Hello Apparel Design & Development supporters, 

We were informed last Friday that our administration will recommend our program be cut. The Chancellor will finalize the decision this week and then the Board of Trustees will cast a final vote in June. Despite upward trends in program enrollment and job placements, the administration at Seattle Colleges has decided that AD&D, and other key professional-technical programs at the college are “too expensive”. We have not yet seen comparative data. Although the chancellor has yet to approve the decision to cut one of Seattle Central Colleges most esteemed programs this week, we don't believe he will go against the decision.

We will be sharing this petition with the below decision makers, but we also ask that you send a letter to the Chancellor, state legislators and the Seattle Colleges Board of Trustees if you can. Personalized with your own stories is always more effective, but you can also use the template we have provided below. Email addresses are below as well.

Board of Trustees:

Louise Chernin (Chair) at Louise.Chernin@seattlecolleges.edu

Teresita Batayola at Teresita.Batayola@seattlecolleges.edu

Steve Hill at Steve.Hill@seattlecolleges.edu

Rosa Peralta at Rosa.Peralta@seattlecolleges.edu

Brian Surrat at Brian.Surrat@seattlecolleges.edu  

Board of Trustees written comments at Rebecca.Zeller@seattlecolleges.edu

Senator Jamie Pedersen at sam.hendrickson@leg.wa.gov

Representative Nicole Macri at Nicole.Macri@leg.wa.gov

Representative Frank Chopp at daniel.lugo@leg.wa.gov

Chancellor Shouan Pan: shouan.pan@seattlecolleges.edu or Chancellor’s Office at CO@seattlecolleges.edu

Interim President Yoshiko Harden: Yoshiko.Harden@seattlecolleges.edu

Interim Vice President of Instruction (VPI) Wendy Rockhill: Wendy.Rockhill@seattlecolleges.edu

 

Dear _______ 

I am writing to convey my deep concern for the loss of a crucial link to help rebuild and strengthen our local and regional economy. Apparel Design & Development (AD&D) at Seattle Central College has remained a critical economic driver for the local apparel industry, a fact supported by successful alumni, apparel industry companies, technical advisors, other universities, as well as statistics. In addition to providing well-trained employees to apparel companies nationwide, the program serves as an incubator for many start-up companies and freelancers who further feed our economy. 

This industry relies on AD&D at Seattle Central College for highly skilled graduates and benefits our city and our region in numerous ways: 

The industry provides over 3,000 jobs in the Puget Sound region. AD&D provides skilled workers for these jobs. 
Seattle ranks 4th in the nation for designer jobs and technical jobs due to a variety of factors including good shipping access, and diverse products from fashion apparel to technical outerwear and gear. Hundreds of AD&D graduates bring their specialized training to local companies in this sector such as Eddie Bauer, REI, Outdoor Research, Prairie Underground, Nordstrom, Tommy Bahama, Filson and many others regionally, nationally and internationally.  
 
 As the Seattle College District faces challenging budgetary times, it is important to remember the role of professional technical training in offering an alternative educational pathway to students wanting hands-on, relevant, professional training that gets them jobs. To eliminate this program, is to shutter the only program of this kind offering a 2-year degree in the state.  There is no duplication.  Because of this, AD&D offers a gateway for students to receive a quality education in the apparel industry at an affordable price. 

As you consider how to best grow an economy and classrooms affected by the pandemic, consider the importance of matching our training programs to the needs of local and regional industries and the responsibility of colleges to provide unique and affordable pathways to education. I urge you to give serious consideration to maintaining this very vital program. 

 

Regards,

_____________(your name)