The president of Washington State University plans a rare visit to the North Olympic Peninsula on Monday and Tuesday, with town hall meetings set in Port Angeles and Port Townsend.
Elson S. Floyd, 54, who took office as the university’s 10th president in May 2007, will spend Monday in Port Angeles and Tuesday in Port Townsend and Port Hadlock.
The trip is part of his pledge to visit WSU facilities in all 39 counties and develop a better communication channel between the college and the public.
He plans to tour WSU research facilities, meet with area leaders both publicly and privately, and hold a series of town hall meetings.
Floyd’s statewide tour represents the first time in 30 years that a president of WSU has appeared on the west side of Puget Sound, according to the university.
Floyd has a full schedule, culminating in open town hall meetings and receptions beginning at 5:30 p.m. in both cities.
The Port Angeles town hall meeting and reception will be in the Juan de Fuca and Olympic Rooms at the Red Lion Hotel, 221 N. Lincoln St.
At Northwest Maritime Center
Tuesday’s town hall meeting and reception will be at the Northwest Maritime Center and Wooden Boat Foundation, 431 Water St., Port Townsend.
“In this economy we need to make sure the university connects with the community and is meeting its needs,” said Pamela Roberts, a faculty member for the WSU Extension branch in Port Hadlock.
“Dr. Floyd is coming out here to take his message to the community and will listen to what people have to say about their educational expectations.”
Schedules
Floyd’s schedule in Port Angeles on Monday:
• Noon to 1p.m. — Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce luncheon, Port Angeles CrabHouse Restaurant at the Red Lion Hotel.
• 1:45 p.m. to 2 p.m. — Tour Clallam County WSU Extension Center, 223 E. Fourth St., Suite 15.
• 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. — Visit with extension center staff, Vern Burton Community Center, 308 E. Fourth St.
• 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. — Meet with elected officials and community leaders at the Port Angeles City Hall, 321 E. Fifth St.
• 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. — Town hall meeting with a reception at the Juan de Fuca and Olympic Rooms at the Red Lion Hotel.
His schedule in East Jefferson County on Tuesday:
• 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. — Tour Jefferson County Extension Center, 201 West Patison St., Port Hadlock
• 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. — Meet with Team Jefferson at the extension center.
• Noon to 1:30 p.m. — Port Townsend Rotary Club luncheon at Masonic Hall, corner of Jefferson and Van Buren streets, Port Townsend.
• 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. — Meet with Intellicheck Mobilisa, Inc. officials, 191 Otto St., Port Townsend
• 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. — Town hall meeting with reception, Northwest Maritime Center and Wooden Boat Foundation.
On Wednesday, he will visit Grays Harbor County.
Roberts said that Floyd is “systems oriented” and will be able to incorporate all the gathered data into a usable format.
WSU has extension offices in every Washington county, with major agricultural research centers in Prosser, Mount Vernon, Puyallup and Wenatchee, along with 24 Small Business Development Centers across Washington.
Extension offices in Port Angeles and Port Hadlock are an evolution of the land grant colleges that were established by the federal government in 1900 to bring educational programs to people living in outlying areas.
The offices support programs ranging from technology training to the aspect for which extension programs are best known, the Master Gardener program.
“At Washington State University, we are particularly proud of our land-grant mission and the grass-roots role we play in the economic life of our state,” Floyd said.
“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to listen and to learn and to help our university focus on how we can make the most positive impact on our state’s present and future.”
Said Kathryn Baril, the director of the Port Hadlock office: “Having WSU here is less expensive than commuting to the main campuses of our state.
“It keeps education opportunity here and available locally for all of us and our children.”
For more information about the visits, see http://engagement.wsu.edu/.
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Jefferson County reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
Managing Editor Leah Leach contributed to this story.