Campus FYI for 10/24

Enrollment initiatives pay off

Many of you have an important role to play in the implementation of the Enrollment Management Plan. The efforts have paid off with successful increases in enrollment across all areas:

• 17 percent increase in new freshmen with 333 enrolled (goal of 340)
• 3.5 percent increase in new transfers with 624 enrolled (goal of 600)
• 12 percent increase in new graduate/business with 159 enrolled
• 3.7 percent increase in total headcount with 3,426 enrolled (goal of 3,430)

The admissions office has worked hard to make up for declining numbers of students transferring from Clark College consistent with overall low enrollment there. This fall saw a 25 percent increase in transfer students originating from schools other than Clark College.

The campus also exceeded the goal of increasing first-year (fall-to-fall) retention rates by 1 percent:

• Retention of full-time freshman is 76 percent compared to 72.4percent last fall
• Retention of full-time transfers is 85.7 percent compared to 84.8percent last fall

The enrollment plan project list is available on the Enrollment Management Council sharepoint site and will be updated monthly.

Growth is the third goal in WSU Vancouver’s 2016- 2021 strategic plan. Thank you to everyone who has helped with efforts to recruit and retain students.

Make sure you are registered to receive emergency notifications

To receive WSU Vancouver emergency messages, you must register. You can select how you wish to receive messages. If you are registered, you can change your preferences at any time.

To register or change your preferences, sign into myWSU and click the link under “Vancouver Emergency Info.” Fill in or update your information and click “submit.”

The WSU Vancouver mass notification system will notify you of significant emergencies or dangerous situations involving threats to the health and safety of our campus community.

TIAA-CREF individual counseling appointments available

TIAA-CREF representative Patrick Egan will be on campus 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Nov. 1 and 2 in the Undergraduate Classroom Building, Room 303.

A counseling session will help you answer these questions:

• Are my investments properly allocated?
• Am I on track to meet my retirement goals?
• Am I saving enough?
• How and from where do I draw retirement income?

Schedule a one-hour appointment in advance by calling 866-928-4221 (press 5) or visiting tiaa-cref.org/schedulenow.

Open Enrollment is fast approaching

Nov. 1 – 30 you can make changes to, and enroll in, certain benefits for the upcoming plan year. You may also take advantage of the first Life Insurance Open Enrollment in 40 years!

During Open Enrollment, you can:

• Change medical and/or dental plans
• Reinstate previously waived coverage, OR waive medical coverage, if you have other comprehensive group medical coverage
• Re-attest to the spousal premium surcharge question, if carrying a spouse/partner on medical coverage (May be required for some)
• Enroll or waive eligible family members from their coverage
• Enroll or re-enroll in a Flexible Spending Account and/or Dependent Care Assistance Program. (Re-enrollment is required if you wish to participate in these plans in 2017)
• Designate 2017 Health Savings Account annual election
• Change medical premium deduction to pre- or post-tax (IRS Section 152)
• Change tax status of a domestic partner or dependent (IRC Section 152) by completing the Declaration of Tax Status form

As of Nov. 1, most changes can be made online, and all can be made via hardcopy; forms will be available Nov. 1 at the HRS Open Enrollment website.

Find a gender-neutral restroom

WSU Vancouver is committed to creating an inclusive, accessible environment where all students can thrive. A gender-neutral restroom is one that anyone of any gender can use. They benefit all people, including people who are gender diverse, transgender, parents/caregivers and people with caregivers or personal attendants. Each of WSU Vancouver's gender-neutral restrooms are single-use restrooms.

Find gender-neutral restrooms on campus

• Physical Plant Building (next door to Parking Services), 1st floor (single-stall showers/changing rooms are also available at this location)
• Undergraduate Building, ground floor
• McClaskey Building, 2nd floor

Annual poinsettia and wreath sale supports CDP

Each year the Child Development Program sells poinsettias and holiday wreaths as a fundraiser. The money raised will go toward phase two of the CDP natural playground. Poinsettias come in red, white and pink. A six-inch pot is $12. An eight-inch pot and the 16-inch mixed-green wreath sell for $22 each. All orders must be submitted to Kathy in the CDP office and paid in full by Nov. 4. Pick up orders from 3 to 5 p.m. Nov. 29 in the Dengerink Administration Building, Room 129. Checks should be made out to WSU Foundation.

Fill a bag, feed a Coug

Support WSU Vancouver students in need by participating in the Fill a Bag, Feed a Coug food drive, Oct. 31 – Nov. 9. Go through your cupboards and pantries or hit your local grocery store for nonperishable food items. Most requested items include: peanut butter, canned meat, canned fruit, canned vegetables, macaroni and cheese, healthy snacks, pasta and sauce, rice and healthy cereals. Grocery bags will be placed in your department's mailroom/workroom for your convenience.

Before the holidays, food pantry volunteers will be preparing Thanksgiving meal baskets for students in need. If you’d like to donate perishable or nonperishable Thanksgiving food items, please contact Catherine Townsel, food pantry coordinator, at 6-9593.

Please refer students in need to the pantry. Thank you for helping keep the pantry shelves stocked!

Events

"Creating Safer Spaces for LGBTQ Students"

10:10 – 11:40 a.m. October 25
Firstenburg Student Commons, Room 104

Heidi Stanton Schnebly of WSU Pullman’s GIESORC will discuss how to be a better ally using a culturally competent framework to examine how our actions and words create an environment that is either inclusive or exclusive. The workshop will provide an overview on what it means to be an ally, basic terminology, contextual identity and theory to practice. Please RSVP to Amanda Shannahan.

Media, Politics and Culture

4 – 5:30 p.m. Oct. 25
Dengerink Administration Building, Room 110

Listen to a panel discussion on the role of media in this year’s presidential election and public discourse.

Culture Cafe

Lunchtime Oct. 25
Dengerink Administration Building Cafe

Enjoy brats and knacks with braised red cabbage and German potato salad for $5.50. The soup of the day, sold separately, will be Bavarian squash and apple.

Cougs in the Community

5:30 – 8 p.m. Oct. 25
Clark County Food Bank
6502 NE 47th Ave., Vancouver, WA 98661
Register

Volunteer with fellow Cougs to help break down and repack food donations to be distributed to Clark County Food Bank partners. Enjoy Blind Onion pizza from 4:45 – 5:15 p.m. and get a T-shirt (while supplies last).

LinkedIn Lab

3:10 p.m. Oct. 26
Undergraduate Building, Room 207

Learn how to use LinkedIn effectively in your job or internship search, get tips on how to expand your professional network and work on your profile with help from Career Services staff.                                   

Susan E. Eaton Talk

4:15 – 5:30 Oct. 26
Dengerink Administration Building, Room 110

Join author Susan E. Eaton as she speaks about her book, the 2016/17 Common Reading Program selection “Integration Nation: Immigrants, Refugees, and America at Its Best.”

“Equity for Students with Vision Impairments”

4 p.m. Oct. 27
Dengerink Administration Building, Rooms 129/130

Mike Mello, adaptive technology specialist from the Department of Services for the Blind, will speak about how to support students with vision impairments. Library faculty Nicole Campbell and Sue Phelps will discuss their research findings on how usable library resources are for vision-impaired students.

NW Noggin, “DREADD decisions: Patterns, fractals and drugs”

6 p.m. Oct. 27
Velo Cult Bike Shop
1969 42nd Ave., Portland, OR 97213

Jordan Blacktop, “the DREADDpool Dude” and a postdoctoral neuroscience researcher, will introduce DREADDs, a powerful chemogenetic technique for switching brain areas on, or off, and altering how networks of brain areas function, with potential for treating disorders like Parkinson’s and addiction. Sara McCormick (link is external), a Northwest print, textile and sculpture artist fascinated by fractals, will discuss these compelling, evolving patterns in nature and design, and present visually striking consequences of change to the underlying networks and algorithms that drive their developing form and behavior.

Re-Imagined Radio presents “Dracula”

7 p.m. Oct. 27
Kiggins Theatre
1011 Main Street, Vancouver, WA 98660

Join the Willamette Radio Workshop as they perform a live radio drama of "Dracula." Directed by Sam A. Mowry, "Dracula" is based on the 1938 performance by Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air.

College of Nursing Retirement Celebration

3 – 5 p.m. Nov. 9
Dengerink Administration Building, Room 129/130

Come celebrate Dawn Doutrich, assistant professor; and Susan Shaw, office support supervisor 1, who will retire from the College of Nursing at the end of the year.