In 1997 the presidents of Washington's community and technical colleges approved an expenditure for the 1997-99 biennium to develop and centrally offer 20 AA transfer degree courses under a program named WashingtonOnline.

• Develop 20 quality online courses which would be owned and approved by the college system
• Share online classes to expand availability of online courses across colleges and to insure class size efficiencies
• Share technical support services by use of a third-party vendor for technical delivery and support to avoid front-end costs of building a technology infrastructure
• Train faculty to develop and deliver online instruction
  

WashingtonOnline’s current goal is Strategy 1, Action 1 of the System Strategic Technology Plan:

Strategy 1: Create a single, system-wide suite of online teaching and learning tools that
provides all Washington students with easy access to “anywhere, anytime” learning.
We cannot realize the full value of teaching and learning technologies with
today’s patchwork of programs. A single, consistent, system-wide set of
teaching and learning tools and resources is the first and most essential step
toward the seamless, student-centric and customized education system we
need.

Action 1: eLearning. Assemble a system-wide suite of online teaching
and learning tools, support services, and a central 24/7 help desk through
WashingtonOnline to accommodate online, hybrid, and web-enhanced classes
in all colleges.

The mission of WashingtonOnline is to facilitate collaborations among colleges in order to increase learning opportunities for the citizens of Washington state.

Under the management of the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, WashingtonOnline will increase capacity and access to anytime anywhere learning through online delivery, support colleges offering online instruction, and support faculty and staff who serve online learners. Using modern technology, WAOL continually develops systems of coordination and services.