Welcome the new head coach of the Women’s Volleyball team of COA Taylor Elliot! Taylor has been a volleyball player since 2013. She began her career as a student-athlete at College of Alameda as a member of the Cougars volleyball team. In 2017, she accepted a position of assistant coach at CoA and started coaching the team. In 2021, Taylor was approved as the new head coach of the Cougars. She takes over from former head coach and athletic director Linda Thompson, who retires after 27 years of athletic service in Peralta Colleges.

Another month, another surprising and exciting collection of programming on Peralta College's television station Peralta TV. And even a little something for the month of Halloween with the Emmy award-winning, DRACULA: THEATER OF THE MIND

Thank you to all who were able to attend the Town Hall webinar, Safe Peralta Return to Campus, on Monday morning, October 4, 2021. Over 500 people -- 517 to be exact -- including students, faculty, staff, administrators and contractors participated in the informational session. A video recording has been posted on the Peralta TV YouTube Channel and is available here. 

I hope your semester is going well. I am following up on the email I sent last month with an update regarding Peralta’s vaccination policy effective October 13th, 2021. 

Laney College Awarded $125,000 in CAI & HRTP Grants

As announced by the State Chancellor’s Office on Sept. 16, Laney College is one of four colleges across the state that were awarded a $125,000 California Apprenticeship Initiative (CAI) High Road Training Partnerships (HRTP) Planning Grant. The goal of Laney College’s grant is to create a detailed pre-apprenticeship/bridge curriculum that will help guide and prepare students for careers in the manufacturing, automotive, and water/wastewater sectors.

CoA Distance Education Team Tackles Fake Students Problem

As if teaching online during a pandemic wasn't difficult enough, 2021 brings California Community Colleges a new challenge: fraudulent enrollments and"fake" students. Authorities believe more than 60,000 fake applications for financial aid were submitted statewide, as reported by the Los Angeles Times, the Sacramento Bee, and the New York Times.

Merritt College Planning Summit 2021

On Friday, September 17, Merritt held its annual Fall Planning Summit. Faculty, staff and administrators came together to engage in dialogue regarding the Educational Master Plan and the Accreditation Follow-Up Report. Planning Summit participants had critical conversations around what it means to “put students first,” and how to move beyond platitudes so that we can get to the work of meaningful equity-building. 

Dear Peralta Employees,

I’m writing to provide you with an update regarding the Peralta Community College District return to campus plan.  As mentioned previously, we are using the Fall 2021 semester to gradually and safely restore in-person support services as well as in-person instruction, which students need. 

Merritt College, which was a leader in moving away from assessment tests that wrongly placed students of color in remedial classes, and Barstow College, which has enhanced its student success rates through numerous support services, are the winners of the 2021 John W. Rice Equity and Student Success awards.

The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program today announced that Dr. Angélica Garcia, President of Berkeley City College, is one of 25 leaders selected for the 2021-22 class of the Aspen New Presidents Fellowship. This program supports community college presidents in the early years of their tenure as they aim to achieve higher and more equitable levels of student success. The Fellowship’s philanthropic partner is JPMorgan Chase.