Highlights of Academic Services from 2007-08

Thank you for all you do and accomplish to serve our students. We know that there are many more accomplishments that happen each and every day. These are just a few of the highlights associated with the mission of Academic Services.

Curriculum  Faculty wrote or revised over 167 course outlines.  Faculty wrote or revised over 17 degrees or certificates.  Curriculum Committee in collaboration with Academic Senate completed the Part One Title 5 Updates.  Academic Services in conjunction with Student Services, produced the 2008-2010 Catalog with the Title 5 Updates.

Instructional Planning and Decision Making  Basic Skills Assessment was completed and submitted to the State by the Learning Task Force.  The Information Gathering for Compressed Calendar was completed with the culminating site visit to Folsom College.  Faculty participated in the Accreditation Self Study.  Planning and Budget reviewed and approved the Program Review Resource Allocation chart.

Success by the Numbers  The College met its enrollment numbers with an increased efficiency rate of 13.6% from Spring 2007 to Spring 2008.  339 students graduated with degrees or certificates in May 2008.

Teaching and Learning  Staff Development sponsored the GREAT TEACHERS SEMINAR series.  Over 57 people attended 51 different conferences that promote discipline learning and success.  Two TTT workshops were held during the Spring semester and approx 78 faculty attended.  Five Mini Grants were awarded for Teaching and Learning. About 35 adjuncts and full-time faculty attended the workshops or participated in the projects.  Over 25 productions in Music, Theatre, Dance and Speech were given.  Welding and Automotive Technology programs participated in the Women in Technology Initiative.  The Distance Education Program completed its Distance Education Plan.  Over 100 faculty and staff were trained in the Innovation Center.  The Mass Communications/Journalism Program established the new student magazine, Naked .  Several meetings were held with local high school and LPC instructors to enhance transitions and share methods, including the Science & Engineering Open House, and the Math Teachers Meeting.  Many seminars were held throughout the year, including: “Italian Farming in the Central Valley”, “Brain Awareness Week” featuring Dr. Temple Grandin, and “The Real Rain Man” Kim Peek spoke and met on campus.  The three-acre Campus Hill Vineyard was dedicated in May. Award Winners  LPC’s Viticulture and Winery Technology 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, Concannon Vineyards, won the Silver Medal at the Alameda County Fair.  The VCOM Program won First Place at the Alameda County Fair for their Wine Label (Conventional Style).  The VCOM Program won Second Place at the Alameda County Fair for their Wine Label (Non- conventional Style).  LPC’s “Practice of Promise” was one of 15 programs honored by the State, and one of 3 from LPC honored by the State.  Two Milanese Family Gift Awards were given to host two guest artists/speakers for the Arts and Communications Division and the whole campus.  The VCOM Department and Integrated Learning Center were both recognized with national Awards for Excellence.  The Speech and Forensics Program students received numerous awards in including Gold Medals at the National Competition in Chicago.  Dr. Neal Ely was recognized as an “Unsung Hero” by the Livermore Chamber of Commerce for spearheading the development of the LPC Vineyard and the VWT Program.  The Quest Program and Gail Ehrhorn received a Certificate of Appreciation for “Outstanding Service” from the Pleasanton Senior Center.  Several program awards were received by the Express newspaper, from various entities, in: Online Excellence, Coverage & Content, Writing & Editing, Leadership, Photography and Infographics, Critical Review, Front-Page Layout, Profile Feature, and Opinion Story.  Naked magazine received awards from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges in Feature Writing, Cover, Illustration, Bring-in Ad, Critical Review, Opinion Writing, and Team Feature (multimedia slideshow).  Radio Las Positas received awards from the Journalism Association of Northern California for a Public Service Announcement Commercial, and two On-Air Performances.  Melissa Korber was Treasurer of the Journalism Association of Community Colleges; and Jeff Bennett, student, was NorCal Student Vice President of the Journalism Association of Community Colleges.

Grants Received  Three Allied Health related Grants.  Surgical Technology Grant (Industry Driven Regional Collaborative), $160,000.  Job Development Incentive Training Fund grant, $580,000.  Allied Health Capacity Building grant, $25,000 to LPC.  The Foreign Language Department received three grants in 2007 and 2008: ARTSFUND grant through Alameda County Arts Commission, LPC Foundation Grant for two cultural events, and a Milanese Family Fund Gift.  The Spanish Department received several grants for the Nosotras en Control outreach program for Summer 2008. This was in conjunction with the Migrant program of California, BasicNecessities.org, and the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District.  LPC was awarded $160,000 in Career Technical Education (CTE) funding for 2007-08, administered through the BCAT Division.  The Psychology faculty received a VTEA (now Career Technical Education/CTE) grant to develop a new Drug and Alcohol Educator Certificate program.  The Early Childhood Development department received a renewal of the “Alameda First 5/ Every Child Counts” grant for 2007-09, $510,000.

Other  The LaPTechS Program created the LPC Faculty Absence Line and Database (under the leadership of Punam Singh), and staffed it successfully (supervised by Leslie Gravino).  The ESL Program again hosted the Northern California CATESOL Conference, chaired by Jonathan Brickman. The keynote speaker was NPR’s Michael Krasny.  The VCOM Program continues to do amazing work designing “new looks” for many local businesses, as well as much of the visual presentations for the Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center/Bankhead Theater.  The Anthropology Program (Lauren Hasten) acquired a sizeable collection of fossils and artifacts to be used in the new Forensic Anthropology and Physical Anthropology courses.