TACOMA – The Evergreen–Tacoma campus has been providing a college education right in the heart of the Hilltop neighborhood for going on three decades and is celebrating Fall Quarter with an increase in enrollment – up 48 percent from last fall.
Like most higher education institutions, The Evergreen State College, including its Tacoma campus, saw a decrease in enrollment,especially during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Evergreen-Tacoma offers a robust, community-based style of learning. Each school year, there is a theme and this year’s is “Liberty and Justice for Whom?” Throughout each quarter for the 2022-23 school year, faculty, speakers and special guests will work with students at the Tacoma campus to develop an understanding of the justice system as it was, as it is today and what it can be in the future.
“We are so excited to welcome our new and returning students to The Evergreen State College’s Tacoma campus,” said Dr. Marcia Tate Arunga, Dean of Tacoma. “Tacoma has a rich history of welcoming community and education. It is a place where magical transformation occurs and authentic learning takes the front seat.”
Evergreen Tacoma, whose original founders are Dr. Maxine Mimms and Dr. Joye Hardiman, was created to bring education to all who wanted it. On Sunday, October 16, the campus will host an evening event featuring human rights activist, poet, educator and Black Panther Leader, Ericka Huggins.
“I first encountered The Evergreen State College when I met Dr. Maxine Mimms and Dr. Joye Hardiman, founders of Evergreen’s Tacoma campus through the grassroots community engagement and rich history that these two extraordinary educators brought to the Hilltop community,” said Dr. Dexter Gordon, Executive Vice President for The Evergreen State College.
Both campuses for The Evergreen State College are celebrating a 14 percent increase in enrollment overall as well as the award of $2.1 million in a Title III Grant that will allow the college to better serve its students – especially those traditionally underserved by higher education institutions.
“Evergreen is on the right side of the education spectrum. I see the college as a full partner with the rest of the state in providing the kind of quality education of which we can all be proud. I look around the country and am hard-pressed to see another public, liberal arts institution that is dedicated to removing barriers to education while making sure that diversity is central to what we do,” said Gordon.
Evergreen’s Tacoma campus is a dynamic liberal arts program focused on community, flexibility and convenience. The campus also offers a bi-lingual, Early Childhood Education Program which will help prepare students for a career working with children while earning their bachelor’s degree in liberal studies. Contact Shawn Harris if you are interested in the Early Childhood Education program at Shawn.Harris1@evergreen.edu or by calling 253-680-3000.
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