It’s hard to imagine a better pairing than Everett and Bastyr University.
Bastyr, currently based in Kenmore, is the nation’s leading institution for natural health sciences. Founded in 1978, the university has 1,300 students and 13 degree programs, and operates a natural-medicine clinic in Seattle, the state’s largest.
Everett is in the midst of a resurgence, marked by exciting waterfront and downtown improvements, and an economic development plan that promises to bring a new level of sophistication and livability to the city. Bastyr fits that plan perfectly.
A task force composed of university and city officials, as well as local health-care and education leaders, has been formed to explore potential partnerships. Bastyr is growing rapidly, and is running out of room at its current location on Lake Washington. A new campus on the old Simpson Mill property along the Snohomish River, land owned by the city, would provide Bastyr with the room it needs and a city that would value its presence. The city would get a responsible steward for some of its most sensitive and treasured land.
Beyond that, having Bastyr here would provide citizens with exciting new opportunities in health care and education. The task force includes the presidents of Providence Everett Medical Center and the Everett Clinic, as well as the president of Everett Community College. Natural medicine is gaining credibility and popularity, and partnerships with Providence and the Everett Clinic could offer local patients more treatment options.
New educational opportunities for Everett CC students, particularly those in nursing, could arise through Bastyr. The average age of Bastyr students is 32, indicating opportunities for students exploring career changes.
Members of Bastyr’s board of directors no doubt will want to be as certain as possible that the university will be welcome here. City and community leaders are throwing out the welcome mat, and there’s every reason citizens should, too. Those who live near the Simpson property, as well as environmental groups, should be thrilled at the prospect of a neighbor with a proven record of environmental sensitivity.
And Bastyr would bring prestige, adding to the pride Everett already feels as a Navy homeport, host to the Boeing Co. and one of the nation’s leading cardiovascular programs at Providence.
Bastyr and Everett have much to offer each other. It’s a partnership that should be pursued vigorously.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.