Sara Varnum worked at Chemeketa from 1970-1993. She understood the importance of part-time instructors to the success of community colleges. During her time at Chemeketa, she hired and worked with hundreds of part-time faculty members, who touched the lives of thousands of students. In 1989, Sara and her staff initiated the “Institute for Instructional Excellence.” It was a full day of training designed to meet the unique educational needs of part-time faculty members throughout the state. The goal was to inspire and energize participants by providing professional development opportunities to learn, share and network – a goal that continues to this day.