For the fifth consecutive year, KeyBank Foundation, has awarded the Bates Technical College Foundation with a grant designated to support the five-year-old Diversity Center at the college.
The $10,000 grant will be used to augment college cultural celebrations, and allow the center to increase diversity-related activities on campus, to provide scholarships for students to attend the annual statewide Students of Color conference as well as a regional diversity institute through the South Puget Sound Higher Education Diversity Partnership.
A portion of last year’s grant allowed the center to commission two art pieces on display at the downtown campus. The pieces, created by local artists, were chosen in an effort to spread the presence of diversity throughout the college. This year’s grant will again include the commission of a campus-wide diversity art project. Since 2008, the college has gained four diversity-art themed pieces, in addition to supporting local Washington state artists.
“The diversity center exists to support not just students of Bates but the entire Pierce County community. The center offers the community opportunities to increase their understanding of diversity, and to reflect on the ways diversity contributes to their lives and educational experiences,” said Kathy Flores, college diversity coordinator. “The college is thankful to KeyBank for their continued support. This grant is instrumental in supporting our diversity initiatives and helps enhance our students’ college experience.”
The Diversity Center provides a welcoming and comfortable place for students and staff to meet; a safe place to learn about the diverse nature of the community; and a place where conversations and discussions can exist in an atmosphere of respect and trust. The center also organizes the annual Global Heritage Celebration, Disability Awareness Day, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, which are free and open to the public.
Bates Technical College is the state’s largest public technical college, offering certificate and degree opportunities in career education, distance learning, extended learning and apprenticeship training. For more information, go to www.bates.ctc.edu, or call 253.680.7000.