October 28, 2015 Dear Colleagues:

It was quite a week for us. A major water leak has made it hard on employees in the District Office. LaNiece Jones arranged for me to tour West Oakland and get acquainted with some of Oakland’s leaders. The week ended with a short visit to by the First Secretary of the Cuban Embassy.

Conference Call with Morehouse College

Last week I had a conference call with Drs. Melenia King and Clarissa Myrick-Harris to discuss initiatives of interest between the Peralta Colleges, Morehouse College and the Andrew Young Foundation. There are some activities we want to plan between faculty at Peralta and Morehouse to open up opportunities for community college students both here in the East Bay and across the country. Morehouse is not known to accept transfer students, but we are working on a way so that Peralta’s faculty can have an opportunity to make it happen. We envision a couple of face-to-face interactions between our two institutions, culminating in a full-scale agreement if everything goes well. More details will be forthcoming.

Meeting with Supervisor Keith Carson

One of the most visible and known members of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors is Keith Carson. His constituents reside mostly in the cities served by the Peralta Community College District. We have seen each other in public, but had not had the chance to delve into issues of interest to the County and our Colleges.

When we sat down together, it was evident that we have a lot in common that we want to work on together. One of our common goals is the welfare of citizens in our area.

Here are some of the areas we touched on and will follow up on:

• Economic development and training; • Workforce development and training for County employees; • Foster youth education and educational concerns; • Homeless students and the need for affordable housing; • Affordable housing for newer faculty and staff; • Mental health services for students; • Access and transition of students from government assistance to job training and employment; • Incarcerated youth and education; • Public safety; • Training to support Civil Service testing; and • Participation in the Gateway STEM Network.

It was an hour packed with interaction, connection and commitment to engage the County and the Peralta Colleges.

Discussions with Jeff Heyman on Publications

From my August survey, I learned that faculty, staff and administrators want us to communicate to our external community. We need to let our community know about our progress and successes and our goals for improvement. Jeff Heyman, our Executive Director of Public Information, Communications and Media, has proposed some avenues for getting our message out. They include an occasional Chancellor’s column and op-eds in newspapers, and occasional appearances on radio and television. There will be a more direct communication with our electronic mailing list. Using some of the contents of C-DIRECT, we will design a publication to go out to the public on a monthly basis. Such continual and regular communication will allow the public to find out more about the great things we have going on at the Peralta Colleges and our work with the community.

Visits to 860 Atlantic and Microscopy

We truly have amazing high-level activities going on in the District. A lot of the activities are not as visible to our employees, because they have not been shared internally. I am not making a promise that this will change dramatically, unless we challenge ourselves to make it happen. That is the case for our Genomics and

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Microscopy programs, the former at 860 Atlantic Avenue, in Alameda, and the latter on the campus of . Last week I visited both programs, and was overwhelmed. I wish I had scheduled these two visits on different days.

Trustee Gulassa introduced me to Hank Fabian, Gisele Giorgi, Brian Rowning and Robert Macey. The Genomes program and project at 860 Atlantic collects specimens from around the world to work on genes. There are students from all ages and degrees of education that participate in the project. Industry and research entities use the lab and its equipment for research. Students from as far as UC Santa Cruz come to the lab to do research. This program has an opportunity to really grow and contribute much intellectual capital to the community. Berkeley City and Laney have different aspects of biotechnology. Taken together, these three programs are going to make Peralta a force in the life sciences. We just need to put the pieces together.

Microscopy also involves research, skills development and workforce preparation. When I visited, for what I thought would be an hour, I was dazzled after several hours by the students’ depth of commitment to the sciences and devotion to one another. One knows a program is making strides when alumni are hiring students – or opening employment opportunities for students – in the program from which they graduated. Both Genomics and Microscopy have some of the latest and most sought-after instruments and equipment for both academia and the industry. When students graduate from the programs, they are ready to enter the workforce with all the knowledge they need for success.

With the Barbara Lee Science Building opening on November 6, there is a real opportunity to highlight these programs. A couple of television programs, including our own Peralta Matters, are interested in sharing more about these programs with the community. And to the topic of communicating our programs more, the forums at BCC and CoA addressed internal marketing of all our programs.

Open Forums at BCC

Last week I spent half a day at Berkeley City College. I had the opportunity to meet separately with students, faculty, staff and administrators. The time of the forums did not allow for enough faculty to attend the session dedicated for them. This is a situation I must remediate and will work with the BCC Senate President to make it happen. These forums are meant to share with our internal community the feedback from my survey. This time allows me to hear directly from our colleagues what is on their minds concerning the District. I gathered valuable information from BCC. One of

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their major issues of concern is the safety and security of the campus. The students expressed concerns with parking and access to nutrition. The staff is concerned about professional development resources and training. Everyone seems to agree with the results of the survey that the District should be more effective, efficient and responsive. Working as a team is a priority for our colleagues as well. I want to thank Dr. Budd and her staff for welcoming me warmly to BCC.

Open Forums at COA

I visited the students, faculty, staff and administrators at the College of Alameda. The turnout was excellent for administrators and staff. The turnout from faculty was not as good because of the schedule. I will endeavor to schedule another time for both BCC and COA to visit with faculty. There were some good suggestions and thoughts shared at COA. Recognition of staff efforts was expressed as a need. There was also concern expressed about letting students into mathematics classes two or three weeks after the start of the semester. The low number of first-aid kits came up as a concern. One student leader expressed concern over support needed for undocumented students. He suggested that we have a General Education Curriculum requirement that is common across the Colleges for the number of students we have taking classes at all institutions.

My visit to COA ended with a tour of a couple of programs, Automotive and Ship Repair. I met John Peterson and Bill Andrews at the shops. The combination of Auto Body and Auto Technology seems to be working well. The faculty are able to share not only expertise, but also resources. The auto faculty have worked to introduce smart classroom technologies to the program, and I congratulate them on that. The Ship Repair tour was very educational, as I learned what our students are doing to enrich the workforce.

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There is an interest in increasing our participation with the ship building industry, especially in welding. That is where teamwork is essential at COA and Laney to work together in this instance.

I want to thank Dr. Blake and her team for welcoming me to COA and for allowing me to visit some of their programs. I intend to go back not only to meet with the faculty, but also to conclude with visiting other programs offered at COA. An idea that emerged from the survey and was verified during the visit is the need for our Colleges to advertise and visit one another highlighting all our offerings.

Oakland Serves Meeting

A group of individuals from the community led by a former professor from UCSF is working to provide support for youth in the Oakland Unified School District who are on the verge of dropping out of school. Kay Lawson, the leader of the group, met with me to investigate the potential for a partnership with our Colleges. There are two components to the group’s plan, mentoring and paid internships. The mentoring would connect the students to higher education and the internships would tie them to potential resources to attend college. Her efforts for mentors are paying off well, and her next venture is to find agencies and community organizations that will take students as interns at $750 per student.

DAS Meeting

I met with the District Academic Senate and we discussed a variety of issues. Two issues of great importance are processes and a calendar for program review. One of the items the District Academic Senate will take back is faculty prioritization to be made much earlier than has been done in the past. This is to allow us to run searches for faculty that will end by the end of April as opposed to August. The second is a coordinated timeline for program reviews by the Colleges and subsequent actions leading to Board approval.

Tour of West Oakland

My tour of West Oakland was filled with great anticipation of what we will be able to do in collaboration with the community. In addition to seeing historical sites that have made Oakland a special place, I was able to interact with some leaders.

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Here are some of the places I visited, and the people I met with, all of who are so committed to the success of the Peralta Colleges:

• Assembly Member Thompson – We briefly discussed support from the Legislature for community colleges.

• Christine Stoner, CEO of Lincoln Child Center – This organization supports families in many ways to be successful and thrive. The potential for cooperation is endless.

• Elaine Brown, CEO of Oakland World Enterprises (photo, right) – She is working on some strong entrepreneurial activities for ex- offenders in the area. She is a former member of the Black Panthers and a published author. The young people associated with the program are growing food to sell to sustain them and learn valuable lessons in civic engagement, accountability, gainful employment and self-reformation.

• OUSD Board member Jumoke Hinton Hodge accompanied me on the tour and took me to visit Ralph Bunche High School where students are making up credits toward high school graduation. She also took me to visit McClymonds High School. It looks like I was one of a few who did not know or forgot about the powerhouse this high school has been. While there I met and interacted with a couple of their instructors and saw one of our concurrent enrollment classes in progress (photo, below).

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For social progress and mobility, West Oakland is a place where Peralta can make a major difference.

College of Alameda Hosts Open Gate Advisory Committee Contributed by College of Alameda

College of Alameda welcomed an outstanding group of community leaders to the Open Gate Advisory Committee meeting on September 24. Open Gate is an educational equity project that began in 2014 as a special admissions program to assist non-violent parolees, probationers and formerly incarcerated members of the community to enter, successfully progress through, and graduate from College of Alameda. Open Gate now also includes an educational equity pathway for foster youth to enter and successfully earn a credential and/or degree from College of Alameda. The focus of the College’s efforts will be older youth, aged 18-24, who are close to transitioning.

Oakland Dialog

This is a very interesting group in Oakland that meets every six weeks to simply talk. Dr. Webb has served on the group for some years. I was invited to join the conversations. We simply hear one another and give updates on what is happening at our agencies. These interactions generate further conversations. The participants at the last meeting included Corporation, the Oakland Chief of Police, the President of the City Council, the CEO of the College of the Arts, the Superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District and the President of the UC System, Janet Napolitano. Gary Rodgers, former Safeway executive, serves as the host of the group.

Community Relations Meeting

I met with LaNiece Jones, Dr. Herbert Kitchen and Jeff Heyman to discuss community relations and public outreach. I will work with members of the Governing Board to co- host community forums in each of the Trustee’s areas where the Board member will introduce me to the community. Each Trustee will be asked to select the venue for the presentation. I, accompanied by the College President serving the area, will share District successes and challenges and entertain questions and comments.

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Institutional Effectiveness Partnership Resource Team Visit to COA Contributed by College of Alameda

On Wednesday, October 21, five colleagues joined COA as part of the Institutional Effectiveness Partnership Initiative (IEPI) Partnership Resource Team. The IEPI is a collaborative effort to help advance the institutional effectiveness of California Community Colleges and, in the process, significantly reduce the number of accreditation sanctions and audit issues. The Partnership Resource Team will visit the College of Alameda three times and meet with a full spectrum of college faculty, staff, students, and administrators. The team will focus on specific areas, including:

• Development of a robust culture of assessment for student learning and service area outcomes; • Establishment of a transparent, integrated budget and planning process that includes linkages to program review, assessment and resource allocation; • Development and implementation of a communication strategy to ensure all internal and external constituents engage in the participatory governance process; and • Establishment of a clear delineation of responsibilities between the District and College Services.

Paul Cobb and Ken Epstein of the Oakland Post

We discussed a relationship between the Oakland Post and the District. I will submit pieces about education and the Peralta Colleges to the Post newspaper group. In addition, we will be sharing more stories about what is going on within the District with the Post to keep the public informed.

Regional Adult School Consortium

After Governor Brown and the California Legislature mandated better working relationships between community colleges and adult schools, consortia have been created to address the needs of adult school students. There was a planning grant last year to prepare for a rollout of programs and activities to serve the population. This fiscal year, the Legislature allocated funds to achieve the goal of having the two segments work together. The Peralta Consortium received $2.6 million to share between the school districts and the Peralta Colleges. The college funds are being used

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to reach out to the adult schools, and also to provide initial courses to help adults transition to work with CTE programs. Among the school districts, one can see a real commitment to providing access to education for adults in our service area. They are putting pressure on the Oakland Unified School District, which has reduced its adult education by 90%. Some of the partners are quite adamant about Oakland showing that it is really dedicated to increasing its commitment to adult education.

First Secretary of Cuban Embassy Visit

The First Secretary of the Cuban Embassy in Washington, D.C., Mr. Miguel Frago, was attending a conference in the Bay Area and Congresswoman Barbara Lee arranged for him to visit Peralta. There was a quick gathering to welcome him to Laney College. Members of Supervisor Keith Carson’s staff attended the event along with members of a delegation visiting Cuba in November. The Laney Bistro was quickly arranged for the occasion. My gratitude to Dr. Elnora Webb, who responded to my cry for help, as well as Laney’s Foodservice Manager, Scott Strong, who prepared an impromptu reception – including sumptuous cupcakes made by our faculty and students for the occasion. Jeff Heyman and Joseph Camacho from the Congresswoman’s office helped make things happen with very short notice. Trustee Brown and her husband Guy attended the gathering as well.

KGPC: Peralta Colleges Radio Station on the Air Contributed by Jeff Heyman

For the first time in our 50-year history, the Peralta Colleges has its own FM radio station to provide educational and cultural programming to the community, and hands-on broadcast experience to our students. KGPC has been on the air at 96.9 FM for the past several weeks doing test transmissions. The result is that the station has begun a “soft launch” broadcast schedule from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., daily. We will be

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holding a special grand opening launch event on Tuesday, Dec. 1, from 7:00-9:00 p.m., to officially begin broadcasts. You are cordially invited to attend and to bring a favorite song to play over the air! (More details will be forthcoming on this.)

The FCC granted the Peralta Community College District a Low Power FM (LPFM) Community Radio Station License after a lengthy application process and much hard work by our Public Information Department. After a Federal rule change, the FCC opened a one-time only “window” two years ago to allow community organizations to file applications to obtain these rare LPFM licenses. More than a dozen organizations in the Bay Area filed applications for broadcast licenses on the two frequencies allowed by the FCC.

Peralta was successful in its bid and negotiated a time-share agreement, as mandated by the FCC, which resulted in us being granted the broadcast hours of 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. You can tune into the station during those hours in a geographic area that is, depending on elevation, Highway 24 in the north, Highway 13 to the east, 35th Avenue in the south, Alameda and 880 on the western edge.

Programs are produced both live during our broadcast hours and recorded during the day for broadcast in the evening. We are also planning to broadcast the Board of Trustees’ meetings live, as well as sports and cultural events at the colleges. There is already a sizable number of student and community DJs who have been doing programs for the Internet station, 9th Floor Radio, which has been Webcasting for eight years. The quality of our Internet programming was instrumental in us being granted the FCC broadcast license.

KGPC/9th Floor Radio and Peralta TV provide students with a media learning environment, both by offering a platform for their creative work and also through internships and work study, so students can hone their technical skills.

Listen to 9th Floor Radio 24 hours a day on the Web at http://9thfloorradio.com/ or KGPC over the air, from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., at 96.9 on the FM band. Watch a promo of the our new station here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O48oHeOpN84

Veterans Resource Center Grand Opening at COA Contributed by College of Alameda

Veterans at College of Alameda eagerly anticipate enhanced services and resources. On Tuesday, November 10, from 10:00 a.m. to noon, CoA will host the Grand Opening of

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the new College of Alameda Veterans Resource Center in Building G. The new Veterans Resource Center is the result of a partnership with the Sentinels of Freedom Scholarship Foundation. The Foundation’s mission is to assist severely wounded, post- 9/11 veterans in their efforts to become productive and self sufficient members of their communities, as they transition back into civilian life.

Accreditation: Colleges and District

At the November 10 Board meeting, the Colleges and the District will report to the Trustees on their activities toward meeting the recommendations of the visiting Accreditation Team. Each College has a plan and a team in place working on the recommendations. At the District level, activities are taking place to address the recommendations and provide the organizational mechanism to make them happen.

The District has identified the areas to focus on: OPEB liability, audits and Board/CEO relations. An outside expert on accreditation is being engaged by the District to help coordinate and draft the District’s responses and match them to responses from the Colleges. The expert’s responsibility will be to ensure that each college is moving along and the District efforts that overlay the Colleges’ are handled properly.

Jowel C. Laguerre, Ph.D.

Long overdue quote from our visit to Apple Computers:

“If you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.” -Steve Jobs

This one I picked up from Ralph Bunche High School:

“People are prisoners of their phones; that’s why they are called cell phones.’” -Author unknown

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