How to Transform Campus Culture Through Comprehensive Professional Development: Yakima Valley College
- Dr. Nooshin Valizadeh
- Nov 1
- 4 min read
Updated: Nov 17
The bridge between where your institution is now and where it could be is built through intentional professional development.
When colleges invest in equipping staff, faculty, and administrators with the right tools, the ripple effects are transformative—for employees, students, and the entire campus climate. Yakima Valley College (YVC) is a powerful example.
This success was made possible through the leadership of Tenya Moravec, Director of Strategic Initiatives for Equity & Organizational Development, with full support from Interim President Dr. Teresa Rich and the college’s administrative team.
After partnering with Dr. Nooshin Valizadeh for a comprehensive professional development experience, the feedback was so strong that they brought her back twice in one academic year.
4 Success Factors for Institutional Transformation
YVC’s journey demonstrates four key ingredients that any institution can replicate:
Institutional commitment. Leadership buy-in and resource allocation, not just good intentions.
A multi-session approach. One-time trainings spark awareness, but ongoing development builds skills and confidence.
Honest engagement. Address bias, microaggressions, and systemic barriers directly—don’t sidestep the hard conversations.
Whole-campus strategy. Pair staff/faculty development with student programming for aligned, sustainable change.
With these pillars in place, YVC moved beyond awareness into action and turned professional development into cultural transformation.
Fall Convocation: From “Welcome Back” to Culture Shift
Instead of a typical “welcome back” meeting, YVC launched the academic year with a full day of intensive training designed to transform workplace culture from the ground up.
The results: Survey responses were so overwhelmingly positive that the college immediately booked a spring follow-up.
The first major initiative took place at Fall Convocation, replacing the usual welcome-back meeting with a focused, day-long learning experience that set the tone for the year.
Training 1: Building Bridges: Cultivating a Culture of Trust, Inclusivity, and Belonging
The challenge: Build trust in an era of division.
Faculty and staff identified what they most needed:
More respectful dialogue among colleagues
Psychological safety in their workplace
Recognition for their contributions
Supportive relationships across roles
Understanding of privilege and accountability
The training delivered practical strategies staff could implement immediately, including:
Building genuine trust among colleagues
Developing open communication practices
Creating actionable steps for institutional change
Amplifying community voices in decision-making
When faculty and staff feel affirmed, they extend that same energy to students. Staff cannot pour from an empty cup—and they cannot create belonging without feeling it themselves.
Training 2: Tools for Mitigating Bias, Addressing Microaggressions, and Building Brave Spaces
This session centered on common campus scenarios that participants immediately recognized as authentic and relevant to their work.
The training provided tools to:
Recognize bias in real time
Address microaggressions effectively
Create brave spaces in classrooms and meetings
Disrupt harmful patterns when they occur
The interactive format, including reflection, small-group conversations, and collaborative problem-solving, kept participants actively engaged. They left with skills they could use right away.
Spring Follow-Up: Staff Leadership + Student Impact at Yakima Valley College
As national conversations about equity evolved and funding pressures mounted, many institutions pulled back. Rather than retreating, the college got strategic and doubled down, bringing Dr. Nooshin Valizadeh back for both a staff training and a student workshop.
Leaders leaned in as Tenya Moravec and Dr. Rich prioritized continued development to uphold the institution’s mission and community-centered values.
Staff Training: Equity-Driven Leadership in Higher Education
The core question: How do you sustain equity work when the higher education landscape keeps shifting?
The answer: Don’t abandon the work—get smarter about it.
The training focused on:
Understanding the evolving higher ed landscape
Language strategies that safeguard resources while preserving the mission
Tools to support vulnerable student populations
Practical approaches to keep equity work human-centered and sustainable
YVC’s message was clear: We will not let external pressures diminish our commitment to students.
Student Workshops: Creating Outlets for Wellness & Community Through Expression
While administrators built equity leadership skills, students were experiencing transformation through creative expression workshops.
Students engaged in:
Arts-based techniques for wellness
Opportunities to build peer connections
Space to share their voices through writing, poetry, and storytelling
Impact: Many students who had been quieter in traditional settings found new confidence through creativity and connection.
What Lasting Change Looks Like
Immediate gains:
Better workplace communication and trust
Stronger capacity to serve diverse student populations
More confidence in addressing bias and microaggressions
Long-term culture shift:
Staff consistently use practical tools in daily work
Students experience more inclusive classroom environments
Institutions stay resilient amid political and funding shifts
When administrators, faculty, and staff feel psychologically safe and equipped, students feel it too. Culture follows capacity. Ongoing leadership support ensures that these gains are sustained and embedded in everyday practice.
Ready to Commit?
Even during challenging times, Yakima Valley College enhanced its ability to serve students effectively by investing in:
Psychological safety
Bias mitigation
Authentic community
Every educational institution has the potential for this level of transformation. The question is not if your campus needs comprehensive professional development, but when you will commit to it.
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