The UMOJA Community at CoA is growing and evolving. This semester CoA UMOJA is offering three courses taught by three amazing professors, Dr. Khalilah Beal-Uribe (MATH 13), Stefanie Ulrey (ENGL 1A), and Jody Campbell (AFRAM 30).

Following the CoA chapter of the Peralta Association of African American Affairs and Professor Carolyn Johnson's lead, UMOJA adopted the 1619 Project as a centering point in its classes this academic year. CoA faculty brainstormed and integrated one of two themes from 1619 Project’s reading guide: “Capitalism” and “Undemocratic Democracy.”

Classes participated in “Porch Talks” or community conversations pertaining to the selected 1619 Project themes. These Porch Talks are spaces where community convenes and conversations are ignited. The conversations are directed, guided, or organic. These communal brave spaces are places where students can share their truths, and where scholars can convey diverging ideas and build community.

On September 28, 2020, students in Math 13 presented "Statistics vs. Rhetoric". The students investigated the persuasiveness of statistics and rhetoric by analyzing both the Netflix documentary titled “13th” and a National Review response article to the documentary. Presentations and discussions were focused on how statistics and rhetorical devices were used within the pieces.

The students in English 1A focused their Porch Talk around the title, “The Good Trouble,” on October 13, 2020. In 1975, Time Magazine published an article titled “Saints Among Us.” In it, a number of leaders and activists were spotlighted as fulfilling a living definition of a saint in the modern age. John Lewis was one of those who were named, and this idea is revisited in the introduction of his biography. John Lewis’ mantra was: “If you see something wrong, do something.” The class assignment was to create an original, working definition of saint. Students brainstormed a list of current events and figures in history who would embody the definition and selected one. They gave a brief biography of this person and what they were known for that would make them a saint by their definition.

On November 10, 2020, students in AFRAM 30, engaged in a critical analysis of the social status of Black people in America. The discussion was based on the premise that, given the history and our present challenges with police brutality, disproportionate poverty, health care discrimination, mass incarceration, and how the status and condition of Black people in America has truly changed since 1619.

In Spring 2021, UMOJA will offer the campus community a diverse selection of Porch Talks. Next semester they will continue weaving the 1619 Project into the curriculum of three course offerings: AFRAM 31, MATH 13, and ENGL 5. The UMOJA Community at CoA is dedicated to forging a pathway in the face of pandemic challenges, promoting student success, and creating relevant opportunities for student engagement learning.

This article is an excerpt 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, January 6, 2021.