Wenatchee Valley College has received messages this week from multiple Wenatchee residents who live near Grace Lutheran Church or in the surrounding neighborhoods. They have expressed concern about the possibility of a housing development for people experiencing homelessness on the church’s property. There appears to be a misconception that WVC is involved with Grace Lutheran Church’s decisions regarding the use of their land.  

The president replied to these messages with the following: 

“WVC works with students experiencing homelessness to help them find shelter either on campus (the residence hall on Fifth Street) or with different agencies in the community. 

We did not solicit help from Grace Lutheran Church. They asked us for information and data on homeless students and other students at WVC needing housing. Other than supplying the public data, the college has had limited discussions with the church about student homelessness. WVC was not involved in their decision to move forward with housing. WVC has no say in what they will do with housing on their land.” 

Resources for student experiencing homelessness 

• Grant funding: WVC recently announced it was awarded a Supporting Students Experiencing Homelessness grant (SSEH) to assist students experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity, or students that were in foster care at the time of high school graduation. 

• Emergency resources: If you know a student who is experiencing homelessness or a housing crisis, they are encouraged to reach out to WVC counselors directly to be connected to the relevant resources: Bertha Sanchez (bsanchez@wvc.edu) or Ryan Poortinga (rpoortinga@wvc.edu).  

Questions 

Please contact the public information office with any additional questions:pio@wvc.edu or 509-682-6420.