Alum to be Honored at White House

Brian Walsh ’97 of Port Angeles, Wash., will be honored as a Champion of Change at the White House on Nov. 21, 2013. The Champion of Change program honors Americans “doing extraordinary things in their communities to out-innovate, out-educate and out-build the rest of the world.”

Walsh is one of 10 professionals being honored for taking creative approaches in using technology to enhance learning for students across the United States. He leads the offender education program for Peninsula College at two state prisons in Washington State, with the goal of providing quality college education so offenders will be less likely to return to prison and be better prepared to care for themselves and their families.

According to the White House, “As Education Director for Clallam Bay and Olympic Corrections Centers, Brian started the first prison-based Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (IBEST) program, a nationally recognized curriculum for adult education in Washington state. He began five new vocational programs including: Sustainable Horticulture, Artisan Baking, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Green Building, and Computer Programming and Game Development.”

Walsh and his wife also own and operate an independent school serving students pre-K through Grade 8. He received a bachelor’s degree in history from Ripon College and, while serving as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar, a master’s degree from the University of Wales.

More information about the Champions of Change program is available by clicking here.

The Champions of Change ceremony will be streamed live online at 1 p.m. CT on November 21st, here.

To read more about Ripon College Alumni in the news, click here.

[retweet]