Public invited to SEA-TECH dedication and tour

Walla Walla Public Schools will officially dedicate the Southeast Area Technical Skills Center (SEA-TECH) Thursday, Sept. 18. The ceremony is from 9:30 to 10 a.m. Students will lead guided tours from 10 to 11 a.m. The public is invited.

Date: Thursday, September 18, 2014

Time: 9:30 to 10:00 a.m. (dedication ceremony) / 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. (facility tour)

Location:Southeast Area Technical Skills Center (525 Campus Loop – on the campus of Walla Walla Community College)

SEA-TECH Background Information:

The Washington state legislature approved a total of $11,519,000 to fund the design development, construction and equipment for the Southeast Area Technical Skills Center in Walla Walla during the 2011-13 biennium for this project. This state action was part of a development model for Skills Centers which provided 90 percent of the funding for the facility and equipment. The state funded SEA-TECH with school construction dollars. Walla Walla Community College leases the land to Walla Walla Public Schools for $1 per year. The land agreement represents the district’s 10 percent matching portion of the project. The state funded the remaining 90 percent of the project. As a result, this project did not raise local bond rates.  

During the 2011 legislative session, the district received $1,169,000 for design development for the 36,000 square feet facility located on the Walla Walla Community College campus, off of Isaacs Ave.  In 2012, the legislature appropriated an additional $10,350,000 for construction and equipment for the new Skills Center.

The district broke ground on the project during the first week in March 2013 and SEA-TECH opened for the start of the 2014-15 school year. SEA-TECH offers digital media technology, welding, renewable resources and health occupation programs. SEA-TECH is a branch campus of the Kennewick School District’s Tri-Tech Skills Center. Partnering districts: Dayton, Waitsburg, Touchet, Prescott and College Place. Students from Walla Walla and all the partner districts attend a morning (AM) or afternoon (PM) three hour block schedule at SEA-TECH.

Architect: Architects West

Contractor:  Leone and Kibble, Inc.

Director: Dennis Matson (dmatson@wwps.org / 509.526.2000)

Website: www.myseatech.org

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