Gov. Chris Gregoire announced on Wednesday the formation of a Higher Education Funding Task Force to help create a sustainable funding model and develop strategies that increase accountability to ensure taxpayers get the best value for the state’s and student’s investment at our four-year universities. The task force consists of several leaders in business and education, with Mayor Stephanson as the only elected official serving.

Gregoire is asking the task force to focus on three tasks:

• Develop a realistic and viable long-range funding strategy that provides Washington’s students with affordable higher education opportunities.

• Recommend ways to improve accountability and performance in our public four-year higher education institutions to ensure we get the very highest value for the state’s and student’s investment.

• Consider whether the higher education system’s current governance model should be modified to improve system-wide performance and accountability.

The Higher Education Funding Task Force will meet several times this summer and make recommendations to Gregoire in the fall, with proposals to eventually be incorporated into her 2011 legislative agenda. Members of the governor’s Higher Education Funding Task Force are:

Brad Smith, Chair, Senior VP and General Counsel, Microsoft Corporation
Judith Runstad, Foster Pepper LLC
Charlie Earl, Director, State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
Jesus Hernandez, Chair, Higher Education Coordinating Board
Thomas L. “Les” Purce, President, Evergreen State College
Pat Shanahan, Vice President & General Manager, Airplane Programs, Boeing Company
David Tang, Managing Partner, K&L Gates LLP
Paula Reynolds, CEO, Preferwest LLC
Dean Allen, CEO, McKinstry Company
Bill Ayer, Chair and CEO, Alaska Air
Michael Kluse, Senior VP, Battelle
Maud Daudon, President & CEO, Seattle Northwest Securities
Chris Rivera, President, Washington Biotechnology and Biomedical Association
Ray Stephanson, Mayor of Everett
Paul Rosier, Executive Director, Washington Association of School Administrators
Alex McGregor, President & CEO, The McGregor Company

Mayor Stephanson is the only elected official serving on the task force. A little history…in 2007, four different locations in Snohomish County were eyed as a UW expansion campus for a four year university, and Stephanson was of course, lobbying for Everett to be new home of a UW campus. The state legislature later put the kibosh on the plans to spend nearly $1 billion to open a UW branch campus, hence the need for a task force to find funding.

Surely during his service on the task force, Mayor Ray will put in a good word for Everett again as a possible location for higher ed.

For more information, visit:
http://www.governor.wa.gov/news/news-view.asp?pressRelease=1543&newsType=1