Dene Thomas appointed to Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has reappointed Fort Lewis College President Dene Thomas to the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education (WICHE). This is President Thomas’ second term with WICHE and she will serve until March 28, 2019.

“We must give our young people every opportunity to earn a great college education and I am grateful to Governor Hickenlooper for allowing me to help make that happen as part of the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education,” says President Thomas.

WICHE is a coalition of western states that seeks to provide students with better and more affordable higher education options. The states included in the commission are Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming, as well as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

The commission operates several student exchange programs that offer residents of WICHE states special tuition rates at institutions located in other WICHE states. One of these programs is the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE), of which Fort Lewis College is a member.

Any new freshman who is a resident of a WUE state is automatically considered for a WUE award when they apply to Fort Lewis College. At FLC, that award ranges from $7,480 to $10,000 per academic year for up to four years. 

For more information on the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education visit http://wiche.edu.