy revolution and some solutions that are most important for our region.

Macfarlane manages Climate Solutions Business Partnership program, which helps build support in the region’s corporate community for strong climate and energy policy and private investment in solutions.

He is active in promoting good climate and energy policy on a state and federal level and recently managed and facilitated Sustainable Aviation Fuels Northwest, the first stakeholder effort in the nation to point a path to low-carbon alternatives to power the next generation of flight.

Macfarlane is a member of the Founding Advisory Board for the Institute for Energy Studies at Western and a former board member for Washington Conservation Voters. He brings more than 30 years of experience working on public policy and environmental issues. He was also a partner at Preston Gates & Ellis (now K&L Gates) where he managed the environmental law practice and represented a wide range of public and private clients.

The speaker series is held by Western's Huxley College of the Environment to bring together the environmentally minded community and other interested members of the Western and Bellingham communities.  Speakers address topics of contemporary environmental concern in the region and the world.

For more information, please contact the main office of Huxley College of the Environment, at (360) 650-3520.

Contact: Paul Cocke, director, WWU Office of Communications and Marketing, (360) 650-3350 or Paul.Cocke@wwu.edu

BELLINGHAM – Casey Shillam has been named director of Western Washington University’s new bachelor’s degree program in nursing.

The nursing program, offered through Western’s Woodring College of Education, begins fall 2013. It is designed to allow associate-degree nurses who have completed their pre-licensure registered nurse (RN) studies to complete their bachelor’s degrees in nursing (BSN). 

“We are very excited to have Dr. Shillam joining the Western team,” Woodring College Dean Francisco Rios said.  “She has the experience, the education, the energy and the vision to assure that our bachelor’s degree in nursing exemplifies the quality Western is known for demonstrating.”

Shillam, hired after a nationwide search, will begin at Western in July.

“I am delighted for this wonderful opportunity to contribute to advancing the profession of nursing. Western’s new nursing program will provide enormous benefit to both nurses and to quality health care throughout the area. This collaborative, interdisciplinary program will address the critical demand for BSN-prepared nurses in the face of a rapidly changing healthcare system,” Shillam said.

Shillam, who will be a tenured faculty member at Woodring College, will lead the nursing program that will be grounded in regional needs and will enhance the health and well-being of many of the communities Western serves.

Shillam has extensive experience in clinical nursing practice, health care policy and nursing education. She has bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in nursing from the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland.  She was a postdoctoral fellow at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at the University of California (UC)-Davis.

She is now assistant professor in the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing in Baltimore, and was previously an assistant professor of nursing at the University of Portland. Other experience includes past service as the nurse co-lead of the California Action Coalition, part of the nationwide Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative to implement recommendations in the landmark Institute of Medicine report “The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.” Currently, she serves as a consultant to the Campaign for Action led by AARP and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and coordinated through the Center to Champion Nursing in America. The campaign includes 51 state Action Coalitions and a wide range of health care providers, consumer advocates, policy-makers, and business, academic and philanthropic leaders.

Shillam is a registered nurse, and her clinical nursing experience includes nursing case management for clients in assisted living facilities, home health care nursing and staff nursing in a skilled nursing facility. She has published extensively on nursing and nursing education.

The new nursing program will provide RNs in Whatcom, Skagit and Island counties the opportunity to continue their professional education to the bachelor’s degree level, along with structure to support students’ ability to balance school with busy work, family and personal lives.  Classes are scheduled to meet one day per week on Western’s campus. Western is collaborating with a number of partners, including PeaceHealth/St. Joseph’s Medical Center, Whatcom Community College, Bellingham Technical College and Skagit Valley College.

A number of studies link better patient outcomes in facilities having greater percentages of more highly prepared nurses with bachelor’s degrees. One of the key recommendations of the Institute of Medicine report is that 80 percent of the national RN work force hold BSNs by 2020.

Statewide estimates show that only 51 percent of the state’s nursing work force is baccalaureate-prepared. The figure for Whatcom, Skagit and Island counties is even lower, at 45 percent.

Western’s innovative RN-to-BSN program responds to these local, state and national recommendations to increase the proportion of BSN-prepared nurses through seamless academic progression between associate degree and BSN-completion programs.

For more information, please visit www.wwu.edu/bsn, email bsn.info@wwu.edu or call (360) 650-6700.

Shillam

Contact: Janelle Marshall, Western’s Associated Students Veterans Outreach Center Coordinator, at 360-650-6115 or as.voc@wwu.edu 

BELLINGHAM – Western Washington University’s Veteran Outreach Center will be showing the documentary “The Lost Airmen of Buchenwald” at 6 p.m. May 21 in Western’s Academic Instructional Center West room 204.

The event is free and open to the public.

Joe Moser, a Ferndale native, was one of the imprisoned airmen and will be at the showing. 

After the documentary there will be a short question and answer session with Moser.

The documentary is about a group of Allied airmen in World War II who were captured by the Germans and send to the Buchenwald Concentration Camp.

For more information contact Janelle Marshall, Western’s Associated Students Veterans Outreach Center Coordinator, at 360-650-6115 or as.voc@wwu.edu.

Contacts: Paul Cocke, director, Office of Communications and Marketing, (360) 650-3350; Paul.Cocke@wwu.edu

BELLINGHAM – Catherine Riordan is resigning as provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at Western Washington University.

“On behalf of the entire Western campus community, I thank Catherine for her leadership and dedicated service to Western and to the many communities we serve. She has left her mark on Western; over the past four years, much has been accomplished to preserve and enhance Western’s academic excellence, strengthening teaching and learning, often in the face of significant challenges such as dramatic state budget cuts,” said Western President Bruce Shepard.

Riordan, who has been provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at Western since August 2009, will conclude her service in that position in July.

“I have had the pleasure of serving as the provost at Western for the past four years, but I am at a point where I wish to step away and refocus. While I love the work of being provost, it is extremely demanding and time-consuming. In July, I am going to move on to other academic pursuits. President Shepard is supportive of this move and for that I am grateful,” Riordan said. “I am very appreciative of the opportunity to serve such an outstanding university.”

President Shepard has begun consulting with leadership of faculty, students, colleges, Academic Affairs units, and Trustees prior to forming plans for future leadership of Academic Affairs.

“I am proud that we have accomplished a great deal during my tenure,” Riordan said. “I regret that I am stepping away with a number of important and exciting initiatives in progress. However, I do so with the confidence that we have a talented and committed team of faculty and academic leaders in place who will see this work through to a successful completion.”

Shepard noted some of the significant accomplishments during Riordan’s tenure as provost, including movement toward a strong dean model; transparency and decentralization of financial resources and decision-making within the academic division; unrelenting focus on student access to required classes, and expanding capacity for Western to internationalize its curriculum and student body. Even as state resources declined, Shepard said that Riordan encouraged responsiveness to recommendations of campus White Papers and Task Forces. She strongly supported diversity and equity in the workplace, and she led efforts to expand access to Western's programs with institutions in the community and technical college system.     

Riordan succeeded Dennis Murphy as provost at Western.  Riordan has a doctorate in Social Psychology from the State University of New York at Albany. Prior to being provost at Western, she was vice provost at Central Michigan University. She also was director of Management Systems at the University of Missouri-Rolla, where she established that university’s first interdisciplinary program, which has grown to one of the campus’s largest programs. At both Central Michigan University and the University of Missouri-Rolla, Riordan held the rank of tenured full professor of Psychology. Riordan taught for 21 years, primarily at the undergraduate level, but she also taught and supervised the thesis work of master’s and doctoral students. She has conducted and published research with students at all levels. Over the course of her career she received awards for distinguished teaching, advising, research, and service. 

The provost and vice president for Academic Affairs is the chief academic officer of Western Washington University and has senior leadership responsibility, particularly having policy and decision responsibility for academic programs, faculty, academic relations with other organizations, academic budgets and academic facilities planning. The provost serves as a member of the senior management team and fulfills an important role in university-wide matters. She also represents the university to appropriate external people and organizations and serves as president when the president is unavailable.

Riordan

Contact: Jason A. Morris, Western Washington University associate professor of Engineering Technology, at Jason.morris@wwu.edu or (360) 650-2514

BELLINGHAM – User Experience Design (UXD), the conceptualization and design of user interfaces for digital products, will be offered as a new minor at Western Washington University starting this fall.

“User experience design integrates interaction design, industrial design, information architecture, information design, visual interface design, user assistance design, and user-centered design, ensuring coherence and consistency across all of these design dimensions,” said Pabini Gabriel-Petit, the editor in chief of UX Matters, a web magazine that provides insight to professionals working in all aspects of user experience.

The minor is intended for Industrial Design, Psychology, Design and Computer Science majors.

The intent is for each student to be prepared to work in professional multi-disciplinary teams designing user experiences. They will be able to cross-communicate using the various languages and terminology of each discipline and be able to understand the unique perspective and alternative approaches that each discipline provides. At the end, students will have a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary, collaborative, interaction design project to show prospective employers.

Jason Morris, an associate professor of Engineering Technology at Western, said that the predicted enrollment of this minor is high, so a cap may be necessary to limit enrollment, with only 15 – 18 candidates accepted per year. Selection will be done through an application process and review of transcripts.

The new minor was formed with the collaboration of the four departments and advised by industry professionals from Artefact, Intel, Expedia and Microsoft.

For more information about the new UXD minor, please contact Jason Morris at Jason.morris@wwu.edu, (360) 650-2514, or visit http://www.wwu.edu/id/media/documents/wwuuxdapplication2013.pdf.

Contact: Eric Grimstead, Western Washington University’s Small Business Development Center, at (360) 778-1762 or eric.grimstead@wwu.edu or Carroll Solomon, Blaine Visitor Information Center, at (360) 332-4544 or at VIC@cityofblaine.com  

BLAINE – Western Washington University’s Small Business Development Center and the Blaine Chamber of Commerce will host a workshop to assist small-business owners with growing their companies at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 4 in the Blaine School District Ballroom at 765 H Street in Blaine.

The event is free and open to the public, but space is limited and registration is recommended. The Blaine Chamber of Commerce will provide a light dinner.

To register for the seminar, contact Carroll Solomon with the Blaine Visitor Information Center at (360) 332-4544 or at VIC@cityofblaine.com.

This seminar is aimed at helping existing business owners, recent start-ups and those contemplating new business ventures who want to know more about how to grow customers, increase profitability and secure the financing needed to reach business goals.

The two-hour seminar will cover best practices and winning strategies for attracting, acquiring and keeping quality customers, clients and subscribers, as well as where to look for funding needed for growth.

The workshop will cover the following topics:

Marketing

• Turning your website into a selling machine
• Best practices and examples of successful email marketing campaigns
• How to leverage Google, YouTube, Facebook, and other services for maximum exposure for your business

Financing

• How to increase the odds that the bank will say “yes” to your loan request
• Various loan programs that can fund your business growth
• How to run a successful Kickstarter campaign

Since 1983, the Small Business Development Center has enabled Western’s College of Business and Economics to give back to the business community and has helped to shape the economic future of Whatcom County. The SBDC provides free, confidential advising, technical assistance and research to business owners and managers in an effort to help businesses thrive throughout Whatcom County. For more information about the SBDC or its series, go to www.cbe.wwu.edu/sbdc.

For more information about the seminar contact Eric Grimstead, Western’s Small Business Development Center, at (360) 778-1762 or eric.grimstead@wwu.edu or Carroll Solomon, Blaine Visitor Information Center, at (360) 332-4544 or at VIC@cityofblaine.com.

Contact: John Barney, Western Washington University baseball coach, at (206) 719-5652

BELLINGHAM – Western Washington University’s Men’s Baseball Club won the Northern Pacific Regional collegiate club baseball title on Sunday, May 12 in La Grande, Ore.

The Vikings won their first game 9-4 against Montana State behind senior pitcher Mathew Burrows (Redmond). On Saturday, they continued strong with a 7-3 victory against Idaho State with pitcher Mason Weathers (Kenmore). They played Idaho State once more in Sunday’s title game and won 2-1 with a hit from tournament MVP and Vikings shortstop Pete Carlson (Bellingham).

John Barney (Seattle), the baseball team’s student coach and player, said that the team’s success was due to its overall aggressiveness and team speed. Out of 220 teams in the National Club Baseball Association, the Vikings are one of eight teams that will advance to the World Series on May 24-30 in Tampa, Fla.

Barney said that this is the second trip to the World Series for Western’s baseball team; the Vikings last qualified for the World Series in 2010.

The team is currently working on fundraising to obtain the $10,000 needed to get to Tampa. Barney said any donation, large or small, is greatly appreciated. Checks are made payable to WWU Baseball and sent to:

Campus Recreation Services

1880 Bill McDonald Pkwy

Bellingham, WA 98225-9098

For more information or to donate money to the team contact John Barney at (206) 719-5652 or barneyj@students.wwu.edu.

Contact: Trish Skillman, Woodring College of Education, TESOL program director, at Trish.Skillman@wwu.edu or (360) 650-3336.

BELLINGHAM ­­− Western Washington University’s Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) certificate program will hold an information session at 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 21 in Miller Hall, room 139.

Community members and college students alike are welcome to apply to the program as formal admission to Western is not required.

In our increasingly globalized world, a TESOL certificate demonstrates evidence of in-depth training that opens doors to international, national and local opportunities.

Western’s TESOL certificate program focuses on preparing students to teach internationally and with adult populations within the United States.

Students enrolled in the program will have the option of taking courses online only, in classrooms on Western’s campus, a combination of online and in-person classes, and through intensive summer programs in Bellingham and Mexico.

To earn a TESOL certificate, students must complete the 27 credits of TESOL track coursework with a minimum GPA of 2.7 and demonstrate study of another culture and the equivalent of one year of college-level foreign language study. Undergraduates can declare a TESOL minor after they have met these requirements.

For more information, please visit www.wwu.edu/tesol or e-mail tesol@wwu.edu.

Contact: Monica Marchak, Western Washington University student, at monicammarchak@hotmail.com

BELLINGHAM – Ten male students from Western Washington University’s College of Business and Economics will compete for the title of “Mr. CBE,” at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 14 in Western’s Old Main Theatre.

The second annual “Mr. CBE” is a mock beauty pageant put together by the Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity and Western’s Collegiate Chapter of DECA.

Admission is $5 and open to the public.

All proceeds will be donated toward Sacks of Love, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds and awareness for testicular cancer.

“Mr. CBE” tests the contestants in both a professional and fun setting. The event will consist of multiple sections including a group dance, a talent portion and professional portion where judges will ask the contests interview questions.

The contestants will be judged on their performance in all aspects of the pageant, as well as on the resumes they provided to the judges prior to the event.

Judges will consist of two community professionals, three professors from Western’s College of Business and Economics and last year’s Mr. CBE, Kaleb Ode, a junior majoring in Management.

Tickets are available through the WWU Box Office and at the Old Main Theater before the show.

For more information please contact Monica Marchak at monicammarchak@hotmail.com

Contact: Monica Marchak, Western Washington University student, at monicammarchak@hotmail.com

BELLINGHAM – Ten male students from Western Washington University’s College of Business and Economics will compete for the title of “Mr. CBE,” at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 14 in Western’s Old Main Theatre.

The second annual “Mr. CBE” is a mock beauty pageant put together by the Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity and Western’s Collegiate Chapter of DECA.

Admission is $5 and open to the public.

All proceeds will be donated toward Sacks of Love, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds and awareness for testicular cancer.

“Mr. CBE” tests the contestants in both a professional and fun setting. The event will consist of multiple sections including a group dance, a talent portion and professional portion where judges will ask the contests interview questions.

The contestants will be judged on their performance in all aspects of the pageant, as well as on the resumes they provided to the judges prior to the event.

Judges will consist of two community professionals, three professors from Western’s College of Business and Economics and last year’s Mr. CBE, Kaleb Ode, a junior majoring in Management.

Tickets are available through the WWU Box Office and at the Old Main Theater before the show.

For more information please contact Monica Marchak at monicammarchak@hotmail.com