Congratulations to the 22 CAHNRS faculty members from a variety of departments who earned promotion in tenure- or career-track roles for 2025. Each of you has demonstrated dedication, talent, and effort that make impacts throughout Washington state and around the world. We look forward to seeing what you will accomplish in the years to come! I am eagerly anticipating the Celebrating Excellence Banquet on March 28 and hope many colleagues turn out to congratulate our faculty.
I am excited to see Clea Rome recognized as the winner of the 2025 Woman of Distinction Award in the career-track faculty category! Congratulations to Clea and a huge thank you to her for her leadership in the Clallam County Extension office! Clea and the other female award winners will be celebrated on March 24 at the Lewis Alumni Centre. I hope to see many of you there. With all the challenges we face right now, as a college and as a country, it is rewarding to see recognition of our colleagues’ work!
This week was the Board of Natural Resources meeting. Things have quieted down considerably with the new Commissioner of Public Lands on board. I suspect that will change at some point. For now, Commissioner Upthegrove is focused on bringing the temperature down a bit and calming conversations. Following a week in D.C., it’s a nice change. The atmosphere in some of our meetings last week was a bit charged, to say the least.
I am spending much of the week reviewing annual reports and documentation in preparation for two weeks of meetings with immediate team members, including chairs and directors. I know the budget remains on everyone’s mind. I was relieved to see the governor didn’t propose a higher ed reduction greater than 3%. We are not to the finish line yet, and even a 3% cut will be felt across CAHNRS. Washington is not alone in facing budget challenges. The reality of change has been creeping toward higher education for some time, and it’s to the point where we can’t ignore it. I am confident that CAHNRS can emerge with a stronger value proposition for our students and partners.
We may not be experiencing the spring weather we saw last week, but no snow remains a good sign that we are heading in the right direction. I hope everyone finds time to get out and enjoy it!