WICHE celebrates its 70th anniversary.
Category: Timeline Stories
All timeline stories.
The Western Regional Education Compact is signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and officially establishes WICHE. Members include Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. William Jones is appointed the first executive director and offices are established in Eugene, Oregon. In its first fiscal year, WICHE aids 61 students from five states to enroll in medical, dental, and veterinary medicine schools through the Professional Student Exchange Program (PSEP).
Fourteen Commissioners from the five states that ratified the Western Regional Education Compact – Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, and Utah – begin to organize what would eventually become known as the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE).
Governors attending the Western Governors’ Conference come together to generate the Western Regional Education Compact, a foundational document underlying what would eventually establish the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), an interstate compact aiming to help the West address higher education and workforce issues distinct to the region.
The Republic of Palau joins WICHE’s Pacific Islands membership. The Office of Insular Affairs grant, which covers WICHE’s annual dues for the Pacific Islands, is awarded for a second consecutive year.
The Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia join WICHE’s Pacific Islands membership, an expansion made possible through a generous grant from the Office of Insular Affairs to cover annual dues.
Demarée Michelau is appointed the president of WICHE. She is WICHE’s first female president.
A collaboration of two- and four-year institutions designated as Native American-Serving Nontribal institutions by the U.S. Department of Education is created with a three-year grant from Lumina Foundation. The Native-Serving Institutions Initiative engages colleges and universities throughout the U.S. that have at least 10 percent American Indian and Alaska Native students in their enrollments, in convenings and webinars, and provided a subset of the institutions with grants to support the educational success of Native students.
Every Learner Everywhere, a network of partner organizations that advocates for equitable outcomes in higher education through advances in digital learning, is formed and supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Guam joins WICHE’s Pacific Islands membership.