Women’s Career Panel at BCC

On Thursday, March 7, the Berkeley City College Women’s Leadership Club, STEM club, and Sustainable Business Club collaborated to present its second Women’s Career Panel. The panel featured local female professionals Jonelle Basso of the Department of Education Genome Institute at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, professor and consultant Leslie Forman, BART Chief Communication Officer Alicia Trost, Art Program Manager Jennifer Easton, and research associate and BCC alum, Molly Fischer.

The panelists fielded questions asking about their educational journey and inspiration to work in their respective fields, negotiating fair pay and advancement opportunities in their careers, overcoming imposter syndrome, and breaking through barriers in the workplace. The panel also took a few minutes for questions from the audience. Students who RSVP’d to the event were entered into a raffle for goodie bags with BCC swag and pizza from GIOIA’s Pizzeria, a local woman-owned business.

The club officers for the Women’s Leadership Club, Sustainable Business Club, and STEM club thanked library technician Allison Greene, outreach coordinator Gail Pendleton, Associate Dean of Student Engagement & Basic Needs John Nguyen, and the ASBCC for their donations and support in organizational support for the event.

Umoja Day Shares Learning Community’s Culture and Practices

On Monday, February 26, Berkeley City College’s Umoja learning community hosted its annual Umoja Day in the BCC atrium. Umoja students gathered to share their experiences and practices in the Umoja community. Along with sharing information and resources about Umoja, students demonstrated their singing talents and led the atrium in dance. “It was an awesome celebration filled with music, fabulous emcee-ing, student representation (highlighting Umoja), and uplifting and vibrant performances,” said Umoja counselor Skyler Barton. Big thanks to Skyler, Shannon Penn, and the Umoja student leaders for putting on the event!

Berkeley City College Basic Needs Represents at CHEBNA Summit

The Berkeley City College Basic Needs team submitted and presented a session titled “We Gon’ Be Alright: Allowing Students to Lead the Direction of Basic Needs” at the biannual CHEBNA (California Higher Education Basic Needs Alliance) Summit. BCC student assistants Howie Pang, Wei Wang, and Darius Standifer shared the projects they are leading and BCC Basic Needs Coordinator Izzie Villanueva shared insights about recruitment, team building, and student engagement. Over 800 students, staff, and advocates from the University of California, California State University, and a number of California Community Colleges attended this summit, along with state and county representatives, and community organizations.

BCC’s amazing counterparts at Laney College, Merritt College, and College of Alameda Basic Needs were also in attendance! We are also grateful we had the opportunity to connect with our Peralta Community College District colleagues as well as Chancellor Dr. Tammeil Gilkerson! A HUGE shoutout to the student assistants for once again facilitating essential learning while sharing experiences at another collegiate-level conference!

Black History Month and Lunar New Year Closing Ceremony

Berkeley City College closed its joint Black History Month and Lunar New Year with a ceremony on Thursday, February 29 during college hours in the BCC Atrium. The program opened with drumming from local musician Skip Butler and featured a keynote address by KQED columnist and podcast host Pendarvis Harshaw. Harshaw spoke about his background in journalism and his focus on telling stories about life in Oakland with a focus on representation and recognition of Black elders, achievements of formerly incarcerated individuals, and cultural touchpoints. Dozens of students, faculty, staff, and PCCD Board of Trustee Sheweet Yohannes were in attendance. Students were served lunch catered by Everett and Jones Barbecue and Phnom Penh. Big thanks to BCC staff and faculty Ramona Butler, Connie Tran, Susan Truong, Gail Pendleton, Andrea Williams, and Christina Taing-Rivera for their work in organizing the college’s first-ever collaborative Black History Month and Lunar New Year events.