by Cassandra L. Hernandez, College of Alameda student

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is an online application that can help you get the financial aid that you need in order to pursue your educational and career goals! Your FAFSA application helps your college determine if you're eligible for work-study programs, if you qualify for certain loans, and—most notably—how much grant money you need based on the information you submit. Grants, whether state or federal, do not need to be paid back; it’s free money!

The Peralta Community College District is proud to continue our ongoing and sustained commitment to serving the undocumented members of our East Bay community and joins with other community colleges across the state for Undocumented Student Action Week 2024.

Sociology student Kenny Ko talks about his experiences at Berkeley City College. He is in API L.E.A.D. and works at the Basic Needs Center. He is happy to help students with basic needs and assist them with any problems.

Here in the East Bay, we live in an earthquake zone, so it’s important that we all know what to do to keep as safe as possible during a quake.  The Great California Shakeout on October 17, 2024, at 10:17am, is an opportunity to test our emergency preparedness in case of an earthquake.  On that day and time, the Peralta Community College District will test our emergency communication system, Rave, by sending you all a text and email message advising you of the Great Shakeout emergency earthquake test.

Earlier this fall, College of Alameda President Melanie Dixon announced two important faculty hires for the CoA Athletics Department, including NBA Hall-of-Famer Gary Payton as the Men's Basketball Coach and Justin Hoover as the Women's Volleyball Coach.  We got to know Coach Payton during his press conference last month; now it's time to get to know Coach Hoover better!

U.S. State Department's Chief Diversity Officer Inspires Students at Engaging Campus Event

On Thursday, September 26, we had the great honor of hosting Yesterday, we had the honor of hosting Ms. Zakiya Carr Johnson, who currently serves as the U.S. Department of State Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer. Raised in East Palo Alto, Ms. Carr Johnson traveled from Washington, D.C. to our campus to share with our students the civil service employment opportunities that are available to them.

Graduation Celebration of Summer Bridge 2024 with Instructor Collette Ibeh

Responding to the needs of the rising number of young, Central American students, Laney’s ESOL department, in coordinated partnership with OUSD, continued its yearlong Newcomer Learning Community this past summer.

Alameda Economic Forecast Event

On September 26th, CoA Administrators, Faculty, and Staff participated in the Alameda Economic Forecast Event, where leaders from various industries shared valuable insights on the region’s economic climate, recent changes, and necessary steps for future growth.

Berkeley Mayoral Candidate Forum at Berkeley City College

Three candidates in the running to be the next Mayor of Berkeley took part in a Mayoral Candidate Forum at Berkeley City College, presented by the local League of Women Voters (LWV) of Berkeley, Albany, and Emeryville and in co-sponsorship with the American Association of University Women. Nearly 150 people attended filled the Auditorium for the event, which was also broadcasted and livestreamed by Berkeley Community Media.

Whether you are first generation or your parents went to your college, whether you are local or from abroad, there’s one thing all college students have in common: feeling scared and confused the first week of school. I am a first-generation college student. My whole life I was pressured by my community to go to a UC but I fell short on financial help and turned to community college instead. The application was easy, College of Alameda has a beautiful campus, diverse programs caught my eye, and I quickly enrolled.