o WSUV’s College of Liberal Arts adds two degree programs this fall: bachelors of arts in history and sociology. Final approval from the WSU Board of Regents is pending, but courses are available.
o Karen Schmaling is the new WSUV vice chancellor for academic affairs. Her predecessor, Bruce Romanish, will serve as administrative assistant for one year, then resume teaching.
o A popular WSUV program has rebranded: It’s now the Creative Media and Digital Culture program.
o WSUV's College of Liberal Arts adds two degree programs this fall: bachelors of arts in history and sociology. Final approval from the WSU Board of Regents is pending, but courses are available.
o Karen Schmaling is the new WSUV vice chancellor for academic affairs. Her predecessor, Bruce Romanish, will serve as administrative assistant for one year, then resume teaching.
o A popular WSUV program has rebranded: It's now the Creative Media and Digital Culture program.
Cougars are on the prowl again, on a Salmon Creek hilltop.
The laptop-toting, textbook-buying, parking-spot-chasing kind — as Washington State University Vancouver students kicked off their 2010 fall semester Monday.
It was the 15th opening day at the ever-expanding campus that launched in 1996, which more and more resembles a full-scale, real-deal four-year university.
Head count is expected to reach about 3,100 individual students this semester, the total of all undergraduate and graduate students, surpassing 3,000 for the first time.
Full-time equivalent enrollment is less certain, but officials expect a record 2,300 FTEs when registration numbers lock in early next month.
What’s apparent is that students are taking more credits, whether undergraduate or graduate courses, said a WSUV official.
“Students might be taking more credits, just to maximize what they’re paying for,” said Nancy Youlden, vice chancellor for student affairs.
Once past 10 credits per semester, students get a healthy break on tuition, she noted. She said many tack on an extra course or more past the full-time mark (12 credits for undergrads, 10 credits for graduate students) “to get more bang for their buck.”
To help students balance a heavier class load, WSUV offers a newly remodeled and expanded fitness center this year. By Labor Day, the facility beneath the campus library will open for group exercise (such as spinning classes) and feature new, added equipment for students and employees, Youlden said.
Besides the gym, WSUV has a popular recreation program where students may rent out skis, tents and camping gear, bicycles and more.
“It adds to our student life. There’s definitely a more vibrant life on campus with these things,” Youlden said.
There shouldn’t be any exercise noise thumping into the library space, she noted. WSUV buildings are designed and constructed with top-notch materials, and “made to last,” she said.
WSUV’s next classroom building, the latest in a series of major additions, is one year away.
A $43.5 million engineering and computer science building (formerly dubbed the applied technology center) should be ready for classes in fall 2011. The four-story, 56,000-square-foot technology building will house the university’s new undergraduate electrical engineering program. It is the second of three buildings planned as part of an economic development project to boost Southwest Washington’s semiconductor industry.
Howard Buck: 360-735-4515 or howard.buck@columbian.com.
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