Preparing for the Front Line

When COVID-19 hit Washington State, Karina Borges was a few weeks away from completing her first year of study in the Physician Assistant program. Heritage University shut down its campus in compliance with orders from the governor’s office. In what seemed like a blink of an eye, everything she and her cohort were working towards was now uncertain. How would they finish their courses so they could move into their clinical rotations? And, what would happen to those rotations? Would hospitals and medical clinics want to have students in their practices during a global pandemic?

“When the pandemic started, we were on spring break. We were ready to go back to campus to take two more exams and leave for clinicals, well that didn’t happen,” said Borges. “We didn’t get a chance to get back to campus and say goodbye to our classmates that we probably will not see until graduation; it was hard.”

Heritage University’s Physician Assistant cohort at the start of their first year of study in fall semester 2019.

Borges’s story is a familiar one as colleges nationwide shuttered their campuses and sent faculty, staff and students home to shelter in place following directives from state officials. While campuses closed, classes didn’t end. Like many colleges, Heritage shifted its classrooms from a physical location to a virtual platform, moving lectures and discussions online through Zoom. While this dramatic change provides challenges for all, some majors, such as those preparing students for careers in health care, have complexities that make remote education particularly daunting.

There are four degree programs at Heritage specifically geared towards preparing students for health care careers: Nursing, Medical Laboratory Sciences (MLS), Physician Assistant (PA) and Master of Arts in Medical Sciences (MAMs). All but the Master in Arts in Medical Sciences, which is a one-year didactic program designed to help students bolster their applications for medical, dental and other post-graduate health sciences schools, require a combination of classroom lectures, hands-on labs and clinical rotations. Transferring classroom lectures into the virtual space, while not ideal for all, is has been accomplished with some modifications. However, lab work is much more difficult. And, the clinical rotations where students meet with real patients in medical facilities under the supervision of licensed professionals is not only critical for preparing students, it is also required by the programs’ various accrediting bodies.

When issuing the order to stay home and stay safe, Washington’s governor included provisions for essential business to function and its workers to continue to go to work. Education in the broad sense was not included in these provisions; however, certain academic programs such as those training health care professionals received special dispensation. This gave Heritage’s nursing, MLS and PA programs greater leeway in academic delivery.

The impact felt by students in these three programs depends upon the program in which they are enrolled and their academic year within that program.

NURSING PROGRAM

There are 60 students studying to become nurses at Heritage, between those who have been accepted into the program and those who are pre-nursing, which means they have declared nursing as their major and are taking some nursing classes, but have not yet been accepted into the program.

Last September, nursing student Anitramarina Reyna assisted with the flu shot clinic at the Central Washington State Fair.

In Nursing, graduating seniors like Anitramarina Reyna were the luckiest of their peers. Senior-level nursing students complete 160 hours of clinical practicums during their final two semesters. In their final semester, they have to pass a comprehensive skills assessment exam called the HESI before they can graduate. Seniors completed all of their clinical rotations prior to the shutdown and only had didactic course work and their final exam left to complete.

“We were supposed to take the test when we returned to campus after spring break, but that was when all of the shutdowns began. We weren’t sure when, or if, we’d be able to take the test. Our professors were telling us ‘just keep studying, you will be taking it as soon as we figure out the logistics,’” said Reyna. “It was a very stressful situation, but one that we understood couldn’t be avoided.”

Junior and sophomore nursing students, on the other hand, were a bit more impacted. Several juniors’ clinical rotations ended early, meaning they have to make up the lost hours during their senior year. Additionally, Heritage pulled all sophomores from their rotations and scheduled them to make up those hours over the summer months. This started in June when students traveled to Seattle to spend time at Children’s Hospital.

“Our primary concern was for the safety of our students,” said Christina Nyirati, chair of the Nursing Program. “We told them to stay home and stay safe. We just didn’t have enough scientific data yet.”

Once word came from the governor’s office that health sciences programs could continue to operate in person with safety protocols in place, Nyirati and her team got to work building a plan to minimize academic interruptions and to get students to graduation on time. They developed a plan where on-campus activities, such as labs and seniors’ exit exams, could take place with strict hygiene, mandatory masks and social distancing guidelines. Nyirati worked with the program’s partnering healthcare facilities to reschedule clinical rotations. Only a very few partners dropped out because they are unable to accept students.

“Our clinical partners have been amazing! Particularly our rural hospitals,” she said. “They believe that we all, together, are responsible for raising up highly-skilled, competent, safe and effective nurses. They also see our students as part of the movement to create safe and effective care for our communities.”

Only a very few partners dropped out because they are unable to accept students.

“Our clinical partners have been amazing! Particularly our rural hospitals,” she said. “They believe that we all, together, are responsible for raising up highly-skilled, competent, safe and effective nurses. They also see our students as part of the movement to create safe and effective care for our communities.”

MEDICAL LABORATORY SCIENCE

For Medical Lab Science students, the pandemic brought a unique learning opportunity and a chance to be part of the fight against COVID-19. Students in this one-year program completed their on-campus course work in December and were deep into their clinical rotations in labs at area hospitals several months before COVID-19 shut down nonessential businesses.

Medical Laboratory Science student Lauren Breymeyer at her practicum at Kadlec Regional Medical Center.

Medical laboratory scientists process tissue, blood and other bodily fluid samples to aid physicians in diagnosing diseases. Labs throughout Central Washington are stretched thin as COVID-19 testing increases the demands placed on these scientists.

“What makes us different from other medical professionals is that we deal with infectious materials every day. This is our job. The labs where our students are placed never asked us to leave because this is what we do. They realized that our students are highly-trained and can be a lot of help as the demand for lab services increases,” said Terese Abreu, director of the MLS program.

For their part, the students report that they feel like they are getting an education unlike any other. They are working as part of the team of lab professionals, guiding the proper collection of samples for COVID testing, assisting with the validation of new equipment and testing protocols, and processing units of convalescent plasma for transfusion to critically ill patients, among other activities, which are needed to support the work of the providers and nurses.

“This year has turned out to be a lot more than I expected. Being in the medical field during a pandemic has definitely been interesting and has opened my eyes to some of the intricacies of the healthcare field in America. It has only strengthened my passion for what I am doing and my passion for public health and lab medicine,” said MLS student Lauren Breymeyer.

This year’s cohort graduates in August, and next year’s cohort begins at the same time. The challenge for Abreu really lies with the incoming class. As in years past, the program will start with lectures and on-campus labs. However, students will attend classes virtually and meet on campus once every two weeks instead of the previous all- day, every-day model. In January, when they enter into their practicum, they will spend six weeks in a lab and one week on campus receiving “just in time” training around specific study areas. With only three or four students in a study area at a time, this will limit the number of students in classrooms and campus labs at a time.

“What our program is known for, why students seek us out, is the intense, hands-on community-based training that we provide, and the individualized training. If anything, they will be getting more of both,” said Abreu.

PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT

The Master of Science in Physician Assistant is a two-year program that has students on campus during their first year, then in clinical rotations
for their final year of study. Because Heritage’s program took a year off from enrolling students to build improvements in administrative practices, there was only one cohort enrolled in March. They were a few months away from completing their didactic studies and most were placed and ready to start their clinical rotations in mid-May. When the COVID-19 shut down began, the didactic portion of their studies went online. While online classes are challenging for some who prefer face- to-face models, the greater challenge is the clinical rotations. Students complete rotations in a variety of study areas: primary care, maternal health, pediatrics, emergent care, among others. Some practices chose to close their clinics to students in the wake of COVID.

“A third of our students’ primary care rotations were delayed and five were outright canceled. With a clinical cohort of 30 students, half were left without a clinical rotation at the start of the summer. We had to get creative and worked closely with our accrediting agency to ensure that the alternatives we came up with would still meet their requirements,” said Dr. Linda Dale, chair of the Physician Assistant Program.

Borges was one of the third whose clinical rotations were interrupted.

“I was supposed to start my primary care rotation at Farmworkers Clinic on May 18. As we were approaching my start date, I got an email saying that due to COVID-19 my rotation was delayed until June, then in June, I got another email stating that I was delayed until August. It was very heart breaking. Farmworkers clinic was my top choice to do my primary care rotation since I was going to serve a high number of Spanish-speaking patients,” she said.

Dale and her team scrambled to help students like Borges find alternatives. In her case, she was able to move to a rotation at the Union Gospel Mission in Yakima. Others were placed in rotations in other specialty areas. Where those couldn’t be found, the team got creative. One of the faculty members, Holly Clark, PA-C, MPH, developed a COVID-19 clinical rotation that addresses the specifics of the pandemic. Additionally, the program contracted with PA Excel, a national provider of virtual rotations that is approved by the PA Programs’ accrediting agency.

Through virtual rotations, the teaching physician sees a patient in the morning. The doctor will write notes about the case and send them to students. The students then spend the afternoon researching the case and writing what is essentially a medical chart note with their observations and suggested treatment plans. The entire cohort then meets virtually to critique three of the submitted notes chosen at random.

“This is a stop-gap,” said Dale. “We’re looking at this company as a possibility for our obstetrics and pediatric rotations. These are both extremely difficult to get students placed into during normal times. You can imagine the difficulty now when clinics want to limit the number of people coming in contact with their patients. The beauty of our clinical year is that our students see kids and women’s health patients during their family practice rotation, so they do get the experience. The online program can supplement this and help us meet accreditation standards.”

For students entering the program in May, Dale and her team established similar protocols as those set by Nursing and MLS. Lectures will take place online; the hands-on labs and testing will take place on campus using strict distancing and hygiene guidelines. The newest cohort has already expressed discontent with the online education and are eager to return to campus where they can build relationships with their classmates and support each other through this rigorous program.

WORKING TO FILL THE CRITICAL NEED

Dale, Abreu and Nyirati all agree that the work they are doing, what their students are doing, is critical to the health and well-being of the entire community.

“This thing (COVID-19) isn’t going away anytime soon,” said Dale. “I’m afraid that physicians, physician assistants, nurses, our lab scientists, are going to get burned out. Even worse, some will fall ill, maybe even fatally. We need to get replacements, our students, trained and well prepared so they can be there to protect us all.”

Heritage in the time of Coronavirus

Dining rooms and bedrooms become classrooms as COVID-19 forces Heritage to take student learning online through Zoom. Here, Professor Corey Hodge leads one of her social work classes.

Dr. Melissa Hill, vice president orders limiting gatherings of more that all non-essential businesses for student services, vividly recalls the days leading up to the closure of Heritage University’s campus in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic. On February 27, she and her fellow vice presidents and President Andrew Sund were traveling to Seattle for a leadership conference. Just two days prior, Seattle and King County officials confirmed the first United States COVID-19-related death of a patient in a nursing facility. By the time the team returned to campus a few days later, the number of cases had climbed to 14, and deaths associated with the disease had increased to six. News reports were filled with stories of concerned citizens calling for the closure of Seattle-area businesses, schools and universities.

“We realized that we were entering into an unprecedented time and that we needed to move rapidly to build our plan of action,” said Hill.

The university’s leadership team started meeting daily to prepare a contingency plan in case they had to close the campus. As they worked to figure out how to minimize the impact on students’ education, the rate of infection in western Washington state continued to climb. On Friday, March 6, three Puget Sound area colleges announced they were closing their campuses and moving instruction online, just as Heritage students were wrapping up their midterms and heading off to spring break. By the following Wednesday, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global pandemic, and Washington’s governor made his first orders limiting gatherings of more than 200 people.

“We were watching things escalate pretty rapidly in western Washington,” said Hill. “As the number of cases climbed higher and higher in the Seattle area, we seemed pretty isolated here in the Yakima Valley. Still, we knew it was just a matter of time before it would come across the Cascades and into our community.”

By the end of spring break, it was clear that the university had to move instruction online, at least for the short term. Sund announced on Friday, March 13, that spring break was extended by one week to give faculty and students time to prepare to move to small group meetings, where social distancing could be observed, and remote learning. The plan was to resume the semester on Monday, March 23, with campus offices open and staff in place, but almost all instruction online for the next two weeks. However, on the day classes were slated to begin, the governor issued an executive order that all non-essential businesses were to close their physical spaces, and workers were to stay home. By 11:00 that morning, everyone was sent home, the campus was shut down, and all classes and business functions were moved online.

“One of the things that we did well was responding rapidly when it became clear that we were going to have to dramatically change the way we do business,” said Sund. “Things were shifting daily, sometimes hourly, and we needed to be flexible. We had to ensure the health and safety of our students, faculty and staff, and we needed to build ways that everyone could remain safe and complete their education.”

Miles apart but still close together, Heritage’s various departments continue to operate through virtual meetings.

MOVING INTO THE VIRTUAL WORLD

Moving from traditional classrooms to remote learning took a team of individuals with varying specialties. Luckily, much of the infrastructure was in place for distance learning and telecommuting. The university’s Information Technology (IT) department rebuilt its infrastructure following the 2013 fire that destroyed Petrie Hall. The new system contained redundancies to protect critical data from future catastrophes. A by-product of this precaution is that there is more than enough space available to handle the demands of an entire campus working remotely.

Remote learning and telecommuting had been in existence on some level for years at Heritage. Many faculty and staff could already access their desktop computers remotely. MyHeritage, the university’s academic platform, was in place and used to varying levels of its full capacity by faculty and students. Much of the work preparing for the campus closure was training those who were not already familiar with remote access and assisting full time and adjunct faculty who were not fully utilizing MyHeritage with moving their entire curriculum onto the platform. While the university’s Center for Intercultural Learning & Teaching provided MyHeritage training and support, IT secured Zoom accounts for all faculty, staff and students to use for meetings, team projects and group study, and virtual classrooms.

Dr. Yusuf Incetas – photo right – and his ED 496 Senior Capstone students meet virtually online through Zoom.

“By far, our biggest challenge was ensuring that everyone had access to computers and Wi-Fi from off-campus,” said Aaron Krantz, director of IT. “We distributed every laptop we had at our disposal, and we’re purchasing additional laptops for distribution when fall semester opens.”

Aside from the academic challenges, Heritage had to build its strategies surrounding student services. Even during normal times, the demand for student services such as the Academic Skills Center (ASC) and tutoring, CAMP and TRIO, and the HU Cares program is high.

“Many of our students need these extra supports to succeed in college. Tutoring is critical and our ASC moved rapidly to open virtual face-to-face tutoring,” said Hill. “As the semester progressed with virtual classrooms, we received an increasing number of referrals to HU Cares (a safety-net program that assists students in crisis with extra support such as emergency funding, mental health counseling, food and transportation assistance.)”

Hill explained that the issues students faced varied from food insecurity to greater need for assistance with mental health issues, to struggling with being able to work well in the new environment.

“A major challenge for our students is identifying a safe and quiet place to study,” said Hill. “Not only were they at home trying to stay connected and learn, many of our students have school-aged children or younger siblings who were also home needing to access computers and study areas to do their work. When we would ask students, ‘where is your quiet space to do your work?’ we were frequently told, ‘I don’t have one.’ It’s a real challenge when you share a small space with your active family, juggling everyone’s needs.

“On top of that, we have a higher number of students who share their homes with essential workers, particularly in agriculture. This is an area that is being particularly hard- hit by the pandemic. We saw an increase in mental health issues such as stress, depression and anxiety as students dealt with these pressures.”

Heritage addressed these needs through a variety of means. The university contracted with a licensed therapist to provide additional mental health services through remote access. Funds received from the government’s CARES Act Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund helped address food insecurity. Every Heritage student received $500 to assist with financial hardships brought on by the pandemic. The money came from a combination of private contributions to the university’s Emergency Fund and funding received from the federal government’s CARES Act Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. DACA students, who were explicitly excluded from receiving assistance through the CARES act, were provided assistance through giving by several private donors who wanted to ensure they had the same level of support as non-DACA students.

Throughout it all, communication was, and remains, key throughout the shutdown. Heritage hosted several live Zoom information sessions in both English and Spanish. Some were specific to university operations and academic delivery during the shutdown. Others focused on the virus and safety precautions everyone can take to limit its spread.

Enzo Eagle helps Heritage Admissions distribute new student welcome packets during a drive up session at the university.

RECRUITING FOR THE CLASS OF 2024

It isn’t just the current class of Heritage students impacted by the pandemic. At the time of the campus closure, admissions counselors were hard at work bringing in the upcoming class of Heritage Eagles. While many universities’ application and acceptance periods were passed, Heritage maintains open admissions. Students can and do, apply for admission throughout the year, sometimes as close as a few days before the start of the semester.

The months before high school graduations tend to be among the busiest for Heritage recruiters as they help incoming students complete their application requirements and reach out to other prospective students who are just beginning to consider their options.

The order to close campus meant admissions counselors could no longer meet prospective students in person, on campus. However, it didn’t mean the face-to-face meetings stopped. Counselors and student ambassadors moved their work into their home offices, meeting with future Eagles virtually through Zoom.

Additionally, the university modified some admissions requirements to remove barriers that could keep students from enrolling. For example, the university changed the requirement for official transcripts. The closure of school districts made it difficult for students to access official transcripts. However, they do have access to an online grade book that shows the courses taken and the grades received throughout their high school career. Heritage is now using these in place of the transcripts until official transcripts can be acquired. Additionally, the requirement for placement testing to determine students’ level of college readiness is waived. Instead, placement for math and English are being determined through SAT or ACT scores, when available, or through documents being used as transcripts.

Incoming students like Viviana Phillips, from A.C. Davis High Schoo, took advantage of Admissions’ drive-up pick-up option to receive their new student welcome packets over the summer.

“The burden of these times shouldn’t be placed on these students’ shoulders,” said Gabriel Piñon, director of Admissions. “Heritage University is all about access and equity. We are going to do everything we can to ensure that those who want to earn a college degree can do so.”

Where things got a little tricky for Admissions was the public celebrations of full-ride scholarship recipients that’s become a tradition for the university.
Each year in the early spring, Heritage makes surprise visits to the homes and schools of the winners of its full-ride scholarships to announce their award. Each recipient is celebrated and presented with an oversized check in front of an audience of their family, teachers and peers. That couldn’t happen this year. What also couldn’t happen was in-person, on-campus presentations of college starter gift boxes to every accepted and enrolled new student.

“These personal, high-touch interactions with our incoming class are an important part of welcoming students and getting them introduced to the campus culture,” said Piñon.

The Admissions team adjusted to the “new normal” by setting up drive-up awards. Recipients came to Heritage with their families in their cars to receive their accolades and gifts. Heritage shared their stories with the rest of the HU community through social media postings.

Despite the challenges, the outlook for new student enrollment is good. The university is on course to enroll 350 new students for fall 2020. This is 10% above last year’s incoming class.

SILVER LININGS

While the changes to business practices and academic delivery had to happen rapidly and did cause some disruption in the short-term, some of the outcomes have the potential to be beneficial to students in the future.

Dr. Kazu Sonoda, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, points to the university’s growing ability to implement blended models of traditional, in-person classrooms with synchronous and non- synchronous course delivery.

Working from home is the new normal for Heritage faculty and staff, including Enedeo Garza III, one of our student ambassadors who work in Admissions.

“Our students have a lot of challenges and demands on their time that can interfere with their schooling. For example, a broken- down car can make it difficult for a student to get to a class,” he said. “If a student misses one or two classes, it can be challenging to catch up. Being able to provide a blended model of education, where students can attend class in real-time in person or online, or to revisit the class virtually at another time, can keep them engaged and keep them from falling behind.”

The university is working with an outside consultant this summer to make improvements to its distance learning delivery both to address the immediate needs as well as for planning for future applications.

2020/21 ACADEMIC YEAR

In late spring and early summer, much of Washington state began to see cases of COVID-19 flatten. Counties were able to move into Phase 2, meaning some businesses could start to open. However, such was not the case in Yakima County, where Heritage is situated. In June, Yakima had the dubious distinction of having the highest infection rate in the western United States. What this means for the university’s ability to return to business, as usual, remains unknown.

“We are watching this situation very closely and following the directives put forth by the governor,” said Sund. “Heritage will definitely have classes in session this fall. We’re working on contingencies for every possibility, from continuing with online courses to transitioning back into the classroom. Ultimately our goal is to provide a quality academic experience for our students so that they can remain on track to earn their degrees and begin their careers.”

Incoming freshman and Soar Scholarship recipient Bryana Soto-Guillen and her family drove up to Heritage to receive her big celebratory check from Admissions Director Gabriel Piñon.

Heritage University to safely reopen campus for classes for the fall 2020 semester

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Heritage University to partially reopen campus for classes for the fall 2020 semester

Toppenish, Wash. – Heritage University President Dr. Andrew Sund announced a plan to partially reopen campus for fall 2020 semester classes, at the main campus in Toppenish and its regional site at Columbia Basin College (CBC) in the Tri-Cities. Dr. Sund said one of the developments that led to this decision is Washington State governor Jay Inslee’s proclamation allowing colleges and universities to reopen. Sund also said Yakima County’s recent progress in containing the spread of the virus, resulting in its classification in Phase 1.5, is another reason for the partial reopening.

Dr. Sund said there is another set of circumstances for Heritage students that require a campus presence. “Heritage exists to serve students who face difficulties accessing higher education for various reasons, one of which is that they want to stay in this wonderful valley we call home. However, many students do not have the conditions in their homes to conduct significant academic work. Internet connectivity is unreliable and space is limited – especially if they have siblings in the home all of whom need quiet study space and access to high-speed Internet,” Sund said. “For them, access to higher education means coming to campus.”

Under Heritage’s safe reopening plan approved by the Yakima Health District, many courses will offer a combination of face-to-face instruction as well as remote learning. When on campus, steps will be taken to ensure that class sizes are kept small to allow for safe social distancing. In many cases, classes will be divided into subsections where one group comes to class and the other learns online one day, and then the groups switch for the next day. Students will also determine their ability to come to campus based on health-related concerns for themselves and their family members.

The majority of student support activities will be offered online. However, students who want in-person tutoring at the university’s Academic Skills Center will be accommodated by setting up Plexiglas dividers between the tutor and student.

Dr. Sund said every precaution will be taken to ensure the safety of all students, faculty and staff while on campus. “While we recognize that it is important to open our campus for instruction because of the needs of our students, we must do so while following the strictest safety protocols,” Sund said. Other protocols include the requiring of wearing facemasks at all times and the constant cleaning, disinfecting and sanitizing of classrooms and other locations in use.

“Above all else, we must continue to lead with our mission, always acting in the best interest of our students across all aspects of their beings, their health and safety and their determination to continue to move forward with their lives and education,” said Sund.

More details on the safe opening plan can be found at heritage.edu/coronavirus.

To request an interview, please contact Davidson Mance at (509) 969-6084 or mance_d@heritage.edu.

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Mabton School District receives $5,000 grant from Yakima Valley Partners for Education to help students impacted by Covid-19

Mabton School District receives $5,000 grant from Yakima Valley Partners for Education to help students impacted by Covid-19

Toppenish, Wash. – The Mabton School District has received a $5,000 grant from Yakima Valley Partners for Education (YVPE) to help 850 students impacted by the coronavirus. The district will use the money for school supply kits that will be distributed to students through its school meal distribution program which delivers more than 6,000 meals to kids at 73 locations across the district.

Dr. Joey Castilleja, the superintendent of the Mabton School District said his district was hard hit by school closures due to the virus. “Without a lot of notice, we were all suddenly expected to attend and teach school online. Families were just not ready for such an endeavor. Things as simple as scissors and glue sticks are basic school supplies that kids now need at home. These supplies mean a lot to our kids,” said Castilleja. “By providing students with the tools they need to complete their school assignments, they have one less barrier to overcome due to Covid-19.”

Save the Children secured $2,500 and obtained a matching grant from First Book, a non-profit based in Washington D.C. for a total of $5,000 for the kits. Save the Children is one of the more than a dozen partners of YVPE, a coalition formed by Heritage University to address the challenges of educational attainment faced by communities in Yakima County across the cradle-to-career continuum. This collaborative approach is known as Collective Impact and is already showing promise in the lower Yakima Valley.

Save the Children, which operates in more than 200 rural communities across 13 states, joined YVPE through its partnership with the Grandview School District. In Grandview, Save the Children offers its “Early Steps to School Success” home-visiting program to children ages three years old and younger and their parents. Save the Children, a national leader in early childhood education, has leveraged its resources in support of children and families throughout the lower Yakima Valley.

For more information, contact Suzy Diaz, Heritage University – Collective Impact Director at Diaz_S@Heritage.edu or (509) 480-9354.

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First-ever virtual “Bounty of the Valley” Scholarship Dinner raises more than $817,000 for student scholarships

Toppenish, Wash. – Heritage University’s 34th annual “Bounty of the Valley” Scholarship Dinner, which was held virtually this past Saturday evening, brought in $734,755 during the event. Gifts coming in over the four days following the program have resulted in an additional $83,750, for a total of more than $817,000 as of Wednesday. The gifts will be given directly to students as scholarships this coming year.

The premier fundraiser for student scholarships at Heritage University, normally held at the Heritage campus in Toppenish, had to be done differently this year due to coronavirus limitations. It became a one-hour television event aired in central Washington on KAPP/KVEW-TV and live-streamed on the Heritage website.

The program featured many video segments of Heritage students sharing their Heritage experience and describing the ways scholarships made their dreams of going to college possible. Student speaker Maria Soto shared her story – that because of her parents’ sacrifices and scholarships made possible by the university’s supporters, as well as her determination, she was able to earn a degree in social work from Heritage. She talked about her goal now of helping the area’s agriculture workers thrive.

Heritage alumni also appeared and gave insight into the careers they’ve been able to pursue as a result of earning their degrees.

Several longtime corporate sponsors and individual supporters also appeared on the program. Many said they’d first given to Heritage after learning about the numerous obstacles students face on their educational journey and have continued to do so over the years. They encouraged people watching the program to contribute as well.

Dana Eliason, Heritage’s Senior Director of Donor Relations, expressed elation at the results of the first-ever virtual event: “Our team realized in March that we were going to have to do this critical fundraiser entirely differently this year.  And friends of the university recognized the importance of responding with their contributions. We are so grateful they responded as they did.”

 

Heritage University’s President Dr. Andrew Sund, said he is thankful that the event introduced Heritage to a wide audience of people who may not have known a lot about the university or how  students’ educational goals depend on a wide range of donors.

 

“In addition to being able to reach our existing friends, we’ve made many new friends across the valley and the state this year,” said Sund. “I’m hopeful they have found a place in their hearts for Heritage.”

The virtual Bounty of the Valley Scholarship dinner can be viewed in its entirety on the Heritage University website at Heritage.edu/SD2020. Donations to student scholarships can be made on the same page by clicking on the “Support Me” button. For more information, contact Dana Eliason at (509) 865-0441 or Eliason_D@Heritage.edu.

 

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Reflection by Heritage University President Andrew Sund

Dear Heritage Community:

These past few days have been days of deep reflection for me. The brutal death of George Floyd, the subsequent demonstrations, and the violence around them have changed our nation in ways we are not fully prepared to understand.

The United States promises a society of opportunity and equity for all. We have always known that this promise is incomplete. Yet, since last week we have seen this incompleteness explode before our eyes. We have seen how there is no one United States, but many. Far too many of our citizens live in a United States of inequity and fear. The opportunities that many take for granted are completely absent for others. The agencies  that lead many to feel safe are forces of fear and violence for others.

These past few days I have also been reflecting about my own life. Am I doing enough to confront injustice and build a better society?  I hope that in these times we all ask ourselves similar questions.

This is perhaps an incomplete answer but I do believe in Heritage University. I do believe in our mission and that through a strong education we can make a difference in our world. Our graduates and our students represent the best of the United States and help us get closer to its promise.

However, I am deeply aware that Heritage is also imperfect. Our society still suffers from multiple forms of racism, overt and subtle, and Heritage University is not immune to this. Many times we fall into traps that lead, inadvertently, to unfairness.

My commitment is that as a University will work every day to overcome our own limitations and every day get closer to the promise of the United States.

 

Andrew C. Sund, Ph.D.
President

Heritage University to present the annual Bounty of the Valley Scholarship Dinner on KAPP and KVEW TV Saturday, June 6 at 7pm

HU President Andrew Sund as he appeared through a camera viewfinder during the recording of segments for the virtual Bounty of the Valley Scholarship Dinner (Ross Courtney Photos).

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Heritage University to present the annual Bounty of the Valley Scholarship Dinner on KAPP and KVEW TV Saturday, June 6 at 7pm

Toppenish, Wash. – For 34 years, the annual Bounty of the Valley Scholarship Dinner has been hosted on the Heritage University campus in Toppenish on the first Saturday of June.  This year because of the coronavirus safety protocols in effect, the University has had to create a virtual scholarship dinner.  The one-hour event will air on KAPP/KVEW TV in Yakima and in the Tri-Cities as well as stream online at heritage.edu/sd2020 on Saturday, June 6 at 7 pm.

The Bounty of the Valley Scholarship Dinner is the University’s most important fundraiser of the year.  All of the proceeds go directly to student scholarships in the coming academic year and according to David Wise, Vice President of University Advancement the need for scholarships has never been greater. “In the changed world that we find ourselves in at the moment, so many students and their families have lost their jobs, which they count on to help pay for college.  In order for our students to stay in school, the need for scholarship support will be more critical now than ever.”

The event will feature stories from Heritage students and alumni, as well as appearances from many community, business, and political leaders. Wise is optimistic about the event and its ability to raise the funds needed.  “If there is one thing I know about the Yakima Valley it is about the generosity of the people who live here.  I think it is the nature of this special place we call home.  There is a pride in this valley and a desire to help the community thrive.  They see education as vital to continued growth and demonstrate their belief in the Heritage mission through their giving.

Dana Eliason, Senior Director of Donor Relations at Heritage is usually the chief architect of the annual dinner and was both melancholy and excited about this year’s virtual event.  “I will so miss seeing all of our amazing friends who gather on campus each year in June.  But I know in my heart it is not the dinner that they come for, it is the stories of our students.  That is why they come each year and that is why they give.  The students they invest in go on to contribute to our wonderful community in meaningful ways.  That is the dividend our donors reap from their giving.”

President of Heritage University, Dr. Andrew Sund thinks that not only does the virtual scholarship event have the potential to raise the necessary scholarship funds needed for students, but has the potential to introduce Heritage to a wide audience across the valley, who may have heard about Heritage but not know much about it. “I will miss the annual gathering on campus, it is always such a joyful evening.  But I think we will make many new friends across the valley as a result.  I know they will be encouraged by what they learn, and I hope, find a new place in their hearts for Heritage.”

For more information, contact Davidson Mance, Director of Media Relations at Heritage University, (509) 969-6084 or mance_d@heritage.edu.

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New Yakima Valley education initiative secures $11,000 in grants to help Yakima Valley families impacted by Covid-19

Toppenish, Wash. – A $10,000 grant secured by the Yakima Valley Partners for Education (YVPE) will be used to help 220 families in the Lower Yakima Valley impacted by the Covid-19 virus. The Latino Community Fund of Washington, one of the members of YVPE, secured the grant from the Communities of Color Coalition, and will use the money to give food vouchers to families in Mabton, Grandview and Sunnyside hardest hit by business closures due to the virus. Fiesta Foods in Sunnyside is also providing $1,000 to help with this emergency relief.

Micaela Razo, project manager for Latino Community Fund in central Washington, said many low-income migrants in Mabton, Grandview and Sunnyside now have no incomes to feed their families after losing their jobs. “These families have no other way to provide for their loved ones, and are in need of the economic support this grant will bring,” said Razo.

Latino Community Fund is a member of YVPE, an organization formed by Heritage University to tackle the challenges of educational attainment faced by communities in Yakima County across the cradle to career continuum – also known as collective impact.

In administering this specific grant, the organization will work with the school districts of Grandview, Mabton and Sunnyside to identify the families impacted by Covid-19 to provide them with food vouchers they can use immediately.

Biking in the Snow

I am flat out suspicious of adults who ride bicycles. Not that I am proud of this fact. I just want to own up to it from the start. I should also add that I am an adult who owns and on occasion rides a bicycle. This last bit of information I throw in to underscore my self-awareness that hypocrisy and prejudice are not strangers, they are bedfellows.

Where I grew up adults didn’t ride bicycles. In the late 50’s and early 60’s kids rode bikes. And although we rode them everywhere, I don’t recall ever thinking of them as modes of transportation or even exercise equipment. They were just bicycles. The thing most kids did. It was our medium and connector. Kind of a crank and chain powered Facebook.

For us transportation implied an attached motor and exercise came by working for a living. My father tolerated bike riding if you were a child. But that faded as you grew in age. By puberty when, in his mind, you should begin to start contributing to your own keep, he was known to boil over on this topic at times.

His rant was usually along the lines of, “Look, if you can’t find something more productive to do than ride your bicycle all day I would rather you just lock yourself in your room. If you want to be a goof off fine, just spare me your advertising the fact all over town.”

It stayed with me. Today when I see an adult riding a bicycle my mind runs along one of two long established paths. The first — there goes a person who has too much time, money, and calories to burn. Can’t they find something more productive to do? Or, if they are pedaling along without thousand-dollar biking togs I think — there goes someone who has lost everything and is reduced to transportation by child’s toy. How sad… Please don’t break into my house! The first type makes me angry, the second makes me guilty and anxious. I am not a good witness to others fortune or their misfortunes. Leave me to my own, thank you very much!

Recently my wife and I realized a lifetime dream and purchased a travel trailer. After a snowy 250-mile cross Cascade drive to bring it home I discovered I had under-estimated the size of the required storage facility and over-estimated my rusty backing skills. When that reality became unavoidable, I resigned myself to the fact that, for the night at least, I would have to park it on the dead-end street in front of our house. A matter that would require maneuvering the combined 47 foot truck and trailer in reverse, downhill, for a block on a dark and now snow slicked road.

Growing up farming backing large and often oddly shaped trailers was a required skill. It became second nature and I prided myself on being quite good at it. Something my daughter struggled to believe, having gamely stood in the wet cold for a considerable length of time trying to safely guide me down the street. On what must have been the 10th but more likely the 20th attempt I once again lined up and made a quick scan down the street I was blocking. While thankful there were no headlights, I did pick up movement a block and a half away. It was a sole bicyclist. Even from the distance you could see it was likely a single gear curb crasher, no lights, no reflective clothes, no helmet, a growing black shape pushing itself into focus through the blowing snow.

As bike and rider approached, it glided through the full illumination of my headlights. Rather than continuing down the street, however he made a sharp turn and pulled up next to my open window. Slipping off the seat to straddle the cross bar was a man who appeared to be in his late forties or early fifties. Dressed in well-worn winter coveralls or perhaps a snowmobile suit, knit cap, and gloves. He was thin, tall, fit and had a friendly face and open manner.

“Where you headed with this thing?” he asked. I said I needed to get it down in front of my place for the night and given the conditions I was being extra cautious. An answer that while technically true, glossed over the obvious fact that from the outside it looked an awful lot like I didn’t know what I was doing. He smiled reassuringly and gave me that special nod that truly stand-up guys give when they recognize one of their own is jammed up and not trying to draw attention to the fact.

“You know, I used to back trucks for a living and could get that right where you want. It wouldn’t take a minute?” With keen observation he read the hesitancy on my face to even briefly swap possession of my truck and trailer for his bicycle. He quickly added, “I live down at the other end of the neighborhood and was just headed over to Jill’s house to feed her animals while she is out of town.”

The addition of the appended set of “references” to his truck driving CV, plus the hours already spent in futility, and my daughter’s plea of, “Dad, let him try” was enough to tip my judgement. I opened the door, stepped into the street and let him slide in behind the wheel.

True to his word he smoothly glided the entire rig down the snowy hill, positioning it expertly in front of our driveway. As he stepped out I shook his hand, wounded ego in recovery mode by virtue of his grace and the relief of being done for the night.

“You need to let me give you something for this.” My mind scrambling to process how I would do this with a wallet I knew was running on empty.

He replied, “You know, I didn’t do this so you would pay me, but I have been homeless for the past few years and am just getting back on my feet. I finally have a car but no gas and it’s Christmas and I would surely appreciate anything you could do.”

Pulling my wallet out and handing him the few dollars I had, I proposed that he finish his errand and come back. I could then take him to his car so we could go to the gas station and fill his tank. He seemed both surprised and appreciative and within 20 minutes was back at my door.

Leaving his bike behind to claim later the three of us climbed into the car and headed off. We all introduced ourselves and expressed our mutual gratitude for the good turn to the evening. Well spoken and polite, David complimented us on our home following up with the one question that always puts a knot in my stomach. “What do you do for a living?”

I attempted a deflection by answering, “I am at that wonderful point in my life where I am starting to retire.” But he wasn’t having it.

“You look like you have done well. What did you do when you were working?” Too far from our destination to run the clock out with another stall. I would have to provide an answer.

Now, I love and am proud of what I have done for a living. It has been meaningful for me and is the perfect definition of the adage “love what you do and you will never have to work a day in your life”, but I have found that telling people you make your living by helping raise and give money away isn’t relatable for most. When I say it to folks not from that world I always imagine the lyrics of Dire Straits’ “Money for Nothing” starts running through their head.

Growing up I was taught working for a living involved spending your days, winter included, outdoors. And, as evidenced by both my father and grandfather’s hands, involved the risk of loss or damage to limbs or appendages. I have never been afraid of that kind of work when necessary. I even have a modestly shortened pinky finger to prove it. But its harshness did encourage me to finish college. And when I learned I could make as much or more by essentially talking for a living, I started moving my life in that direction.

Having had this conversation before I knew to keep it short and specific.

“I work in philanthropy. My career has been helping to raise and distribute money to worthy and charitable causes. I just finished helping raise funds to build a new YMCA and aquatic center and am currently working to rebuild a school district on an Indian reservation that hasn’t had a new building since the 1930’s.”

If he disapproved, it didn’t show, he just politely said, “Wow, I didn’t know people did that kind of thing.”

We arrived at the mobile home park where he was living and he directed me to his parked car. He got out as I waited to follow him.

He pulled into the station and was readying his tank when I parked, walked over, and put my card in the pump. He asked how much he should put in and I said to fill it. As he was finishing I went to the cash machine to get a few extra bucks. I folded up the bills and handed them to him as we prepared to say goodbye. We both thanked each other and he asked to be sure and let him know if anything came up where someone needed a good worker. I gave him a couple of suggestions, promised to think of more, and gave him my business card and told him to use me as a reference to anyone he needed. Almost as an afterthought I asked, “So David, are you from here?”

“No,” he answered, “I grew up on a cattle ranch my dad ran for a guy down on the Snake River”

The Snake River is over 1,000 miles long. It runs from Wyoming where it flows down from the Rockies high above Jackson and crosses the full width of southern Idaho before turning north and to carve Hell’s Canyon and define a portion of the Idaho Oregon border. Its final stretch turns west through the southwest corner of Washington where it empties into the Columbia River at Lake Wallula. At its closest point it’s about 500 miles from where my mom and dad homesteaded in 1945 after Dad was discharged from the Marines and came home from the Pacific. I know the name of just one ranch on the Snake River.

“Really? What ranch?”

“The Flying H. It doesn’t exist as such anymore. Not a lot of people ever knew about it.” he answered.

“Maurice and Kathleen Hitchcock’s place? Your dad was Maurice and Kathleen’s rancher?”

We shared a wide-eyed stare. I went on, “My grandfather was Maurice’s very first employee. He hired him as his mechanic and donkey puncher when Maurice was starting out as a gypo logger outside of Sisters Oregon. As he and Kathleen became more successful and Grandpa aged, he kept him on as his grounds keeper and handyman. My grandmother was their cook and housekeeper. The Hitchcock’s supported both long past their work life and safely into the next. They were among my family’s closest and most admired friends.”

David told a similar story of how Maurice and Kathleen had paid for his dad’s college education, as they did for many students in the small town where their mills were located. After his Dad’s graduation he was hired by them to run their ranching operations. His dad sadly passed due to cancer in his mid-fifties. As an afterthought he added that his grandfather was the superintendent of schools in the town where the Hitchcock’s mill and home place were located.

Stunned again I stared back, “Vic and Thelma Anderson? You’re Vic and Thelma’s grandson? Your grandparents ran the school my siblings and I attended. In fact, I am pretty sure your father or uncle were classmates of my oldest brother. That school I told you I was trying to help rebuild? It’s your grandparents’ school.”

The only son of an only son, my father had, much to the embarrassment of his wife and children, the habit of striking up conversations with complete strangers in the hopes of finding a connection. When traveling he was known to look up family names in the local phone book and call perfect strangers on the off chance that they had been sitting around waiting to hear from him. When he would sometime be rewarded with some shred of a connection, often tenuous, we seldom shared his satisfaction. It was pure annoyance knowing his “success” would just breed more of the same behavior.

So it wasn’t so much the fact that David and I found a mutual connection, even as striking as it was, I grew up having that demonstrated to me on countless occasions. What was meaningful was the circumstance of our meeting and who we were connected by.

Vic and Thelma Anderson gave me, my siblings, and thousands of others the education that would become the foundation stone of their life. Maurice and Kathleen Hitchcock provided my family a toehold on wealth and inspired in me the secular importance of giving back. These couples shaped me in ways I never fully realized, acknowledged or thanked them for. I believe with no doubt it was the legacy of those influences, in both David and I, that guided us toward trusting each other in the middle of a dark, cold and snowy street at a time when we needed each other.

My grandfather, like all of us had a life filled with both fortune and misfortune. He was a gifted mechanic, who passed along those skills, and more than a few of his hand tools, to my father, who in turn gave them to me, who has endeavored to share them with my daughters. Like it or not, we are in large part what we inherit. When my grandfather went to work for Maurice it was at a time when, for a variety of reasons, losing his first wife at a young age, the depression, the habit of drink, he had not been able to hold a job and had lost much of what he had. I am not sure what kind of options Maurice had for prospective employees; all I know for certain is that they found and remained committed to each other for the rest of their lives. And I remain today one of the beneficiaries.

My prejudice and hypocrisy is not a product of superior insight. It’s my auto theism fooling me to believe my fortunes and misfortunes are of my sole god like creation. They aren’t. Our fortunes and misfortunes should not be what separate us. They should be what bind us together. Both in the moment and across the decades. Ignorance of that fact is the source of far too much needless suffering.

We moralize fortune and misfortune as virtue or vice when we would be better served by embracing its randomness. Fate has no cause. And even if it did it wouldn’t matter because the only important answer is to the question, “So now what are you going to do?”

The tangible legacy of the Hitchcock’s and Anderson’s lives in business and service, the lumber mills and schools, still exist today. As important as they are, it may not be the most valuable legacy they left us. Both couples, like many others of their day were exceptionally decent people. And as such it was in their character to look for, respect, and hold up the decency of others. I used to take that for granted but now know that I can’t. Decency has to be cultivated and we cultivate it in ourselves when we recognize, respect and cultivate it in others.

As our conversation drew to a close we shook hands again, wished each other a Merry Christmas and headed for our cars. As I was backing out, he apparently unfolded and counted the bills I gave him and came back over and tapped on my window. As I rolled it down he said he just wanted to say thanks one more time and share a final thought, “You know I think tonight just proves the point that sometimes it pays to go backward in life.”

 

Kathleen and Maurice Hitchcock

A FAMILY’S LEGACY

Kathleen and Maurice Hitchcock made more than an indelible mark on David and Michael’s families, their legacy impacts thousands of Heritage students—past, present and future.

Their support and generosity helped build the university. Shortly after the Heritage’s founding in 1982, the couple met with then President Sr. Kathleen Ross and pledged to provide all the lumber that Heritage needed to build the campus. Over the next six years, Hitchcock lumber was used to remodel the original Petrie Hall and the seven modular buildings that were brought onto campus to house offices and classrooms.

Among Kathleen’s favorite activities at Heritage was the annual Polo fundraiser. Here she sits with Major Ronald Ferguson, who was the polo manager for the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales.

Maurice passed away in 1984, and Kathleen carried on their commitment. She joined the board of directors in 1986 and served for 10 years. She was a founding member of the institution’s fundraising committee and a vocal supporter who met with donors, accreditors, community members and even prospective students.

In 1988 Heritage recognized Kathleen and Maurice’s contributions with the naming of the Hitchcock Building in their honor. The Kathleen Evelyn Hitchcock Scholarship, which supports women over 25 who are pursuing their undergraduate degrees, was established in her memory shortly after her death in 1999.

Class Notes

 

1997

Angela (Dillman) Birney (M.Ed., Professional Development) was elected mayor of the City of Redmond, Washington. She started her term in January and will be in her position through December 2023. Before becoming mayor, she served as a member of the Redmond City Council, having been elected to the position in 2015.

 

 

 

Shirley Pleasant Sutton (M.Ed., Community and Human Resource Development) serves on the Lynnwood Washington City Council. She was elected to the position in 2015 and started her four-year term in January 2016. Sutton built a career in K-12 and higher education administration prior to entering into city government. She worked in several director positions in Yakima-area school districts before moving to Lynnwood to be the Executive Director of Diversity Affairs at Edmonds Community College. She retired from education in 2013.

1998

Carol (Powell) Ellingson (B.A., English/Language Arts) taught at Fort Simcoe Job Corps from the time she graduated from Heritage until her retirement. She is active in the Republican Party and worked on the campaign to elect Donald Trump. She is now running for secretary of the Republican Women of Grant County. Ellingson reconnected with her high school sweetheart and the two were married in 2010.

 

2005

Marie Avalos Guerrero (BSW, Social Work) is the owner and clinical director of the Innovation Resource Center, which provides outpatient substance abuse treatment to clients living in Yakima and surrounding counties. Avalos Guerrero opened the clinic in September 2011.

2008

Jenny (Sutter) TeGrotenhuis (M.Ed., Counseling) is a certified Gottman Relationship Therapist and Clinical Trauma Professional working in private practice in the Tri-Cities and through distance therapy. In addition to her practice, she manages the mental health wellness blog and newsletter Ask Jenny T, is the author the ebook Draw the Line with the One You Love: Set a Boundary That Can Strengthen Your Bond, and is a contributing writer to The Gottman Relationship Blog and Thrive Global.

2015

Allison Nystrom (M.Ed., Counseling) joined Community Health of Central Washington-Ellensburg as a behavioral health consultant. She is a designated mental health professional with experience in family support services advocacy, mental health case management and mental health therapy.

2018

Kelsey Carrigan (B.A. Ed., Elementary Education) is teaching first grade at a public charter school in Phoenix, Arizona through Teach for America and was offered another position teaching special education at the same school next year.

 

 

 

April (Kent) Holmes (B.A., Business Administration) works in the finance department as a revenue auditor at Legends Casino Hotel in Toppenish, Washington. In September she married Cleo Holmes.