(WSB photo, April 10th)

A little over a month after students, faculty, and community members pleaded with the interim president of South Seattle College< (WSB sponsor) not to kill the Pastry and Baking Arts program, Peter Lortz has made a decision. The college’s communications director Ty Swenson says Lortz “is not forwarding a recommendation of program closure until more is learned from conversations with industry and further discussion with faculty.” Those conversations, he explains, emerged from “connect(ing) with those who expressed a willingness to support the program … a plan emerged for Seattle Colleges to meet with baking industry representatives to discuss how the district (this includes South Seattle College, Seattle Central College and North Seattle College) can best meet industry needs and student demand. Those meetings will be held in the near future.” In the meantime, though, Swenson adds, “South will not run Pastry & Baking Arts classes during Summer Quarter 2018 and is not currently accepting new students into the program for Fall Quarter 2018.”

Closure was recommended by the college’s vice president of instruction in the face of a college budget crunch, but before forwarding that recommendation to the district chancellor, Lortz convened a “listening session” that filled the school’s board room with supporters including prominent bakers/restaurateurs who said the program is an invaluable training ground for businesses like theirs.