Since 1953, WICHE has promoted regional collaboration, resource-sharing, sound public policy, and innovation for the West.

WICHE brings together senior academic leaders to foster dialogue about issues facing individual institutions through its leadership and professional development networks.

WESTERN ALLIANCE OF COMMUNITY COLLEGE ACADEMIC LEADERS – The Alliance is a consortium of leaders at community colleges, technical schools, and systems and state governing and coordinating boards associated with two-year institutions.

WESTERN ACADEMIC LEADERSHIP FORUM – The Forum is a consortium of academic officers at four-year institutions, including those awarding bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees, as well as chief executives and chief academic officers for systems and state governing boards.

WESTERN ACADEMIC LEADERSHIP ACADEMY is a yearlong professional development program for academic leaders aspiring to become chief academic officers in the WICHE region’s postsecondary sector.

NO HOLDING BACK In 2022-23, 12 WICHE institutions analyzed data, policies, and practices to make improvements to how it used holds on registration or transcripts and contributed to the development of tools for other institutions to undertake this work.

Thanks to collaboration with the Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC), one of four U.S. regional higher education compacts, WICHE-region educational institutions, nonprofits, and public education entities can benefit from programs like: MHECtech, which provides competitively bid purchasing contracts for an array of hardware, software, and technology services; and MHECare, which provides a student health insurance plan and teletherapy services.

STATE AUTHORIZATION RECIPROCITY AGREEMENT (SARA) is a voluntary agreement that provides reciprocity for the state authorization of distance education. WICHE Commissioners have been strong advocates for protecting the state voice in important governance decisions affecting this agreement and staff continue to support participating states and improving student protections while bolstering access.

WICHE Behavioral Health Program’s (BHP) fastest-growing initiative is the PSYCHOLOGY INTERNSHIP CONSORTIA, which helps build the behavioral health workforce pipeline, particularly in rural or remote areas. WICHE contributes an administrative framework, American Psychological Association accreditation, and other support for consortia across the WICHE region.

RURAL COMMUNITIES OPIOID RESPONSE PROGRAM (RCORP) is a multiyear initiative supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to identify treatment barriers and best practices for preventing and treating substance use disorder. BHP provides technical assistance to 57 grantees across the U.S., supporting 24 grantees in the WICHE region.

TOGETHER WITH VETERANS (TWV) enlists rural Veterans and local partners to reduce Veteran suicide in their own community. Funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and administered by the WICHE BHP, TWV provides individualized coaching, tools, training, technical assistance, and resources, supporting 38 rural communities with 16 communities in the WICHE region, representing 11 Western states.

MOUNTAIN PLAINS RURAL OPIOID TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE (MP ROTAC) develops and shares resources, training, and technical assistance focused on opioid and stimulant misuse in rural areas in Region 8. This is funded through a multiyear grant
from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

WESTERN STATES DECISION SUPPORT GROUP (WSDSG) Since 1985, the WICHE BHP has hosted the WSDSG, which serves as an information-sharing network and collaboration group for state behavioral health data and evaluation staff from WICHE states and territories. WSDSG members discuss emerging issues in behavioral health data collection, reporting, and system evaluation. The BHP also organizes an annual meeting with training and presentations for WSDSG members to stay apprised of developments and best practices in the field of behavioral health data and evaluation. WSDSG is available to WICHE region members and is funded by annual membership fees.

Under contract with the AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ADDICTION PSYCHIATRY, WICHE BHP provides training and technical assistance to reduce the impacts of opioid and stimulant misuse and other use disorders. This contract services Region 8 states of Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.

Knocking at the College Door is the leading U.S. resource for projections of high school graduates. Released in December 2024, the newest edition is essential for postsecondary policymakers, planning and workforce efforts, and economic development.

DATA EXPERTS WICHE staff provide analysis on finance, financial aid, articulation and transfer, strategic planning, student demographics, and more, as well as host peer-to-peer calls of state, system, and institutional chief academic officers to identify areas of potential collaboration and resource sharing across the West.

DATA RESOURCES WICHE offers curated data and policy resources to support better-informed decision-making. WICHE’s research projects and collaborations cover postsecondary completion, health workforce development, behavioral health in postsecondary education, open educational resources (OER), state finance, prior learning assessment, and more:

•  Tuition and Fees in the West includes tuition, fees, and enrollment data about 350+ public institutions in the West.
• Benchmarks: WICHE Region presents information on the West’s progress in improving access to, success in, and financing of higher education.
•   Data on over 35 indicators in WICHE’s Regional Fact Book for Higher Education in the West.

Created by the WICHE Commission in 1995, the LEGISLATIVE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (LAC) works to strengthen state-level postsecondary policymaking across the West. Members are legislators appointed by each state, territory, or freely associated state in the WICHE region; they meet annually to explore emerging policy issues and develop strategies for interstate collaboration.

CHIEF ACADEMIC OFFICERS NETWORK WICHE has convened staff from across the region in a collaborative network to identify challenges and promising practices to help address workforce shortages in the health sector. Through this effort, WICHE members are able to share innovative approaches and collaborate to solve the complex challenges in this sector.

WICHE is identifying approaches for states to positively engage in high-quality SHORT-TERM CREDENTIALS through research and case-studies, with further work coming soon.

WCET- The WICHE Cooperative for Education Technologies is the leader in the practice, policy, and advocacy of digital learning in higher education. Its growing membership includes institutions, higher education agencies and systems, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and corporations in all U.S. states and several Canadian provinces.

STATE AUTHORIZATION NETWORK (SAN) helps guide institutions through state regulations around online courses and programs.

WICHE has convened the OERWest Network, which is part of a nationwide collaborative to scale the development and adoption of free course materials. Open educational resources (OER) have shown promise in improving student outcomes, particularly for poverty-affected students, for whom the high cost of textbooks can be a barrier to postsecondary success.