Heritage University’s annual “Bounty of the Valley” Scholarship Dinner raises $838,966 for student scholarships

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Heritage University’s annual “Bounty of the Valley” Scholarship Dinner raises $838,966 for student scholarships

Toppenish, Wash. – Heritage University’s 37th annual Bounty of the Valley Scholarship Dinner, held this past weekend, brought in $838,966 through Monday, June 5. The premier fundraiser for student scholarships at Heritage was also live-streamed for those who wished to attend remotely.

For the second year in a row, the Bounty of the Valley featured hosts, Alex Vera and Gerardo Ruelas, two Heritage alumni and Valley natives who have gone on to successful careers at Costco Wholesale at the company’s headquarters in Issaquah, Wash.

Heritage University alumnus, Miguel Mendoza, who recently graduated from Heritage this past May summa cum laude with a B.S. in biology, served as the student speaker. Mendoza was born and raised in the Yakima Valley and graduated from Toppenish High School in 2019. Not only did he excel academically, but he also worked with the College Assistance Migrant Program at Heritage and as a tutor in the Academic Skills Center, where he supported his fellow students and help them succeed in their studies. Mendoza is now preparing to take his MCAT exam in preparation for applying to Medical School.

Heritage University President Andrew Sund, Ph.D. is thankful for the supporters and sponsors of Bounty of the Valley who continue to invest in student scholarships. “The great majority of our students come from economic backgrounds where they cannot afford higher education,” said Dr. Sund. “It is undeniable that the support our students receive from the community is what allows students to earn their college degrees. For more than 40 years, it is the amazing support of donors that has created the opportunity for nearly 11,000 people to earn their degrees at Heritage. 11,000 people who have then gone on from here to serve the community as educators, business leaders, healthcare professionals and more throughout the Valley. We are grateful for their incredible support.”

The live-streamed portion of Bounty of the Valley can be viewed by visiting Heritage.edu/Bounty. Donations to student scholarships can be made on the same page by clicking on the “Raise Your Paddle” button. For more information, contact Dana Eliason at (509) 865-0441 or Eliason_D@Heritage.edu or Davidson Mance at (509) 969-6084 or Mance_D@Heritage.edu.

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Heritage University receives $6 million grant to start a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling degree program

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Heritage University receives $6 million grant to start a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling degree program

Toppenish, Wash. – Heritage University has been awarded a $6 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education to launch a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling (MMHC) program at Heritage. This initiative, known as the “Heritage University Consortium,” seeks to address the unprecedented mental health crisis that small, rural communities like the Yakama Indian Reservation and the Yakima Valley are facing. The program will train graduates to serve as mental health counselors for schools that are most in need.

Partners of the Heritage University Consortium include the Yakama Indian Nation and Educational Service District (ESD) 105 in Yakima, Wash. and will adopt a “grow-your-own” approach that recruits hard-to-reach populations from local high schools into Heritage University’s undergraduate Bachelor of Psychology and then into the soon-to-be MMHC graduate program. Graduates of the program will be eligible to serve as Licensed Mental Health Counselor-Associates in Washington state and will also qualify as Substance Use Disorder Professional Trainees.

Amy Nusbaum, Ph.D., Chair of the Psychology Department at Heritage, said the Yakama Nation and Yakima Valley schools who will benefit from this grant, have large numbers of students who suffer from the lack of adequate mental health counseling, which can lead to large academic achievement gaps. Dr. Nusbaum said research shows that students of color learn faster when they are not facing social, emotional, or mental health issues. “Our proposed solution is to create a new and innovative partnership that will address the urgent mental health needs that adversely impact the learning and well-being of the diverse students in our community,” said Dr. Nusbaum. “It will streamline and accelerate the outreach, recruitment and training of diverse mental health counselors, and we know that having a counselor that looks like you and is from a similar background increases the chances of therapeutic success.”

Nusbaum also says graduates may serve the general population by working in places such as Comprehensive Healthcare and Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic, for example. “These innovative approaches capitalize on this unique opportunity to begin to solve our problem of shortages of local mental health professionals in our schools and communities,” Dr. Nusbaum said.

Enrollment for the MMHC program will begin next spring once accreditation is received, with classes starting in the fall of 2024. For more information contact Amy Nusbaum at nusbaum_a@heritage.edu. For help with securing interviews please contact Davidson Mance at mance_d@heritage.edu or (509) 969-6084.

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Heritage University to hold Class of 2023 Commencement at Yakima Valley SunDome

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Heritage University to hold Class of 2023 Commencement at
Yakima Valley SunDome

Yakima, Wash. – Heritage University will celebrate the Class of 2023 during its Commencement Exercise Saturday, May 13 at 10:00 a.m. at the Yakima Valley SunDome. Undergraduate and graduate degrees will be conferred upon students graduating from both the Heritage Toppenish campus and at the Tri-Cities regional site. Overall, 250 students will earn their degrees at Heritage this year.

Phyllis Gutiérrez Kenney, former state representative of the 46th legislative district from 1997 to 2012, will be the commencement speaker. A former small-business owner, she was a delegate to the White House Conference on Small Business, President of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Assistant Commissioner for the Employment Security Department. Since 2015, Ms. Gutiérrez Kenney has served on the nine-member State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, which provides oversight to Washington’s 34 community and technical colleges. She currently serves as board chair.

Passionate about educational opportunity, Ms. Gutiérrez Kenney was past chair of the Seattle Community College District Board of Trustees and former commissioner on the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. She was a board member for the National Council of La Raza and National Center for Policy Alternatives. She also authorized numerous pieces of legislation concerning postsecondary education during her time in the legislature.

Heritage University will present the 2023 Violet Lumley Rau Outstanding Alumni Award to Ryan Washburn for his exceptional service to his country and community. Washburn earned his B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies in Education from Heritage University in 2012, and his M.S.W. from Walla Walla University in Walla Walla, Wash. He currently works for Benton County in Kennewick Wash. as a therapeutic court coordinator.

Washburn’s commitment to helping others started long before he attended Heritage University. Ryan dedicated eight years of his life to the United States Navy as a fire control technician where he oversaw Tomahawk missile systems. After leaving the military, he earned his degrees.

After graduation, Washburn became the first case manager for Benton County’s newly established Veteran’s Court. He served veterans who struggled with substance abuse and mental health issues by getting them treatment and counseling to overcome their challenges. He was later promoted to run the Therapeutic Recovery Center, which oversees the Mental Health Court.

Heritage will also announce the recipients of the Board of Directors’ Academic Excellence Award and the President’s Council Student Award of Distinction during the ceremony.

The Yakima Valley SunDome is located at 1301 South Fair Ave. in Yakima. Parking is free. Additional information is available online at https://heritage.edu/student-resources/commencement-2023/

For more information, contact David Mance, media relations coordinator at (509) 969-6084 or Mance_D@Heritage.edu.

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Class Notes

1998
Ken Gosney (B.A.Ed., English/ Language Arts (4-12), M.Ed., Professional Development, School Administration) was appointed CEO of Goodwill Industries of Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada in January 2022. Prior to this appointment, he served as the CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Columbia, covering the Tri-Cities area of Washington state. There, he helped turn the nonprofit into one of the top five performing Goodwill operations out of the nearly 160 territories in the United States and Canada.


1999
Mike Villarreal (M.Ed., Educational Administration) was elected to serve as president of the Washington Association of School Administrators for the 2002-23 academic year. Villarreal is the superintendent of Hoquiam School District, a position he’s filled since 2017.

 

2008

Amber Richards (B.A, English, M.A., English Language Arts 2011) joined the faculty at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. She serves as a professor of writing in the Department of Writing.

 

 

2011
Rosa Gutiérrez (B.A., Business Administration) was appointed Human Resources Director for Sundquist Fruit and Gilbert Orchards in November. Prior to this, she served as the HR/Food Safety Manager for Sundquist Family of Companies.

2015

Francisco Ramirez-Amezcua (B.A., Environmental Studies) is a migrant graduation specialist at Sunnyside High School. This past fall, he was awarded Student Support Staff of the Year for the Sunnyside School District.

 

2016
Chelsea Brannock (B.A.Ed., English Language Learners) was appointed the 2022-23 Educational School District 105 Regional Teacher of the Year. Brannock is an English language arts teacher at Wahluke High School in Mattawa, Wash.

2017
Clariza Maldonado (B.A., Business Administration) earned a Master of Science in Information Technology and Administrative Management from Central Washington University. She now works for Konami Gaming as a project manager for their Systems Research and Development department.

2022

Dalia Chavez (B.A., Criminal Justice) joined the Washington State Human Rights Commission (WSHRC), where she serves as a civil rights investigator based in the Yakima Valley. The WSHRC is a state agency responsible for administering and enforcing the Washington Law Against Discrimination.

 

HU Alumni, we invite you to send us updates on your professional and personal achievements! Go to heritage.edu/alumni to complete your submission for Class Notes. page5image59280640

From Heritage to Harvard and Back Again!

From Heritage to Harvard and Back Again!
No one writes a better story about Heritage University and its students than Robert Ozuna. Whether it’s part of an application for a half million dollars or five million, Ozuna writes passionately about Heritage and the students it serves because he knows them. As a first-generation college student with early-life experience working in hop fields, he’s shared many of their life challenges.

Robert Ozuna

Today, as President & CEO of RGI Corporation, the educational consulting business he co-founded in Sunnyside, Washington, Ozuna often partners with Heritage on its multi-faceted grant-writing endeavors, seeking sizable funding for everything from money for new buildings, to getting people in need into college, to necessary support services for existing students. RGI’s small team of a dozen grant writers and researchers includes many Heritage graduates.

The Heritage/RGI grant-acquisition success rate is an impressive 100 percent since 2020: Five applications have been submitted, and all five have been awarded. Their work is responsible for $13.3 million in funding received for programs that served more than 1,000 students over the last five years.

There are reasons for the success, Ozuna said. There is a high level of need in the region, and Heritage is doing great work to meet that need. When the story of the impact of the university in the community they serve is told accurately and compellingly, it’s powerful.

“From Hop Harvest to Heritage to Harvard,” a journalist once wrote about Ozuna. People said he could have worked anywhere – but what mattered most to Ozuna was what the people back home needed.

GETTING OUT OF THE FIELDS

Robert Ozuna was born in south Texas to parents who were migrant farmworkers. After years following the seasons back and forth, they ultimately settled in Grandview in the Yakima Valley.

“Working in the fields was hard labor,” Ozuna says. “My parents always told me, ‘You need to graduate from high school and get out of the fields.’ They dreamed of me getting a good job bagging groceries inside a store.”

Ozuna graduated from high school and took a job recruiting migrant children into school programs for Educational Service District 123. Later, he trained parents to become involved in their children’s education.

“I acquired a passion for helping people, especially students,” he said. “And after a while, I thought, ‘I’m telling all these students to get an education, yet I don’t have a degree myself.’ I decided to go to back to school. I had a lot of ties to the Yakima Valley, and I felt Heritage was the best place for me.”

Once at Heritage, Ozuna started getting to know his fellow students, both Latinx and Yakama.

“I was driven to really engage with them because I found that everyone had a story,” he says. “The common thread was there was usually no role model because their parents didn’t know about college or how to navigate financial aid. There was a lot of determination in the face of adversity, and here, students could get their education without leaving the valley.”

Heritage gave Ozuna the confidence to pursue his educational goals. He thought about going to Harvard.

Like his success today, his higher-education trajectory beginning at Heritage was impressive. The university was a 600-student college still
in its infancy when he graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1991 with a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration. He proceeded to follow it up by earning his Master of Public Administration at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He dedicated the first half of his career to public service and education.

“I wanted to go to Harvard, and I thought, I will never get in, but I’ll just apply, get rejected and get it over with,’” he says. “But I got accepted.”

Ozuna was there during a time when many of his fellow students were going to work for the Clinton administration. He was appointed by President Clinton to the U.S. Secretary of Labor’s U. S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Federal Advisory Board, even though he’d already decided to return to Washington State.

“Our dean said if anyone wanted to work in government, that was the time – we had the opportunity. But I always felt we really needed to get an education and come back. We need lawyers and doctors who look like us.

“I said my work was back home. There was so much to be done. Heritage provided me the opportunity and knowledge to pursue my educational goals leading to Harvard and coming back. Heritage will forever have a special place in my heart for providing me with this opportunity.”

DOING THE IMPORTANT WORK

Ozuna returned to the Yakima Valley and took a position directing the Statewide Farmworker Employment and Training Program, followed by the University of Washington Yakima Valley Community Partnership. Then he fulfilled an important personal goal: to be the CEO of his own business.

“I had worked with students and families one- on-one,” he says. “Instead of touching lives one at a time, I wanted my work to have a positive effect on as many people as possible, to do things on more of a macro instead of a micro level.”

He founded RGI Research Corporation with Heritage mathematics professor Ryan Landvoy in 2002. In addition to Heritage, RGI clients today include the University of Washington, Washington State University, ESD 105, Utah State University and many Alaska School Districts, whose student population is 98 percent Alaska Native.

Ozuna’s care for his community has most recently been exhibited in the fulfillment of another dream: to become an elected official. He’s served on the Grandview City Council since 2020.

His goal with RGI has always been to stay small so they can pick and choose their clients and do the work that matters most. “I am proud that Heritage University is one of our most valued clients.”

“I’ve had friends who’ve said, ‘You went to Harvard, and you came back?’

“’Absolutely,’ I say. I came back to help our people.” page17image62693088

All Four Years, All Right Here!


All Four Years, All Right Here!
Providing access to college degrees at remote locations across Washington State is nothing new for Heritage University. In fact, when the college began 40 years ago, it started with classes being offered at its campus in Toppenish, as well as in the small, eastern Washington community of Omak. In 2013, the university added the Tri-Cities to its list of locations where transfer students could take the last two years of classes needed to turn their associate degrees into bachelor’s degrees.

This academic delivery model remained relatively unchanged over the years— until now. Starting fall semester 2023, Heritage will begin accepting freshman and sophomore students who want to do all four years of study at the university’s regional site opening in Kennewick.

The move to offer instruction to first- and second-year students in the Tri-Cities is a natural extension of the Heritage mission to make college accessible to anyone with the talent and drive to pursue a degree regardless of economics, culture, or geographic location, said President Andrew Sund.

“We see this expansion in the Tri-Cities as a chance to collaborate with other institutions, which has been a long-standing tradition in higher education,” he said. “We can work together and thereby serve the people in the Tri-Cities who come from many backgrounds. More choices for students are always better in higher education. Our goal is to increase the total number of students who graduate from college, not to move students from attending CBC or WSU Tri-Cities. Working together, we can increase the total college-going student population, and benefit the entire community.”

The expansion means the university is moving from its location on the Columbia Basin College campus in Pasco into its own facility in Kennewick. Heritage is leasing space in what was once the Tri-City Herald building, located on Canal Drive. The university will occupy parts of the building’s second floor, with classrooms, offices, a reception lobby, study spaces and a break area. The site was selected for its central location with easy access from all points in the Tri-Cities and proximity to services in downtown Kennewick.

Initially, Heritage will expand its existing regional site offerings, education, social work, criminal justice, psychology and accounting, into four-year offerings. Additionally, it will add a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration to its list of degrees that can be earned from start to finish at the regional location. Moreover, Tri-Cities students will have access to all classes and the 36 degree programs offered at its Toppenish campus.

“Students will have the opportunity to transfer seamlessly between campuses, and some classes may be offered in a hybrid format where classes are delivered both in-class and online between the two campuses. The linkage between the two campuses will present a tremendous range of possibilities for students to study in their field of interest,” said Sund.

Martín Valadez, the director of Heritage University’s regional site in the Tri-Cities, said the move will make it easier for students to achieve their goals of pursuing higher education.

“Many Tri-Cities students are raising their families as they work several jobs, and we know they will benefit from having this additional opportunity to earn a four-year degree close to home,” he said. “We are excited to play a larger role in the firmament of higher education in the Tri-Cities and be a part of the revitalization of downtown Kennewick.”  page9image37120368

The Gift of Gratitude

Perla Bolanos

The Gift of Gratitude
For this issue of Wings, we reached out to students and asked them to tell us about a pivotal moment in their life that had a profound effect on their views of themselves and their world. Perla Bolanos, a senior who is getting ready to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, submitted this essay.

I remember my first day of third grade in the United States—the thrill, excitement, uneasiness, and anxiety of the unknown. I wore one of my best dresses with shoes I had painted the night before to cover the scratches. My mother was so excited for me to start school she told me, “Vas a tener muchas amigas y vas a aprender mucho mi niña. – You’re going to have a lot of friends, and you’re going to learn a lot, my little girl.”

My mother brushed my hair so hard, putting it into a high ponytail with a bow, and used jugo de limon so my hair wouldn’t fall. With one last look in the mirror, I carried the backpack I had brought with me from Mexico and headed out on my way to live the “American Dream.”

The school was big and had lots of space to run and play. It was in one of the nicest neighborhoods in Salinas, California, where my godmother lived. She was the only reason I had the opportunity to attend that school in the first place. My parents, brother, and I lived in a small studio apartment behind one of my godmother’s restaurants outside the city. A small school was located a couple of blocks from my home, but my parents insisted on enrolling me in a “better school.” Everyone wanted me to receive a quality education, meet new people, learn, and get accustomed to my new home.

When I walked through the door into my classroom, the look on my third- grade teacher’s face was something I will never forget. She stared at my face, clothes, and shoes; she stared at me and who I was. She knew I was not like the usual students that attended her class, and she was right. I was far from being like her other students. Most of them were Caucasian. They were dressed in nice clothes and shoes, and I was just the girl coming from Mexico. I also saw the look on the faces of the other kids. They looked at me like I must be lost, like I didn’t belong there. After the teacher introduced me to the rest of the class, she guided me to the back of the room to a small desk with a chair surrounded by books, far from the rest of the students. As I took in my surroundings, I wondered how I went from being the top student in my school to being the “poor Mexican girl,” as my classmates called me. While the others were learning grammar and about the solar system, I was stuck relearning the alphabet and numbers, this time in English, despite already being taught all this when I was in Mexico.

When I grew tired of staring  at the same activities, I organized the stacks of books that surrounded me. I began losing myself in the pages of these books. One was my best friend, an English dictionary. This dictionary gave me the support my teacher and classmates could not give me. I found myself scanning through the pages, trying to memorize each word, and forming sentences that later would become pages of poems and stories I wrote. Creative writing became my escape and part of my identity. It helped me overcome the language barrier I encountered throughout my journey. The written word allowed me to express my feelings in this new language when I could not express them out loud.

I have mixed emotions when I reflect on my third-grade year. While I am sad for the little
girl who had to endure such an unpleasant school experience, I am immensely grateful for the love of learning I developed as those books surrounded me.

I came to realize that I could take control of my education, that the same little girl and the woman I am today are capable and resilient, and that education is a form of wealth that can never be taken away from me.

Today, I am a senior at Heritage University. Graduation is only a few weeks away. I cannot help but think about eight-year-old me and how far I have come from that third- grade classroom. Attending Heritage University brought me new perspectives into my life. I received an education that I once thought I did not deserve, along with numerous opportunities that have helped me grow as a scholar, professional, leader, and, most importantly, as a first- generation Latina.

My mother once told me, “Education es la unica herencia que te puede dar mija” “Education is the only heritage I can give you, Mija,” and it has been the greatest gift I have received.

It took me a long time to discover who I am and find my voice to express myself, my thoughts, and my visions. To this day, I wonder, “can I reach someone with my words? Can I make a difference?” While those are questions that remain to be answered, I know that as I move forward out into the professional world, I will keep the lessons I’ve learned close to my heart and will do my best to honor my mother’s words and all those who helped me along the way.

Pursuing higher education was always a dream, and now I live it. It is a new chapter— something I have yearned for. This is my American dream coming true. page12image37381888

The Storyteller

When Winona Wynn was one year old, her father took her to Yellowstone National Park. He pulled up under a cluster of pine trees, took her out of the car, and stood her on its hood. With his arms and the natural world both extending their embrace, his daughter took her first steps.

“My dad told me that when you take your first steps in the woods, you learn to walk in the woods as part of your whole being,”

Wynn said. “He embodied the traditions of our people and passed that spirituality and love on to me. It’s part of who I am today.”

In a life that has included significant personal challenges, Winona Wynn has been sustained and shaped by her spiritual worldview – as well as by something she’s always known would give her and her children a better life: education.

Blessed by her experiences, both the positive and the challenging, it’s been her privilege, she says, to pass on lessons learned.

As a Heritage University humanities professor, Wynn lives her commitment to the value of education. She believes part of her role as an educator is to ensure students know they are seen and heard as they take their first steps in the world of higher education.

Over 14 years of teaching, she’s built a classroom atmosphere that’s both interpersonal, focusing on communication between herself and her students, and intrapersonal, where the focus is reflective and empowering for the students themselves.

“Part of students’ education at Heritage needs to be about their journey toward recognizing their unique gifts and valuing their capacity to contribute,” she says. “That takes understanding and commitment from the people who are here. We share an obligation to lead them and teach them.

ADJUST YOUR MIND!

An enrolled member of the Assiniboine/Sioux Tribe of Ft. Peck, Montana, Wynn was raised in several geographic locations in what she calls a “reservation home.” Her father was a 30-year Air Force veteran, and although moves were frequent, she and her siblings remained connected to their roots through storytelling and visits when possible.

Dr. Winona Wynn leads students through a writing exercise in her University 101 class.

Her home life was complicated but interwoven with inspiration. She recalls her parents’ guidance.

“When our days and nights were tough, my dad would utter his favorite three words of advice, ‘Adjust your mind,’ and my mother would echo ‘This is a learning time. Let’s be grateful.’ I passed their wisdom on to my children.”

Wynn married at 21 and had four children. But it was a difficult relationship, and after years of documented domestic abuse, late one night, she left everything, took her children, and boarded a train to California to solicit support from her parents.

Working three jobs to support herself and her family, Wynn knew: Finding a way to continue the educational path she’d left behind was the only way to a better life.

It was during that time that she signed up for some life-changing classes at the local community college: Sociology and Psychology 101, and it was in those classes that she bonded with a determined group of students.

“We were all just starting out or starting over, and we were there for each other,” she says. “But not all of us made it.”

Of that handful of friends, only Wynn and one other would ultimately finish college. One became addicted to drugs, and another died by suicide.

“There were so many times during those challenging days that I told my children what my parents said: We’ve got people around us who don’t see any light, but we do.’”

A VISION FOR EDUCATION

Transitioning back to Washington, with her four children and a sister in tow, a better life began when Wynn enrolled at Eastern Washington University, and a friend asked her to attend a session about the McNair Scholars Program. If she applied and was accepted, it would mean support for her academic dreams.

During the selection process, “I just told them my truth: ‘I’m a single parent with a vision for education for myself and my children,’” Wynn says. “One of them believed in me. She said my determination, goals and vision convinced her, then she advocated for me to the others.”

That person, Dr. Karen McKinney, would be a guiding light in Wynn’s educational journey – her mentor for the next 12 years, as Wynn navigated her undergraduate program, graduate studies and pursuit of her Ph.D.

“My motivation always came from difficulty,” she says. “And the fact that I knew people who had come from similar trauma but managed to achieve.”

“It was in large part due to the people in my life – my parents, my college friends, Dr. McKinney, my children, my sister, and, even now, people here at Heritage – that I’ve persevered.”

“I’m thankful for what I’ve learned, for where I am, for all the people in my life. Being thankful lifts us up, inspires hope, and moves us beyond moments of incomprehensible grief, reminding us that each experience is a gift.”

A PURPOSE TOGETHER

For Wynn, gratitude and care for others translate into a desire to be present for her students. Upon entering Wynn’s classroom, each new student is warmly welcomed.

“For me, it’s like, ‘I’ve never met you, but I know we have a purpose together,’” she smiles.

Each first class starts with a “BioPoem” – a sort of biographical poem that students write about themselves. “It’s how we start talking about who we are. I ask them to write about what they believe, what they’re afraid of, what they hope for, and it becomes an authentic connection for our classroom learning community.”

Wynn has a quote about the humanities that she likes to share: “The humanities are our attempt to understand and communicate the human experience through language. They help us see the wider view of our lives.”

“Understanding our lives helps us to keep taking our steps,” she says. “That’s everything I want for my students.” page9image37120368

College in the Rainforest

Time at Brazil’s Ecological Reserve of Guapiaçu offers important lessons for Heritage students and their homelands.

There’s a place in Brazil where people from all around the world come to replant the rainforest, a little at a time.

They’re scientists, researchers, students and, sometimes, simply volunteer champions of the environment.

The place is Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu (REGUA) – the Ecological Reserve of Guapiaçu – and for two weeks in January, it was a classroom and an adventure for Heritage University environmental sciences major Kayonnie Badonie and biology major Andrea Mendoza. The pair traveled there with their professor Alex Alexiades, associate professor of Natural Sciences.

Returning from this journey, the students brought back not souvenirs but vibrant memories – of experiences with rainforest inhabitants, scientists working on behalf of nature and the environment, and evolving personal stories about how their own work might benefit the world.

The experience was born of a sabbatical Alexiades did two years ago.

“From that trip, I knew I wanted to bring students here for tropical field and conservation experiences and, in future visits, have them conduct research,” Alexiades said.

In his seven years at Heritage, Alexiades has worked to make several indigenous and international exchange opportunities possible for students. The experiences are powerful tools for engagement, he said.

“Once students have experienced this environment and the work people do, they can think about its ramifications for the places they love and care about in their own communities.”

BATTLE FOR THE AMAZON

A 2.5-hour drive northwest of Rio de Janeiro, the Guapiaçu area is located on the border with the state of São Paulo in southeast Brazil.

It holds incredible biodiversity – the first reason Alexiades chose to work there. His second reason – the mission and the effort being made to return the area to its natural state and support its inhabitants, both human and non-human – is why he thinks it’s important to come back.

In the native Tupi language, Guapiaçu means “big spring of a river.” But the river here, like the rainforest that holds it, has been greatly altered, its banks laid bare for farming and grazing cattle, its flow in part channeled for human use, sometimes reinforced with concrete.

Surrounding land, once lush and green, has been logged, tree stumps burned, remaining vegetation removed to make room for subsistence farming and, in some areas, hydropower dams, mining and other development.

Where crops were once planted only to fail in the acidic and largely non-fertile soil, cattle graze on barren riverbanks, eating any remaining native plants, consuming grass almost as quickly as it can grow back.

Where natural forestation provided environmental balance, today’s riverbanks offer no resistance to the flooding that occurs almost daily during the months-long rainy season. Mudslides are common, and life is continually unsettled.

“What’s been allowed to happen to the rainforest disrupts everything from the ecology to the hydrology,” Alexiades said. “This is really an ongoing battle for tropical rainforests worldwide.”

THE REGUA SOLUTION

The REGUA land, owned by what had been a tobacco- and banana-growing family for several generations, comprises almost an entire watershed. Through an evolving commitment to protecting the biodiversity of the valley, recent owners saw the need to ensure the future of their community through reforestation. The majority of their land has now been replanted and reforested.

Efforts now also focus on land buys to conserve additional land. Eventually, they will reconnect the watershed all the way to the river’s mouth, about 65 miles south into the city of Niterói.

REGUA’s work has meant about 60 full-time jobs – from cooking and cleaning for visiting groups to the main work of tree planting – added to the local economy. It’s a model for engaging communities in tropical rainforests worldwide.

EXTENDING THE EFFORT

Relative to the immensity of the rainforest, the work being done at REGUA is small scale. Yet, Mendoza and Badonie learned it’s making a difference for the people, animals and plant life in the Guapiaçu area and has implications for other deforested areas of the Amazon.

“The restoration is not only helping to repair the river, it’s also bringing back important rainforest habitat that was once destroyed, and species are returning,” said Mendoza.

“It’s inspiring to know that if we work together with people, we can see a true change in this world for the better.”

Both students felt the hope the REGUA reserve could be for other areas in the rainforest, and that its work is making people’s lives better in the immediate area and downstream.

“What is being done in the REGUA vicinity is fascinating,” said Badonie. “It’s scientists, researchers, and passionate community members coming together to combat deforestation and land disturbance.

“I believe that this is a start for the forests and streams and a healthier environment.”

STUDENTS ABSORB LESSONS

There’s a community that’s formed with each set of scientists, researchers and students who come to work and study at REGUA. So when heavy January rains kept everyone from the intended data collection and tree planting, Badonie and Mendoza
got to spend invaluable time talking with and learning from the visiting ornithologists, entomologists, and mammalogists that surrounded them.

At day’s end, they’d gather, sharing photos of plant and animal life, watching trail cam videos. Beyond being awed by the color of birds, the size
of insects, and the sheer volume of rainforest sounds, the students were fascinated by the wealth of knowledge around them.

Two decades ago, working as a high-altitude mountaineering guide in the Andes, experiencing the mountains’ majesty and the regalness of the rainforest as well as its rampant destruction, the trajectory of Alexiades’s life was clarified. His immersion experiences steered him to acquire his master’s degree and his Ph.D. His goal now is to research the whole Guapiaçu watershed, comparing the quality of its water today with the improved water quality that’s certain to come.

Badonie, a Yakama tribal member with Navajo Nation roots, said her time at the reserve is already helping clarify her path.

“For me, it hits home because native lands were disturbed by agriculture, and that’s something from which we can never turn back. So if I can take something of what I’ve experienced to the tribes, that will mean a lot.”

Mendoza wants to teach science and inspire younger generations to enjoy it, pursue its study and change the world.

“I can tell them this is what I got to do in Brazil, to help people with their land and their lives,” she said. “This is what you can do in an internship.”

“I think I can inspire them, like I’ve been inspired. The world needs this work and the people who are doing it.” page5image47837584

Noted Seattle lawyer starts scholarship to help Native American and Latinx students at Heritage University pursue law degrees

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Noted Seattle lawyer starts scholarship to help Native American and Latinx students at Heritage University pursue law degrees.

Toppenish, Wash. – Arthur Dean Swanson, a Seattle-based lawyer, well respected in the state of Washington and throughout the United States, recently started a scholarship program at Heritage University to help Native American and Latinx students who plan to earn a law degree after graduation.

In the summer of 2022, a partnership between Washington’s three law schools, Seattle University School of Law, University of Washington School of Law, and Gonzaga University School of Law, and Heritage provided a 13-week course designed to make a law degree more accessible to Native American and Latinx students in central Washington. Titled the “Law School Admission Council Prelaw Undergraduate Scholars Program,” or LSAC PLUS Program and funded by the Law School Admission Council, it prepares students for the rigors of law school and a legal career. Mr. Swanson read about the LSAC PLUS Program in The Seattle Times and was inspired to start the scholarship with a $100,000 gift to Heritage. The scholarship will be awarded annually to a rising senior who plans to pursue a Juris Doctorate after graduation.

Mr. Swanson passed away in January, and now, his family is honoring his wishes by announcing the Arthur D. Swanson Scholarship at Heritage University. “When Arthur and I first started discussing how he could best support students, he related to me stories of his young life and law school experiences,” said David Wise, Heritage University VP of External Relations. “Those, coupled with his travels as a young man across several Indian reservations, convinced him of the nearly insurmountable odds students living on reservations have of earning a law degree. Students with very little frame of reference for the rigors of law school, let alone the financial resources to begin even exploring the possibility,” said Wise. “His resolve to shorten those odds resulted in the formation of this scholarship. He was so passionate about giving students the opportunity to become lawyers. We had plans for him to guest lecture on campus this coming summer. His passing is a crushing loss for all of us.”

Swanson was born April 19, 1934, in Onida, South Dakota, and his family moved to Long Beach, Washington. Art and his brother Don attended Valley High School in Menlo in Pacific County, Washington. Swanson graduated from Washington State University in 1956 after which he joined the United States Army. In 1963, he graduated from the University of Washington School of Law. He later served as a deputy prosecuting attorney in the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office and as a Judge Pro-Tem in both Superior and District courts before opening his own practice. He was a past president for the Washington State Association for Justice, the Washington Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, and the Damage Attorneys Roundtable.

During his distinguished career, Swanson was a member of The American College of Trial Lawyers and has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America since 1991. He has been named a Washington Super Lawyer every year since 2003 and by Seattle Metropolitan magazine as one of Seattle’s Best Lawyers.

Mr. Swanson passed away on January 29, 2023, before the launch of the scholarship in his name. The Arthur D. Swanson Scholarship at Heritage University is open to additional contributions by visiting heritage.edu/donate, or by making a gift to the Office of Advancement at Heritage University, 3240 Fort Road, Toppenish, WA, 98948. The Arthur D. Swanson Scholarship will be awarded annually to Native American and/or Latinx senior-level students at the University who intend to pursue a law degree after graduation.

For more information, contact David Wise at wise_d@heritage.edu or (414) 788-0686.

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