2008 Woodie Awards
Kitsap business owners see need for four-year
Local business owners tell the legislature that they need a four-year university in Kitsap County to keep bachelor's degrees here, but OC President Dr. David Mitchell says it's a 'long shot' in the near future
Dan Warn
Issue date:
11/7/07
Section:
Features
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Business owners and
local legislators of Kitsap
County believe the area's
workforce is suffering from
a lack of accessible baccalaureate
programs and are
asking the legislature to
evaluate placing a university
on the peninsula.
The Kitsap Economic
Development Alliance has
seen this need and is conducting
a survey of Kitsap
businesses about the need
for a local four-year degree
institution.
The survey is scheduled
to wrap up in December,
but preliminary results
show that business owners
"seek qualified applicants,
believe access to an educated
workforce would help
their businesses expand
and support continuing
education of their employees."
Charlotte Garrido, the
conductor of the survey,
believes that by shipping
students out of the county
for baccalaureate degrees,
Kitsap is losing many valuable
workers to out-of-area
jobs. In effect, Garrido said
the county's economy is
"losing brain power."
Garrido reportedly commuted
to Seattle for her
four-year degree, finding it
inconvenient and hard to
have a life within the community
of Kitsap.
State Sen. Derrick
Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, who
prime sponsored a bill
that, if passed, would have
conducted an assessment
of baccalaureate needs in
Kitsap County, said that the
students of Kitsap County
need more options in the
area of higher education.
"To me, education is
about opening the doors to
opportunity," Kilmer said
in an e-mail. "For too many
students, if they want to
continue their education,
they have to leave town."
"We've got great programs
at OC currently,
including some baccalaureate
opportunities," Kilmer
said. "Nevertheless, from
the perspective of most students,
there still remains a
gap. As I have spoken with
students at OC, I've heard
a pretty consistent message
that they'd like to see
more opportunities to continue
local legislators of Kitsap
County believe the area's
workforce is suffering from
a lack of accessible baccalaureate
programs and are
asking the legislature to
evaluate placing a university
on the peninsula.
The Kitsap Economic
Development Alliance has
seen this need and is conducting
a survey of Kitsap
businesses about the need
for a local four-year degree
institution.
The survey is scheduled
to wrap up in December,
but preliminary results
show that business owners
"seek qualified applicants,
believe access to an educated
workforce would help
their businesses expand
and support continuing
education of their employees."
Charlotte Garrido, the
conductor of the survey,
believes that by shipping
students out of the county
for baccalaureate degrees,
Kitsap is losing many valuable
workers to out-of-area
jobs. In effect, Garrido said
the county's economy is
"losing brain power."
Garrido reportedly commuted
to Seattle for her
four-year degree, finding it
inconvenient and hard to
have a life within the community
of Kitsap.
State Sen. Derrick
Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, who
prime sponsored a bill
that, if passed, would have
conducted an assessment
of baccalaureate needs in
Kitsap County, said that the
students of Kitsap County
need more options in the
area of higher education.
"To me, education is
about opening the doors to
opportunity," Kilmer said
in an e-mail. "For too many
students, if they want to
continue their education,
they have to leave town."
"We've got great programs
at OC currently,
including some baccalaureate
opportunities," Kilmer
said. "Nevertheless, from
the perspective of most students,
there still remains a
gap. As I have spoken with
students at OC, I've heard
a pretty consistent message
that they'd like to see
more opportunities to continue
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