Forum on higher education available for viewing online

The forum on higher education that took place March 1 at Bellingham City Hall is available for viewing on the BTV10 website.

The forum also is available on BTV10 (channel 10 on Comcast in the area) through the end of March. The program will air at 10 a.m. Mondays, 3 p.m. Sundays and 9 p.m. Thursdays.

The forum included a panel discussion moderated by Ken Oplinger, president of the Bellingham/Whatcom Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Panelists included former Bellingham mayor Tim Douglas, a member of the Whatcom Community College Board of Trustees; Robin Halliday, president and chairman of the Technology Alliance Group for Northwest Washington Board of Directors; Catherine Riordan, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at Western; and Byron Starkey, vice president for Government Affairs for the Associated Students of WWU.

The panel discussed the implications of the deep cuts in state funding to higher education. Between 2008 and 2010, the state cut operational funding for public baccalaureates by 30 percent and community colleges by a similar amount. If the currently proposed budget or an equivalent is approved, that cut will grow to 50 percent, cutting state support for public baccalaureate education in half in less than four years.

The forum and panel discussion were sponsored by Western Washington University, Whatcom Community College, Bellingham Technical College, the Bellingham/Whatcom Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the College Promise Coalition, a partnership of students, parents, alumni and leaders in business advocating for state universities and colleges in this state.