News Releases

It’s Penguin Awareness Day. Literally.

Clark College President Robert K. Knight will deliver
the 2011 State of the College address on Thursday, Jan. 20

VANCOUVER, Wash. – Clark College is the Penguin Nation, and January 20 is Penguin Awareness Day. So it’s fitting that January 20 is the day when Clark President Robert K. Knight will deliver the 2011 State of the College address. 

The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 11 a.m. in the Gaiser Student Center on the college’s main campus.  Doors will open at 10:30 a.m. and seating will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.  Clark College is located at 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver.  Driving directions and parking maps are available at www.clark.edu/maps.

Knight will discuss the budget situation facing Clark as the Washington state Legislature convenes in Olympia.  He will also focus on the accomplishments and challenges of 2010.  It was a year in which the college continued to welcome record numbers of students while receiving reduced state funding.  The college anticipates that both scenarios will continue in 2011 and throughout the next biennium.

As part of the college’s ongoing commitment to service learning, students, faculty, staff and guests are invited to bring nonperishable food donations to the State of the College Address.  For the third consecutive year, Clark Student Ambassadors will collect food donations for the Share Vancouver Backpack Program. Donations can also be taken to the college’s Welcome Center from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Jan. 20 and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 21. The Welcome Center is located on the lower level of the Penguin Union Building. 

Share Vancouver provides daily meals for homeless and low-income members of the community. As part of their Children’s Hunger Initiative, Share Vancouver coordinates a “backpack program” in which more than 700 bags of food are filled with donated, nonper­ishable, easy-to-prepare food.  The bags are distributed to 29 schools in the Vancouver, Evergreen and Ridgefield School Districts. Each Friday, the bags are discreetly given to youngsters to take home so they have food during the weekend.

For the backpack program, foods such as granola bars, fruit rolls, canned tuna, soup, cereal, crackers, peanut butter, jam and juice boxes are especially welcome.   Because the food is distributed to young children, glass containers are not included in the bags.  Plastic jars and containers are preferred.

Additional information about the program is available at http://www.sharevancouver.org/Programs/childrens-hunger-initiative.  Organizers note that all donations of nonperishable food are welcome.

Knight said, “We know that supplies at food banks run low after the holidays.  We also know that many people in our region are struggling.  This is a wonderful opportunity for the college to give back to our community as a thank-you for the support they have given to us.” 

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