Laney College Joins Community Partners at the Oakland Chinatown Lunar Year Bazaar

For the third consecutive year, Laney College participated in the Oakland Chinatown Lunar New Year Bazaar on January 27 and 28. Our warmest thanks to the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce for inviting Laney to their 32nd year of holding this wonderful event. Activities included tabling as part of as well as remarks offered by President Besikof.

Those inquiring at the Laney College table were greeted by employees sharing information about classes starting in February and March, Peralta’s Free College Campaign, and benefits offered to students involved in the APASS program. Those visiting our table included Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao (pictured below, left) and Carl Chan (below, right) from the Oakland Chinatown Chamber.

Special thanks to our Laney College colleagues for devoting time on their weekends to being at the table. In some cases, some employees made themselves available on Saturday and Sunday, which was so appreciated.

Laney Joins in the Lunar New Year Festivities with Oakland’s Vietnamese Community

Laney College was honored to be part of the festivities curated by the Vietnamese community for Lunar New Year on Sunday, January 28. The effort is a continuing, budding friendship between Laney and the Vietnamese community, one that followed the Vietnamese Chamber inviting President Besikof to its November mixer event, following by a December visit and tour of Laney culminating in engaging conversation about future collaboration at the campus Bistro.

Clinton Park was home to a great celebration, with Laney several colleagues and current students on hand at the event to promote Free College, and Laney’s presence was part of the reporting on the event that day on KTVU’s 11:00 news. Joining in the festivities was Oakland City Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas (pictured below) and Laney partners Tesla and the Port of Oakland. Special thanks to the Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce for its ongoing collaboration and friendship with our Laney College community.

College’s Mentorship Program Nears First Anniversary

Pushing the envelope on professional development is part of innovation at Laney since embracing initiatives such as Guided Pathways, and on January 30, 2024, participants in the Laney Employee mentorship program came together to embark on their third semester. The event in the Bistro highlighted the growth of 11 mentees over the past 9 months, while discussing needs for the future.

The program is the product of institution-wide discussion over the past 2-3 years, and the College thanks members of the Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) Committee for designing and incorporating it as an innovative component of the College’s 2023-26 enrollment management plan, one that features a critical aspect of Guided Pathways, which is Student-based professional development.

The program is distinctive in that participation transcends employee classification. 7 faculty, 4 classified professionals, and 8 administrators fill the role of mentor and mentee, and the hope is that the second cohort will have even more participants, especially after the day’s address from Vice President of Student Services, Dr. Marlon Hall, on the benefits of sustained mentorship.