CHANCELLOR’S C-DIRECTApril 19, 2017

Dear Colleagues:

I have several reports and contributions for this week’s C-DIRECT – the post-Spring Break edition – that I think you will find of interest:

Christine Williams Acting Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration

Christine D. Williams joins PCCD in the role of Acting Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration as a result of over eighteen years of successful leadership in higher education and senior leadership in corporate America that has led to multimillion-dollar accounts and project expansions. Christine has worked with client accounts that have generated millions in revenue stream.  Ms. Williams’ industry experience has a strong, unique mixture of successful business development and P&L management in corporate America as well as successful leadership in higher education.

Ms. Williams’ credentials have served as a catalyst for the expansion and growth of successfully leadership in community college finance and operations, post-secondary higher education, Finance and Facilities, Academic Affairs, Student Financial Advisement, Campus Coordination, Admissions and Enrollment, and the Career Services Teams.  

Ms. Williams will be instrumental in aiding the district’s efforts in expansion opportunities for communities of underserved populations to pursue higher education more conveniently. Ms. Williams holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from Le Tourneau University and Master’s of Business Administration from University of Houston. Please join me in welcoming Christine to the team.

Accreditation UpdateSubmitted by Dr. Annette Dambrosio, District Accreditation Liaison

On April 4, I attended the four day ACCJC Conference: “Partnerships in Excellence: Co-Creating an Outstanding Student Experience,” in Southern California. This conference was an historic event with approximately 450 educators coming together (the conference was sold out) from 104 institutions. According to Interim President Richard Winn, this event marked the first time in 55 years that a comprehensive ACCJC conference was convened.

The sessions offered a mix of current accreditation information and some were genuinely thought provoking; in general, the participants exchanged some novel ideas related to adhering to Standards, while at the same time sharing sob stories related to sanctions. I was selected to present a paper: “Do Educators have a Prima Donna Complex?” Unbeknownst to me, my paper had generated much pre-conference buzz (I learned later that many folks feared my title although none knew of my thesis). I am pleased to report, however, that the session went well and resulted in healthy debate and discussion, the general consensus being an acknowledgment of my intended “outcome,” i.e., that we should welcome (rather than resent) “just criticism” from outside agencies regarding CCC education. In truth, approximately 75% of our students come to our institutions unprepared for college courses and a majority remain unprepared, statistics that have not changed much over the years, despite the heroic efforts of many dedicated faculty, administrators and support staff.

At the Conference, we were reminded that many institutions that are in good standing with our Accreditors had done the difficult work to “institutionalize” accreditation Standards. These Colleges and Districts do not focus on accreditation only when Reports are due, but have integrated the Standards into everyday work. These healthy institutions are mindful of ACCJC Standards routinely and effectively operating in the background of their daily work lives and have changed the accreditation narrative from a “culture of fear of sanctions” and mindless report writing, to a culture of continuous evaluation and improvement driven by systematic planning always aimed at assuring the best education for students.

2

The sessions I attended illustrated the wide variety of approaches that Colleges and Districts take regarding how we integrate Accreditation Standards in our planning, budgetary, and participatory governance structures and educational master plans. For example, one college has accreditation as a discussion item on each Governing Board agenda, another college requires that at least one day per semester, everyone (no excuses!) gets together in an assembly to discuss accreditation goals…. another has everyone engaged in posting evidence each week and accreditation summaries are issued monthly to all constituent groups.

Of particular interest to me were two sessions: 1) Dr. Judith Eaton, President of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), put forward her forecast on the growing Federal influence of accreditation. Her concern is that accreditation is headed to more Federal control and that the more the Federal government regulates accreditation, the more difficult it becomes to maintain local control and independence. She urged us to keep an eye on Washington D.C. and accreditation. 2) Another speaker was CCC Chancellor, Eloy Oakley. He advised that we should not be preoccupied only with the merits of ACCJC Standards, but work with the Agency to improve education in the CCCs. His emphasis was that we must focus on assisting our students to earn a CCC degree and/or to transfer. He reminded us that California has seen no substantial increases in community college completion rates (approximately 48%) despite passing a recent reform law in 2012 (SB 1456) and has spent countless dollars in subsequent state appropriations, all aimed at significantly improving student progress. He stressed the importance of working with ACCJC as a partner in furthering the success of our students to complete their educational goals.

In general, I left the ACCJC Conference with a renewed interest in a Commission that appears to openly recognize where it needs to improve. ACCJC Staff, to include Interim President Richard Winn, were present, as were many Commissioners. On the home front, Dr. Joseph Bielanski and Tram Vo-Kumamoto (BCC), and Dr. Luis Pedraja, Interim VCAA, were in attendance—admirable that PCCD had 4 of us participating.

The ACCJC Conference was an historic occasion. My hope is that going forward, ACCJC will keep its promise to serve as a “partner” with all of us to provide an authentic

3

postsecondary education to our students. We will look for deeds and not mere rhetoric.

Email me with suggestions regarding Accreditation: adambrosio@peralta.edu

New Student-Centered Programming on KGPC-FMSubmitted by Katherine-Rae Mondo, Department of Public Information/KGPC-FM

There is a lot of new, exciting programming happening on Peralta’s community radio station, KGPC 96.6 FM. You can listen live from 7pm to 7am at 96.9 FM or the 24/7 stream anytime at www.KGPC969.org. Check out some of these new shows:

The Alejo and Xavier Poli Podcast : Two BCC students (Alejo & Xavier) talking politics! First and third Thursdays at 5pm.

BCC Voices from Around the World : For the past couple of semesters, KGPC has partnered with Peralta ESOL classes to share students' stories. BCC Voices from Around the World comes from our most recent collaboration with instructor Elizabeth Wadell. Find past classes here.

El show de Aurea : Our first show in (mostly) Spanish! Also by a BCC student, Aurea Altamirano. First and third Wednesdays at 3:30.

Femme FM : A feminist talk and music show hosted by Peralta student Camellia Lee and co-host Prianka Misra! Third Thursdays at 6pm.

Oakland Bikes! : Katie Styer brings Interviews about bikes AND has a live local band every show! First and third Tuesdays at 7.

Real Talk With Lady G : A call-in talk show with Gloria Bailey-Ray, and a different topic every episode! Second and fourth Thursdays at 8.

Some Noise : A podcast about "the foolish pursuit of life, clarity, and context," created by Najib Aminy. Airing on our (now) podcast Fridays at 8pm!

The Tom Rhodes Never Strikes a Pop Pose Show : A music show with a different theme every episode, hosted by Otis Taylor Jr. Fun fact: Otis is the SF Chronicle's East Bay columnist.

4

BCC 4th Statewide in Percentage of Transfer Degrees

President Tomaneng sent me the following email from Windy W. Franklin, Berkeley City College’s Interim Dean, Student Support Services, with some very good news:

Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting with a regional affairs manager for Campaign for College Opportunity, who had reached out to me regarding how BCC became the 4th in the state for the percentage of degrees granted that are transfer degrees (ADTs). The table below identifies the top 10 community colleges in the state and their percentage. This percentage takes into account the size of the campus and the number of ADTs offered by each campus. Considering this, BCC is fourth behind three campuses that enroll 3x (at minimum) the number of students we do and offer more ADTs than we do. I’ve shared this information with the counselors and I’m sharing it with you all as a kudo for the quality of work our Counseling Division does for us and our students. Along with our current co-chairs of the division, Gabriel and Susan, I’m also copying Ms. Hermia and Ms. Alley, the department chairs when the ADTs were first introduced to the system. I believe their work laid the foundation for the counselors’ perspective on the value of the ADT, a perspective shared and further supported by our current co-chairs. Thank you each for your counseling leadership.  

CALIFORNIA COMMUNITY

COLLEGE

% of ALL DEGREES GRANTED

THAT ARE

ADTsGlendale 51.1%Diablo Valley 49.6%Long Beach 47.5%Berkeley City 46.7%Desert 45.3%San Diego Mesa

43.9%

Fresno City 42.4%Saddleback 42.2%West Valley 42.0%San Mateo 41.9%

 

5

Forklift and Scissor Lift TrainingSubmitted by Royl L. Roberts, Risk Management

During Spring break, the Risk Management Department hosted Fork and Scissor Lift Training at the District Office and Laney College. The training was attended by representatives from each of the Colleges as well as the District Office, resulting in the certification of thirty-three (33) individuals on

the forklift and fifteen (15) on the scissor lift. Participants included members of the Peralta Federation of Teachers (PFT), Local 39, Confidential and Management Employees. Both trainings included classroom instruction and practical skill exercises on the equipment. The training fulfills Cal/OSHA requirements and participants will receive certificates of completion.

Enrollment Management Advisory Taskforce Submitted by Tamika Brown, Enrollment Management

The District Enrollment Management Advisory Taskforce members are now engaged in presenting the draft District SEM plan for review and feedback from April 6, 2017 to April 27, 2017. Please check out our web link for a copy of the draft plan, data reports from the RP Group, PowerPoints, and membership and planning process at:http://web.peralta.edu/studentservices/strategic-enrollment-management-advisory-taskforce/ Guiding questions for review/feedback of the PCCD SEM draft plan are:

1. Share your thoughts on the PCCD SEM PURPOSE:

6

The purpose of SEM planning at PCCD is to align outreach and recruitment, admissions, financial aid, class scheduling, instruction, student support services and efficient pathways to student success and completion that will help students move in and move on, as well as to increase enrollment growth and fiscal viability.2. The PCCD SEM Plan stems from some general guiding principles. Do the majority of these principles capture the core of SEM planning for Peralta Colleges? Why or why not? SEM planning at PCCD will be guided by the following set of principles:

SEM goals and strategic initiatives will be aligned to the College & District mission and strategic goals.

Student success will be at the core of all SEM practices. Decisions regarding goals, strategic initiatives and practices will be data-informed. Equity will be characterized in all SEM strategies and practices. Collaboration and inclusiveness will typify SEM planning and implementation. Widespread, continuous communication will be used in the SEM planning process. Striving for excellence will be supported through innovation.

3. Do you believe the District SEM planning process will interact well and support adequately the SEM planning process at your College?

Each College will have an SEM plan. The District SEM Plan will support College SEM plans by: Marshalling resources Coordinating efforts Increasing communication Sharing data

Everyone is invited to attend the goal-setting workshop on May 13, 2017, 11-3pm; please RSVP to tmbrown@peralta.edu. The workshop will be facilitated by Dr. Cathy Hasson (SEM consultant), and Tamika Brown to establish broad District enrollment management goals and strategies to support the Colleges.

Educational Coalition for Hispanics Submitted by Debra Jones, Workforce Development and Continuing Education

The Educational Coalition for Hispanics in Oakland (ECHO) and Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) hosted "Excel to Lead,” a celebration for the proud families and the 2,881 OUSD students who have earned at least a 3.0 grade point average in 2017. The event was held at the Cathedral of Christ the Light. I was asked by Chancellor Laguerre to represent Peralta Community College District. Attendees learned about the Oakland Promise and the free semester at Peralta's Colleges. Mayor Libby Schaaf, an alumni of Oakland schools, was the keynote speaker and

7

inspired students to dream big dreams. Traditional dance, costumes and music performances highlighted the afternoon, but nothing was as inspiring as the smiles from the delighted students and their families. ¡Felicidades a los estudiantes latinexs quienes están en el cuadro de honor!

Bridge to Healthcare Careers Program Provides Lifeline for Disadvantaged StudentsSubmitted by Victor Littles

The Y & H Soda Foundation, the Bay Area Workforce Collaborative, and the San Francisco Foundation have partnered with Merritt College, part of the Peralta Community College District, to offer The Bridge to Healthcare Careers program for interested, eligible students. This program, which started in February and runs through May, introduces students to healthcare careers and provides the skill training needed to succeed in college courses. It is geared toward those 18 and over, specifically targeting those who have been laid off from work or are under- or unemployed, re-entry students or veterans, or looking to change from a routine job into a professional career.

Robbie Kunkel, Dean of Academic Pathways and Student Success, Merritt College, has managed two pilots of the bridge program, and has worked with Career Ladders Project and the RP Group on ways to deliver better programming for highly vulnerable student populations. Faculty have also contributed significantly to student success in the two pilot bridge programs; Dr. Ruhina Najem, Dr. Anthony Powell, and Dr. Mario Rivas have written curricula specifically designed to provide additional wrap-around student support in addition to rigorous instruction.

With community college students facing numerous obstacles, the most obvious and important are the persistent and dramatic achievement gap. “The Bridge to Health Program at Merritt College establishes a new beginning for many otherwise struggling students to begin a career with a future,” notes Transition Liaison, Dr. Victor Littles. It also provides a reliable source of stability and social support. Students can be homeless, undocumented, sick or disabled, hungry or abused. However, they all have one thing in common –they are all entitled access to public education. Also, students have an opportunity for a free lunch, classes, supplies, and transportation. Thus the program becomes a safety net, through urban schools and Community Colleges, for poor or disadvantaged students.

8

To be eligible for the program, participant students must: 1) be interested in attending college and curious about potential healthcare careers, 2) be unemployed or underemployed, 3) have earned less than 12 units of college credits with or without a GED/high school diploma, 4) be willing to work to achieve success in the endeavor, and 5) not be a current high school or college student. In addition, it is preferable for participants to have a GED or high school diploma.

In this free, 15-week, part-time program, participants take important life-skills classes like communication, and college success. The program, a combination of non-credited and credited courses, provides books, supplies, lunch, and public transportation. Students also receive a wide variety of cross-training in programs including:

Medical Assisting Nursing Radiology Technician Histotechnician EMT Dietician

Some of the classes are structured using the IBEST model (Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training), in partnership with Oakland Adult & Career Education. Students benefit from two co-teachers in the classroom: one teaching healthcare skills and one teaching contextualized math and English skills for healthcare. With this IBEST model, students have a higher persistence and completion rate.

Merritt’s College long termed relationships with CBO’s, and the newly created relationships with CBO’s are key components in the success of the Healthcare to Career program. To ensure its development and success, Dr. Littles brought his extensive experience in community outreach and local/national political campaigns to create and establish relations with CBO’s (Community Base Organizations), to recruit and assist eligible students. There were 35 students who started the program. Currently, 32 students are in the program. Two were homeless when entered the program, three are parolees, three are former Foster Care students, all are low income, some are undocumented, and most are receiving some form of financial support from Alameda County Social Services. Also significant to the program is Dr. Victor Littles, who has contributed to the student retention success through his knowledge and understanding the East Oakland community, meeting and understanding families through home visits, checking in with students on a daily basis, and monthly breakfast meetings.

9

There is a still great need for individuals and organizations to devote their time and energy to the relentless pursuit of providing access to public education. The Bridge to Healthcare Careers program is only a start point but provides a working model for future programs; successfully pulling together resources to create excellent educational opportunities for those who need them. It also takes a commitment. “I strive to make dramatic, measurable gains in student achievement, regardless of the challenges I must face, and the obstacles and challenges of the students in achieving them,” stresses Dr. Littles, who has an in-depth understanding of this community. It is a team effort, and when local communities, schools, and community colleges come together, there is no limit to the difference it can make.

JowelJowel C. Laguerre, Ph.D.

Chancellor

QUOTE?

10