A new youth theatre initiative is launching this summer through a partnership between Woodland Park Players and Shoreline College, bringing a large-scale production of Disney’s Newsies to the Shoreline community.
Designed for students ranging from rising 8th graders through age 20, the new summer program aims to provide a high-level, pre-professional theatrical training experience for young performers across the greater Seattle area.
The inaugural production, Newsies, will offer approximately 150 hours of rehearsal, performance, and musical theatre training throughout the summer in a summer stock-style environment focused on collaboration, storytelling, and ensemble-based performance.
The production will be directed and choreographed by Jessica Low, a Seattle-area theatre director, choreographer, and educator with extensive experience in youth and professional theatre throughout the Puget Sound region. Music direction will be led by Shawna Avinger.
The program is intended to serve students with a wide range of theatrical experience, from those looking to deepen their training to performers preparing for college theatre programs and future artistic opportunities. One of the main goals is to help bridge the gap between educational theatre and more advanced pre-professional opportunities for teens and young adults.
Based on the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, Newsies tells the inspiring story of young newspaper sellers who rally together to fight for justice and make their voices heard. Known for its high-energy dance numbers, sweeping score, and large ensemble cast, the production has become a favorite among young performers and audiences alike.
We want to provide an update regarding the nationwide Canvas data security incident.
While some colleges may have begun restoring access to Canvas, Shoreline College will continue restricting Canvas access through the weekend out of an abundance of caution while additional security reviews are completed. College leadership will reconvene on Monday morning at 8:00am to determine next steps and will provide an update shortly thereafter.
Your instructors should contact you via email with updates related to your courses, so please check your email regularly for important information.
Beware of increased phishing attempts! As part of this incident, users at other colleges have reported receiving phishing emails from opportunistic “bad actors” claiming to possess personal data and demanding payment. These messages are fraudulent phishing attempts.
Please remain vigilant and keep the following guidance in mind:
Do not click links or open attachments in suspicious emails or messages
Do not respond to messages demanding payment or personal information
Never share passwords, verification codes, or other sensitive information through email
If you notice any other unusual activity related to your college accounts, please submit a request for assistance to the college’s tech support team.
We understand this situation is disruptive and appreciate your patience as we work to protect student information and campus systems.
Shoreline College is aware of a recently reported cybersecurity incident involving Instructure, the company that provides Canvas. According to public reporting, the threat actor claims the incident involved data associated with approximately 9,000 educational institutions worldwide. This incident was not limited to Shoreline College. Instructure has stated that its investigation is ongoing and that the incident has been contained.
Based on Instructure’s current update, the information involved may include certain identifying information for users at affected institutions, such as names, email addresses, student ID numbers, and messages among users. We also want to clarify that our Canvas environment does not store additional user contact or sensitive personal information such as addresses, financial information, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, or other government identifiers.
Instructure has also reported taking precautionary steps, including revoking privileged credentials and access tokens, deploying security fixes, rotating certain keys, and increasing monitoring across its platforms.
Because names, email addresses, student ID numbers, and Canvas messages may have been involved for some affected institutions, please be alert for suspicious emails that reference Canvas, coursework, enrollment, grades, financial aid, or account access. Do not click unexpected links, open unexpected attachments, or provide your password or personal information in response to an unsolicited message.
Please remember:
Shoreline College will never ask for your password by email, text, or phone.
Use only official college websites and login pages to access Canvas and other college services.
Report suspicious messages to Technology Support Services (TSS) at support@shoreline.edu.
If you experience trouble accessing a Canvas-integrated tool, you may be asked to check the “authorize” button when any external tools are launched. This includes textbooks and external applications like Panopto. You may also reach out to eLearning Services to ask for assistance at elearning@shoreline.edu.
At this time, we are continuing to monitor Instructure’s status and updates and will share additional information if we learn more about the impact to our users.
Today we have a few important updates from our Campus Safety Team as we continue working to create a welcoming, supportive, and responsive environment for everyone here at Shoreline.
A New Name: Campus Safety
You may have already noticed the first change. The Safety and Security department is now known as Campus Safety. This is a name that many colleges are also implementing, and the update better reflects a people-centered approach focused not just on security, but on care, visibility, and connection across campus.
Staffing Updates
We’re also pleased to share some updates to our Campus Safety team:
Have you met Bret yet?
Bret joined Shoreline College earlier this year as Director of Campus Safety, bringing a strong background in emergency preparedness and a deep commitment to supporting campus communities. Most recently, he served as the Assistant Director of Emergency Preparedness, Health & Safety at Edmonds College, where he helped ensure campus readiness, responded to calls for service, and supported the safety and well-being of students, employees, and visitors.
Bret is originally from Snohomish and graduated from Snohomish High School in 2003. Following graduation, he served on active duty in the United States Coast Guard for 10 years, with duty stations across the Great Lakes in Michigan, the San Francisco Bay Area, and the Oregon Coast.
After his honorable discharge, Bret pursued his education using his Post-9/11 GI Bill, enrolling at Edmonds College in 2017. He went on to earn both an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) and a Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS). During this time, he was appointed VA Program Manager at the Veterans Resource Center, where he supported veterans and their dependents in achieving their educational goals and navigating VA education benefits.
Bret later returned to serve as Assistant Director of Emergency Preparedness, Health & Safety at Edmonds College, where his work focused on emergency planning, accident and injury prevention and response, fire and life safety, and broader campus safety and security operations.
In his free time, Bret enjoys spending time with his two cats, watching sporting events, and falling asleep to true crime shows in the background.
Campus Safety Team
Bret Crawford – Campus Safety Director*
Emiliano Gamboa – Campus Safety Lieutenant
Mary Lou Ames – Program Specialist 3
Officers:
Tom Dewey*
Ethan Kasberg*
Michael Erga
Han Nguyen*
Nathan Torrez
Christopher Vaughn
Roger White*
Shawn Wilkerson
Shuttle Bus Drivers:
Dennis ‘Butch’ Carlson
Puddu ‘Junior’ Dawes,
Gyanendra Muni ‘Mr. Muni’ or ‘Muni’,
*Denotes a new employee
This team is here to support students, employees, and visitors every day, and we encourage you to say hello when you see them around campus.
New Uniforms
Starting this month, you may also notice our team in new uniforms. These updates include our new Shoreline branding, better quality materials that will last longer, and a look that helps distinguish our team from other groups that frequent campus. The goal is simple: to make Campus Safety more visible, approachable, and recognizable to our community.
We’re grateful for the work this team does every day to support our campus. As always, if you have questions or would like to learn more about Campus Safety services, please don’t hesitate to reach out at campus.safety@shoreline.edu
May 5th is the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). On this year’s MMIWG Awareness Day, we invite you to take part in a living memorial at the yəhaw̓ Center for Student Empowerment (PUB 9114) from 11 AM to 1 PM.
It will be a space to honor victims, support families, and raise awareness about the crisis of violence against Native women. We encourage everyone to wear red to help bring visibility to the cause and show solidarity with our Indigenous communities.
Free Mental Health First Aid Training Offered at Shoreline Community College!
Shoreline Community College Counseling Center is offering free Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training for our campus community. MHFA is a research-supported international education program developed to teach adults how to recognize and respond to signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges. MHFA is a skills-based course that gives people the tools to assist someone who might be struggling with mental health or substance use challenges and connect them with appropriate support and resources. To date, 2.5 million people across the United States have been trained in MHFA.
Just as CPR helps those without clinical training assist an individual having a heart attack, MHFA prepares participants to interact with a person experiencing a mental health crisis. Mental Health First Aiders learn a 5-step Action Plan that guides them through reaching out and offering appropriate support.
With support from the Counseling Center, this training (valued at $170.00/participant) is FREE to Shoreline Community College employees and students.
Training Details:
We are currently offering a blended training which includes:
2-hour, self-paced online training prior to the in-person training and
6.5 hour in-person training
This quarter’s in-person training is scheduled for:
Friday, June 5th, 9:00am-3:30pm
The self-paced online training must be completed prior to attending the in-person training. You must complete the online and in-person training to become a certified Mental Health First Aider. MHFA certification lasts for 3 years.
Please email Gwyn Hoffman-Robinson at gehoffman@shoreline.edu to register and/or find out more information. Please note registration is limited and a waiting list will be started when capacity is reached. Once registered, details as far as room location, etc. will be shared.
Buildings 800 and 2300 have been officially handed over to Bayley for phase 2 of the Bracken project. Preparation for demolition has begun according to the following schedule:
Building 2300
4/22 – 4/27: Abatement
4/27 – 5/12: Full Demolition
Building 800
4/24 – 4/28: Abatement
4/29 – 5/14: Full Demolition
In preparation for the demolition of Building 2300, Wartel will temporarily shut off power to Buildings 2000 and 2100 this Thursday, 4/23, from 5am – 6:30am. This outage is necessary to safely disconnect Building 2300 in preparation for its scheduled demolition.
We appreciate your patience during this necessary prep work.
The spring quarter deadline to apply for graduation has been extended!
Because we want to be sure all graduates are able to get their graduation application submitted, we have extended the deadline through the end of the month.
The Updated Graduation Application Deadlines are:
Spring Quarter: May 1, 2026.
Summer Quarter (for students who DO want to walk in the 6/18 Commencement Ceremony): May 1, 2026
Summer Quarter (for students who DO NOT want to walk in the 6/18 Commencement Ceremony): July 9, 2026
If you expect to graduate at the end of either spring or summer quarter, please follow the steps to Appy for Graduation. This will ensure that your degree or certificate is posted to your transcript and your diploma is issued.
Graduates who want to take part in the Commencement Ceremony, please visit our Commencement Page where you can sign up to participate and order your cap & gown.
If you need help determining your graduation timeline, please contact your advisor in the Advising Center. International Students, please contact International Advising.
Amid significant financial pressures affecting higher education across Washington and the nation, Shoreline College has reached a collaborative agreement with its faculty union that prevents faculty layoffs and establishes a framework for addressing future budget challenges.
This agreement comes as the College works to close an approximately $4 million budget gap projected over the next three years. Shoreline has implemented a combination of operational reductions, hiring freezes, and workforce adjustments with a continued focus on minimizing impacts to students and preserving access to programs that support both transfer and workforce pathways. In evaluating potential reductions, the College relied on enrollment data and other operational factors to identify changes that would have the least impact on students.
Formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the agreement establishes a voluntary option for eligible faculty to reduce their workload ahead of retirement and/or provide advance notice of retirement plans. This approach generates both immediate and ongoing cost savings while preserving faculty positions and supporting continuity for students.
“Typically, the President is not in a position to work directly with the Union on issues like this. However, our collective bargaining agreement outlines the opportunity to work collectively on discussions around reductions in force. I genuinely enjoyed working with the Union team who were very conscientious, reliable, and creative in all of our discussions. They clearly had the goal to support faculty as is their role and were really trying to find solutions that would help us prepare for both current and possible future financial scenarios,” shared Dr. Jack Kahn, President of Shoreline College.
As a result of this agreement, the College has rescinded previously issued faculty RIF notices scheduled to take effect on July 1. While the College’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA) outlines a required process for discussing faculty reductions, both the College and the union chose to go beyond those minimum requirements, extending conversations and working collaboratively to identify a solution that could better support faculty, students, and the institution as a whole.
This work comes during a period of exceptional strain for higher education. Across Washington, many community and technical colleges are making difficult reductions to faculty, staff, administrative positions, and academic programs as they respond to state budget pressures and broader institutional challenges.
This new agreement offers a more student-centered alternative by preserving faculty positions while also giving the College additional flexibility to continue evaluating and strengthening programs over time to meet changing student, community, and workforce needs.
“Our faculty’s active solidarity, as a labor union, enabled us to successfully negotiate alternatives to the College’s proposed layoffs. We appreciate that the College went beyond what our CBA required and engaged us in a good-faith collaboration to find alternatives that saved jobs, and opened up additional possibilities that faculty have long sought,” shared Eric Hamako, President of the faculty’s labor union, AFT Local 1950.
The MOU was developed through months of discussion and problem-solving between college leadership and faculty union representatives. It reflects a shared commitment to protecting educational quality while also responding responsibly to ongoing financial realities.
In addition to avoiding immediate faculty layoffs, this voluntary program provides a potential model for future collaboration should additional state-level reductions occur.
Shoreline College leadership also expressed appreciation for the engagement of faculty, staff, and community members throughout the process, particularly those who participated in recent Board of Trustees discussions.
“This collaborative work between the union and college is an outstanding example of people coming together to support our educational efforts in challenging times,” said Kim Wells, Shoreline College, Board of Trustees Chair.
While this agreement represents meaningful progress, it does not eliminate the broader financial barriers facing the College, including federal and state funding challenges and declining enrollment trends. Shoreline continues to make difficult decisions across the institution, including reductions in other areas, as it works to address ongoing budget pressures and preserve student access, educational quality, and long-term sustainability. However, this effort demonstrates what is possible when institutions and their employees work together to find thoughtful, student-centered solutions.
The financial aid office will be closed Monday, April 27 through Thursday, April 30 for staff training and preparation for 2026-2027 processing. We will resume normal business hours on Monday, May 4.
