Dear Peralta Community College District Faculty, Staff and Students, 

As you wrap up this Spring semester, you are no doubt trying to make plans for the coming Summer and Fall semesters. I would like to provide some information that may be helpful to you as you make your plans.  

We continue to work closely with local public health officials and the State Chancellor's Office while we serve the community and meet our mission. Like other community colleges across the state, Berkeley City College, College of Alameda, Laney College, and Merritt College will offer the majority of the courses and services this Fall 2020 semester as 100% online or hybrid (part online with limited face-to-face class time). Some courses that do not lend themselves to remote instruction easily, such as some career education laboratory disciplines, will be offered face-to-face where it is needed and safe to do so. Because we prioritize your safety, we recognize that there may be a small number of courses that will not be offered this Fall but we expect to offer them in Spring 2021. 

Student services will continue to be offered online, including Admissions and Records, Financial Aid, and Counseling, to name a few.

We are making every effort to minimize disruptions to the educational mission as we support student success in achieving desired certificates, degrees, and transfer. In preparation for Fall 2020, we will make changes within classrooms and laboratories to observe public health directives and guidance such as increased hand washing, avoiding sharing equipment when possible, systematic classroom cleaning protocols, and recommendations on facial coverings and/or physical distancing. In the meantime, we will continue to engage in the necessary discussions with faculty and staff to ensure the best decisions in service of you and your goals. 

This Summer and throughout Fall 2020 each college will be offering instructional workshops or classes for faculty and students to learn the basics of Canvas (the platform PCCD uses for online instruction). Based on the State Chancellor’s Office requirements and accreditation considerations, all your faculty will be using Canvas to serve you.  

I hope this information is helpful as you make plans to complete your educational goals.  Please visit https://safe.peralta.edu/  for the latest status information and resources for students, faculty/staff, and the community.

Thank you and take good care,

Dr. Regina Stanback Stroud, Chancellor

This announcement was emailed to students, faculty and staff on May 11, 2020 and is posted on Safe Peralta and on the Peralta blog. 

Dr. Stacy Thompson is the Vice President of Academic Services at Chabot College, and has been working in education for the past 25 years. She began her career in higher education teaching early childhood development. After 10 years in the classroom, Dr. Thompson transitioned to administrative roles at Merritt College, and later at Chabot College. Born and raised in Oakland, Dr. Thompson holds a Doctorate in Education and a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership from Mills College, a Master’s Degree in Child Development from Mills College, and a Bachelor’s Degree from Lewis and Clark College. The video of her President Forum is available here on YouTube.  The feedback form for Dr. Thompson is available here and should be emailed to Brandon Christian at bchristian@peralta.edu. 

Dr. David M. Johnson is the acting president of Merritt College, and has spent the last decade serving in administrative roles at a variety of Bay Area educational institutions. Before becoming an administrator, Dr. Johnson spent 15 years teaching at universities and community colleges, including at Merritt College. He was raised in Oakland and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communications from U.C. Berkeley, a Master’s Degree in Communications from the University of Washington, and a Doctorate in History from U.C. Berkeley. The video of his President Forum is available here on YouTube.  The feedback form for Dr. Johnson is available here and should be emailed to Brandon Christian at bchristian@peralta.edu. 

On Saturday, April 25, WO2WA (West Oakland to West Africa) hosted its first international poetry reading celebrating the release of its new anthology, Our Spirits Carry Our Voices: West Oakland to West Africa Poetry Exchange.  Chancellor Regina Stanback Stroud attended via Zoom - like all participants - and called the poetry reading event "amazing."

The WO2WA reading on April 25 had hosts in Virginia and Accra (Ghana), and featured poets in Detroit, Brooklyn, Oakland, Alameda, Richmond, San Francisco and Hawaii. There was an open mic too.

Karla Brundage (editor of the anthology) had the idea to engage American and West African Poets in a Poetry Exchange using the Japanese form, Renshi. In the form, the poet responds by using the last line of his or her partner's line as the first line of his new poem. The poems are linked. For more information about WO2WA, please visit Wanda Sabir's blog at http://wandaspicks.com/category/wandaspicks/ and look for the entry "Sankofa 2020: A Transcontinental Poetry Reading."