The Columbia River Learning Region formed when several collaborating institutions “strongly, but flexibly connected with each other and are open both to intra-regional and inter-regional learning processes” (Hassink 2004, 2). Our Learning Region began in 2012 when Selkirk College President Angus Graeme called for learning regions at a rural development summit in British Columbia. Selkirk College embraced the idea by working with the four K-12 school districts in the college’s region, meeting to discuss student transitions from K-12 to higher education. A regional book club was formed in 2014, and the Learning Region ran its first public TEDx event. In 2015 a large action research project on mountain culture included a forum with over 200 high school and college students displaying their community projects.

 In 2016 Community Colleges of Spokane joined the Learning Region and hosted a symposium for 150 Canadian and American college instructors. In 2017 Selkirk College hosted the TEDx event “Awkward Spaces,” exploring how students, educators and the community might respond when we act from what we already know without quite understanding a new idea, as well as a symposium in collaboration with the Indigenous Educators’ Summit. In 2018 Community Colleges of Spokane hosted a series of talks which were also available virtually as well as a symposium with the theme “Sensemaking in an Uncertain World.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Learning Region strengthened a budding partnership with College of the Rockies (COTR) in British Columbia. The two institutions received a BC Campus Foundations Grant for open education, a fellowship to research their work, and eventually a BC Campus Award for Excellence in Open Education. 

There are 14 associated First Nations in the US portion of the Columbia River Basin. These include the Colville, Kalispel, Spokane, and Yakama in Washington; the Kootenai, Coeur d'Alene, Nez Perce, Shoshone-Bannock, and Shoshone Paiute tribes in Idaho; the Salish and Kootenai in Montana; and the Grande Ronde, Warms Springs, Umatilla, and Burns Paiute tribes in Oregon. The Canadian portion of the basin includes the traditional and unceded territories of the Ktunaxa, Lheidli T'enneh, Secwépemc, Sinixt and Syilx Nations . On both sides of the international border, the colleges recognize their responsibility to contribute to the work of reconciliation, which relies upon education about, and action to address, the history of colonization, the sovereignty of Indigenous Nations, and the ongoing relevance of issues that impact the lives of Indigenous peoples throughout the Learning Region.

Today, the Learning Region is revitalizing the partnerships between the four colleges: Selkirk College, College of the Rockies, Spokane Community College and Spokane Falls Community College. There have been several regional learning symposiums hosted by different institutions. . Leadership from Selkirk College and Community Colleges of Spokane (CCS), which is a district encompassing both Spokane Community College and Spokane Falls Community College, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to assist one another in expanding educational opportunities within the neighboring communities we collectively serve, specifically programs and services for Native American/Indigenous/First Nations/Metis communities. 

In October 2023, a delegation of CCS administrators and faculty traveled from Spokane, Washington to Castlegar, British Columbia to tour the facilities at Selkirk College, strengthen inter-collegial relationships, and brainstorm collaborative possibilities under the framework of the MOU. Among the prioritized items from those conversations was the development of a multi-college teaching and learning conference in the spring of 2024.  We are excited to celebrate over a decade of successful cooperation, development, and shared resources.