College of Alameda Spring Flex Day was a Great Success

 CoA’s Spring Flex Day theme celebrated Women’s History, with a dual focus on women and enrollment management. COA was very honored to have as the keynote speaker Interim Chancellor Dr. Jannett Jackson, who presented on Women in Leadership in Higher Education: Cross Gender Communication and Organizational Culture.

The day’s events were well-attended, with 108 faculty, classified professionals, and students participating. Participants had opportunities to work in breakout sessions in three different case vignettes, highlighting the importance of women leadership.

Classified Senate President Kawanna Rollins and Professional Development Committee and Economics Professor Dr. Diana Bajrami presented a workshop on Women and the Pandemic, focusing on the disproportionate burden that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on women, and including a focused assertion against the current societal violence towards women and our Asian communities.

In his Flex Day presentation, titled Student Enrollment and Success: Shared Responsibility and Institutional Priority, College of Alameda President, Dr. Nathaniel Jones III, highlighted important enrollment and student success trend data and talked about the College’s strategic enrollment management (SEM) efforts, need for enhanced and greater SEM work college-wide, and fiscal implications of our enrollments. His presentation was followed by a robust discussion. The entire presentation is available on the CoA President’s Office webpage: https://alameda.peralta.edu/wp- content/uploads/2021/03/Spring-3.18.21-Enrollment-Presentation-1.pdf

The afternoon sessions included division meetings, special trainings for classified professionals such as Shared Governance training and Microsoft forms. Guided Pathways, Passion Amid Pandemic: CTE Pathways Panel Presentation, and People Soft training rounded out the day, which was well-attended and liked.

College of Alameda Kudos

CoA’s very own Mathematics Instructor and Math Department Co-Chair Dr. Khalilah Beal-Uribe has been selected as a 2021 Mathematically Gifted & Black Honoree! Each year, the Network of Minorities in Mathematical Sciences chooses twenty-eight Black Mathematicians to spotlight during Black History Month for their contributions to the field. This year, Dr. Beal-Uribe was featured on February 25, 2021.

Says Beal-Uribe of the award, “We do this work humbly, following those who have gone before us and helping pave the way for those coming behind. I am very grateful for both the honor and the ability to represent the College of Alameda in such a positive light!”

To view the article and learn more about the Network of Minorities in Mathematical Sciences, click this link:  https://mathematicallygiftedandblack.com/honorees/khalilah-beal-uribe/

College of Alameda Has Been Accepted into the California Virtual Campus (CVC ) Consortium

The CVC Consortium is a group of 65 California Community Colleges that work together to address online achievement gaps and increase student access to fully-resourced online courses. The Consortium provides structure and guidance for colleges to achieve the following:

• Increase growth for online course development, approval, and delivery.
• Facilitate robust faculty/staff orientation, professional development, and support.
• Assist in the development and delivery of comprehensive online learner readiness resources and other student support services.
• Increase the use of technologies to support online teaching and learning.
• Streamline student service delivery and the enrollment process.
  Learn more about the CVC Consortium: https://cvc.edu/about-the-oei/college-participation/

CoA In solidarity: Important events and resources for our Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Students

On March 19, 2021, a special communication was disseminated by the President’s Office to all CoA students, faculty, and staff strongly asserting that CoA stands in solidarity with our Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) students, colleagues, and community members. The message condemned all acts of violence and racism, and affirmed the College’s commitment to the safety and well-being of our AAPI students, faculty, staff, and community members. Our faculty and staff also compiled a list of special resources designed to support our AAPI community that are accessible on the College website, at AAPI Resources. 

College of Alameda Family Engagement

In collaboration with Vice President of Student Services Dr. Tina Vasconcellos and Director, Hispanic Serving Institution Grant and ACCESO/Puente Programs Horacio Corona Lira, COA President, Dr. Nathaniel Jones III, will be participating in College of Alameda’s Family Night on Thursday, April 22, 2021, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. The event is scheduled to take place virtually. After meeting with our partners at Fremont High School (OUSD), we might be able to offer limited on-site participation (with adequate social distance measures) at their campus. Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) Assistant Principal Nydia Baez has agreed to create a safety plan to run by OUSD for approval. If approved, the College would be able to offer an on-site option at Fremont’s cafeteria for a limited number of families. I would personally participate on-site for an added “in-person” benefit.

COA Faculty, Staff, and Administrators Attended the 2021 AHSIE Best Practices Conference

As the College begins to focus on transforming from a Hispanic enrolling institution to a Hispanic thriving institute, there is much that COA can learn from other institutions that have undergone similar transitions. The Alliance of Hispanic Serving Institution Educators (AHSIE) offers an annual conference that provides practitioners from current and emerging Hispanic Serving Institutions with opportunities to share ideas, build partnerships, and influence the development of policies designed to increase student success.

This year, seven CoA ACCESO/Puente team members and administrators attended the virtual AHSIE annual conference, including COA President Dr. Nathaniel Jones III, Vice President of Instruction Dr. Don Miller, Dean of Liberal Studies and Language Arts Lilia Celhay, Director Horacio Corona Lira, Student Services Specialist Mayra Arevalo-Agyapong, Counselor Danna Chavez Baquero, and Puente English Instructor Anthony Scoggins

The Conference included a series of workshops and panel discussions. The opening Keynote Address was presented by Dr. Bettina L. Love, who discussed the struggles and the possibilities of committing ourselves to an abolitionist goal of educational freedom, as opposed to reform. She explained how abolitionist Teaching is built on the creativity, imagination, boldness, ingenuity, and rebellious spirit of abolitionists to fight for an educational system where all students are thriving, not simply surviving. Dr. Love is an award-winning author who serves as the Athletic Association Endowed Professor at the University of Georgia, and is a pioneer in establishing Abolitionist Teaching and schools.

The main foci of the conference included: culturally responsive and sustaining teaching and learning practices in the classroom, the impact of America's racism on Black children and Black families, and abolitionist teaching to foster social justice classrooms and schools.

COA Enrollment Update & Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) Efforts

While CoA’s enrollments have declined in recent years, its decline during the pandemic was significant like that of statewide community colleges.

Early and intentional actions taken by CoA seem to have lessened the decline somewhat. Spring 2021 enrollments achieved 87 percent of the target compared to 83 percent of the target reached in Spring 2020. There is some other good news as well. CoA has seen some overall increases in course success and retention rates during this period, except for students who are American Indian, African American, Pacific Islander, or of low social economic status. This, however, is a troubling outcome, that we are actively seeking to address.

Recent studies and data analysis that the District conducted with Dr. Jim Black, from the SEM Works consulting firm, and Deborah Ludford, from Cambridge West Partnership, LLC, indicated that the pandemic exacerbated CoA’s enrollment declines especially among American Indian, African American, and Pacific Islander students, as well as students with low social economic status.

The implications of enrollment declines are resulting in the following:

• Reduced access to needed education,
• Disproportionate impact on most vulnerable students,
• A decreased skilled workforce,
• Lower health status and life expectancy (https://consumer.healthday.com/3-8-which-americans-live-longest-education-matters-more-now-than-race-study-shows-2650890374.html), and
• Reduced apportionment funding, leading to difficult decisions.

The research conducted by the District’s consultants will continue to inform our strategic enrollment management approaches at the college going forward. Most importantly, our strategic enrollment management efforts will be data-driven and student-focused. Recommendations that we will be acting upon include: ensuring that student academic needs drive enrollment management decisions, and, as a general rule, determining our students’ academic needs (curriculum balance, quality of instruction, availability of courses, etc.), which will be primary factors guiding our enrollment management decisions. The road ahead will not be easy, but with faculty, staff, and administrators working together CoA can turn around its enrollment and futher improve student success outcomes.

College of Alameda Movies for Mental Health

This virtual film screening and restorative wellness event takes place on Wednesday, April 21, 2021, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Amidst the pandemic, this online workshop has been designed to give our students an opportunity to decompress, watch and discuss three award-winning short films that explore the topic of mental health, and learn about CoA’s robust array of free wellness resources available to them. More Movies for Mental Health information can be found at: http://bit.ly/coa-m4mho

ASCOA Will Showcase Student Talent in Upcoming Event

The CoA Talent show titled “COVID Couldn’t Keep Us Down,” has been rescheduled for Thursday, April 22, 2021. We are excited to have the opportunity to build community by sharing our students’ talents! A link to the show will be available closer to the event. Please join us!

This article is taken from the President’s Report, written by Dr. Nathaniel Jones III, College of Alameda President, that was presented to the PCCD Board of Trustees during their regular meeting on Tuesday, April 13, 2021.