Posted on October 2nd, 2023 in Announcements, 新闻

Catalyzing its Christ-centered, 使命承诺为不同的学生群体带来教育机会, 亚博体育(WPU)很高兴地宣布，它已经被美国大学录取.S. 教育部将获得一项里程碑式的5年300万美元拨款 Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions 程序. 竞争性授予的补助金授予为西班牙裔提供服务的学院和大学, low-income, and under-represented student populations, and aims to expand educational opportunity and success.

“作为一所基督教大学，这种认可肯定了我们的核心使命——通过确保各种各样的学生都能获得学术机会，并使这些学生能够关心我们的世界，将我们的信仰付诸行动。,” said WPU President Dr. Brian Johnson. “As we approach our 90th anniversary, 我们为我们的少数民族服务和西班牙裔服务指定感到自豪-我们感谢这笔拨款将使我们能够为那些传统上被排除在真正履行其使命所必需的资格之外的人提供服务.”

With 61% of WPU’s undergraduates identifying as students of color, and 32% who identify as Hispanic, WPU只是俄勒冈州六所大学之一，也是俄勒冈州唯一一所被联邦政府指定为西班牙裔服务机构的大学, a distinction it has held since 2018. The grant, entitled “Avanzamos计划:推动亚博体育从西班牙裔招生到西班牙裔服务”, furthers the university’s plans to improve student support, academic options, graduation rates and professional outcomes.

“Though we enroll a large number of Hispanic students, and are recognized as the most diverse university in Oregon in general, enrollment is not enough,” said Vice President for Enrollment and Student Success Dr. Darilis Garcia. “‘服务’是一种意向性——它意味着理解我们学生的需求和优势, 并调整我们的教学和环境，以确保我们创造全面成功的途径. And by working to better serve this large population, in reality, we will better serve other students as well.”

Project Avanzamos includes three primary goals:

  • To strengthen academic programs. Over the next five years, 这笔拨款将支持一项全校范围内的倡议，该倡议将职业考虑和体验式学习融入西浦大学的学术经历. 结果将包括在整个专业中嵌入职业思考和应用的新课程方法, 开发一个新的西班牙语翻译证书项目，帮助学生毕业时获得更有市场价值的证书.
  • To improve student support. WPU也关注课堂外发生的事情，以支持学生. 这笔赠款改善了尊重文化财富的方式，并通过“全方位”支持的生态系统培养归属感. In particular, 工作人员将努力创建一个新的社区范围内的指导和辅导倡议，将西班牙裔学生与同龄人联系起来, 教师, and community leaders that supports students while they are in school.
  • To support institutional infrastructure and outcomes. The grant will also help WPU institute new, evidence-based advising that increases student outcomes, closes equity gaps and stabilizes tuition revenue. Particularly exciting is a plan to create a new Center for Academic Success and Achievement (or “CASA”) -在校园里有一个物理空间，有指定的工作人员来欢迎学生，并领导支持学生和员工专业发展的项目.

In addition to its federal Hispanic-Serving designation, 今年早些时候，WPU也获得了AANAPISI(亚裔美国原住民太平洋岛民服务机构)的资格. 这一消息遵循了学生入学的轨迹，其中包括越来越多的黑人/非裔美国学生, 以及会说英语以外语言的学生比例不断上升. 今天, WPU is the only Christian university in the Pacific Northwest, and just one of several dozen in the country, to be recognized as “Minority Serving” by the U.S. Department of Education.

“WPU is filling an important need,” said President Johnson, who is the university’s first African American president. “Though we began as a Bible college almost a century ago, 并且有着带领成千上万的忠诚的男人和女人为他们的社区服务的美好历史, 今天，我们将这种天赋延伸到许多传统上被剥夺了同样机会的人身上，他们在一个强调同理心和服务价值观的社区里学习, faith and love, as much as practical competency skills. The fact is we need diverse leaders of competence and character. 这项拨款肯定了我们的意图，即赋予有色人种获得一种品质的权利, faith-based, 全纳教育，并准备好进入这个世界，过着有目的的生活.”

In addition to improving services to students, 这笔拨款进一步支持了一所大学，该大学正在寻求扭转大流行后入学人数下降的局面, and rebuild its connections to community in general. Earlier this year, WPU成功地克服了几年前发出的认证警告，并获得了认证机构的赞扬, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), for having taken strong steps to redirect its institutional master plan.

“Like so many small, private universities, we have had to pivot post-COVID, 同时忠于我们的使命，帮助学生成为他们应该成为的人,” said Senior Vice President of University Relations Jennifer Boehmer. “The good news is, 我们的公民和神圣社区在一个需要我们共同努力向前的愿景中团结一致, 火车, 为历史上代表性不足和服务不足的社区培养更多的领导机会. It’s about equity, 但也, put in Biblical terms, we view this work as truly reflecting the full Kingdom of God.”

WPU的传统本科生中，绝大多数(80%)上下班往返校园. 许多人与家人住在一起，并希望毕业后留在波特兰地区. As the least expensive private university in Oregon, WPU 98%的学生依靠经济援助上大学，超过42%的学生说英语以外的语言. Navigating these challenges contributed to U.S. 《亚博体育》将WPU评为2023年社会流动性“最佳表现者”.

“我很高兴这笔拨款真的为我们所有的学生创造了机会,” said President Johnson. “Our intention is to not only meet our students where they are at, but to walk alongside them as they work to achieve their dreams. 通过认识到我们需要做的工作来更好地服务我们的西班牙裔学生, 我们创建了一个基础设施，促进所有学生自己克服贫困的循环, 并创造世代的机会，履行职业召唤，并获得证书. I am tremendously proud of the hard work that has led to this moment. We stand on the shoulders of staff, 教师, 校友, 还有那些在祈祷中赋予我们力量，让我们今天以这种方式服务世界的朋友们.”

See press coverage of WPU’s historic accomplishment: