We are excited to announce that the the Certificate of Achievement in Urban Agroecology program at Merritt College has earned an 100,000 U.S.Department of Agriculture grant to train students to become urban farmers using sustainable agricultural practices during the summer session.
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Curbside Pickup is available for Fall 2020 at the CoA Library. Chromebooks, calculators, and books from the circulating collection are available through the COA Library Curbside Pickup/Returns service (limited hours and by appointment only). The library also is offering a number of innovate online services including:
Merritt College is proud to be one of the founding partners of East Side Oakland Ventures (ESO Ventures). Formerly known as the East Oakland Entrepreneur Initiative, ESO Ventures provides pathways, support, and funding sources for entrepreneurs from historically disadvantaged communities. To address long-standing patterns of economic inequity, Merritt College and ESO Ventures are focused on bolstering entrepreneurial development and growing the self-employment sector by ensuring that black and brown businesses have greater access to funding capital. Toward that end, Merritt will also leverage our existing Level UP partnership program with Facebook to offer co-branded Digital Marketing Certificates for Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs. As always, we remain committed to collaborating with Oaklanders to build community-wealth and ensure that our people are thriving.
From the ESO Ventures Website:
ESO Ventures is an initiative to grow community wealth and rebuild East Oakland through entrepreneurship. We are a collaborative of entrepreneurs with deep roots in Oakland and business incubation, who have come together to support the development of an entrepreneurial pipeline along the Eastmont Corridor. This project has grown out of District 6 Council Member Loren Taylor and his partnership with California Community Colleges, specifically Merritt College and the Peralta Colleges Foundation, to create opportunities for the young people and residents of District 6 who want to start a business to have the resources they need to be successful.
We welcome anyone who is interested in learning more about this initiative to visit: https://www.eso- ventures.com/ or reach out to Dean Marie Amboy or Dean Jason Holloway.
Oakland, CA -- The Peralta Community College District (PCCD) Board of Trustees held a special meeting on Wednesday, September 23, 2020, and today is announcing their decision to begin contract negotiations with Dr. Carla Walter to become Interim Chancellor. The goal will be to place the contract for public review and approval at their regular meeting scheduled for Tuesday, September 29, 2020.
Berkeley City College (BCC) announced that it has been awarded a highly-competitive nearly $3 million Developing Hispanic Serving Institution grant from the Department of Education to expand supportive services for Latinx and marginalized students. This is the College’s first grant since being named a Developing Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) by the US Department of Education in 2020. As a population that has been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, these additional academic and student support services come at a critical time.
Feke Tutuila, a second year student athlete and secretary of Wayfinder, the Pacific Islander student club at Laney College, was an invited panelist on a CalMatters webinar in August with state chancellor Dr. Eloy Oakley. Feke, a member of the Laney College football team recently featured in the Netflix series Last Chance U, asked Oakley how he plans to improve language accessibility for students who do not speak English well. Oakley said the number one priority is to hire more faculty of color, including those who speak other languages.
Since April, the Office of International Education (OIE) received $34,500 in funding to support fourteen F-1 international students thanks to the Institute of International Education’s (IIE) Emergency Student Funding (ESF) relief! The ESF provides financial support to international students when emergencies in their home countries, or globally such as COVID-19, threaten to jeopardize the completion of their studies.
Oakland, CA – Laney College’s APASS (Asian Pacific American Student Success) program was awarded a prestigious $1.5 million U.S. Department of Education AANAPISI (Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution) grant to support job training, job placement and career pathways for ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) and Asian American Pacific Islander students. While Laney College has received two previous AANAPISI grants, this is the first grant that specifically supports job training and placement for AAPI and ESOL students.
Berkeley City College President Angélica Garcia kicked off the first of her campus community check-ins in her “Cafécito “Zoom, on Thursday, August 27, 2020. Faculty, staff, and students joined the President in this question and answer session focused on BCC updates and what to expect for the 2020 – 2021 academic year. Some of the questions from the event centered on getting to know President Garcia and the goals of the college. Some of the highlighted questions:
Peralta TV, which celebrated its 40th Anniversary earlier this year (see Peralta Gems #9), continues to broadcast educational and Peralta community content 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Peralta TV is available on Comcast (Channel 27 in Alameda and Berkeley, and Channel 28 in Oakland, Emeryville and Piedmont) and on AT&T U-Verse (Channel 99). Here are some upcoming program highlights in September.
