Arivva Center for Arts & Technology LogoFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Christian Caple, 253.213.2960

TACOMA, Wash. – Daniel Bissonnette, a seasoned program manager with experience in nonprofit start-up operations and at-risk youth advocacy, has joined the Arivva Center for Arts and Technology as Executive Director, the Arivva Board of Directors announced this week.

Bissonnette comes from a diverse professional background. He worked most recently as a project manager for the state’s Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), and has held high-level positions at the University of Washington Tacoma, the Puget Sound Educational Service District and the Chance to Change Foundation in Gig Harbor, where he served as Executive Director from 1998 to 2007.

Bissonnette is a graduate of the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, where he earned both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Business Administration. He also holds a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from Washington State University.

“Daniel’s experience and passion for this work made him an easy choice to help move this important project forward,” said Frank Hewins, Superintendent of Franklin Pierce School District and Arivva Board Chairman. “He knows what it takes to make a non-profit successful, and we love that he comes to us with such extensive leadership and development experience.”

With a goal of opening in late 2018, Arivva is set to be located near the campus of Pacific Lutheran University in Parkland, in the 15,000-plus-square-foot space formerly occupied by the PLU bookstore.

Arivva is a nonprofit organization led by community leaders from the public, private and nonprofit sectors. Its organizational framework is built on the Manchester Bidwell Education Model, which has been used throughout the last 50 years to address low educational achievement among youth and high unemployment rates among adults in distressed communities across the United States.

The model embodies four essential components: after-school visual arts programs for high school youth, demand‐driven career training for unemployed, underemployed or transitional adults, a world‐class facility designed to uplift the human spirit, and a culture that promotes dignity and respect of all individuals.

Arivva addresses a local need to increase high school graduation rates, increase access to postsecondary education and training, increase postsecondary completion in high-demand occupations, and increase the employment rate for high-school students and unemployed, underemployed or transitional adults in Lakewood, Parkland, Spanaway and other unincorporated communities of northwest Pierce County.

WorkForce Central strengthens the Pierce County economy by identifying skill gaps between jobseekers and employment opportunities, fostering data-driven decision making, and connecting workforce development partners into a cohesive, collaborative and effective network.

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