Recently, horrific stories of unacceptable hate crimes toward the Asian American Pacific Island (AAPI) community have flooded both the local and national media. As an AAPI serving institution, Laney College, and all of the Peralta colleges, remain committed to providing a welcoming learning environment that celebrates diversity and inclusivity.
Educators from peer institutions across the Western Association of Schools and Colleges conducted virtual site visits of the Peralta Community College District and the four colleges last week, March 1-4. These peer reviews were conducted on behalf of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) and were part of an accreditation process that included the Special Reports we submitted last November and the Institutional Self Evaluation Reports (ISERs) submitted in December 2020. The visits went well. We’re writing to share with you some preliminary good news that we received during the accreditation site visits last week.
When Laney College’s football was featured on the Netflix Series ‘Last Chance U’, it was a great opportunity to share with the world Coach John Beam's impressive program and the care the Laney coaches, faculty and staff have for students. It was the players that were the stars of the show: there were a number individual stories that couldn’t help but stand out.
To guarantee a strong start to the semester for Laney students, faculty and staff members joined together to create two virtual One-Stop Saturday Enrollment Events, January 23rd and 30th, as well as several Ask Me sessions, which took place during Welcome Week. This effort was led by Vicki Ferguson, Vice President of Student Services, and was made possible by our innovative and dedicated staff members.
The event took place via Zoom, where Laney representatives answered general questions, offered one-on-one support, and referred students out to specific Zoom rooms, hosted by each department. This event was supported with a Google ad, Facebook events, and posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, as well as a student-wide text message, generating over 4,200 impressions.
The events received advertising support from the District marketing office, with Google ad search helping drive prospective students to the virtual events.
Jasminh Au is a current senior student for the Gateway to College Program at Laney College and has been announced as the program’s 2021 DREAM Scholar. She is an aspiring Oceanography major and is planning to directly transfer from Gateway to the Hawaii Pacific University at Honolulu. She is a resilient, confident and great student leader in the program.
William Ochoa, Director of Gateway to College says, “to my understanding she is breaking down barriers as to what a dually enrolled student can obtain through her tenure here at our program.” Each DREAM Scholar received a Phi Theta Kappa scholarship in recognition of their success.
Laney College faculty member Dr. Meryl Siegal co-authored alongside Betsy Gilliland (from the University of Hawai'i Mānoa) new book published by University of Michigan Press. The book, titled Empowering the Community College First-Year Composition Teacher, takes a deep dive into the issues confronting educators undergoing the challenging process of being part of a student's first experience of higher education.
Critics call it a deeply honest portrayal of lives and struggles that is “a love letter to Oakland”
The Netflix series Last Chance U: Laney has been named the 2020 winner of the IDA Documentary Award for best episodic series. The most recent edition of the show, which originally aired in the summer, focused on the Laney College football team during its 2019 season.
Dear Peralta Community,I’ve been reading a book entitled, The Alchemist. It’s by Paulo Coelho, an author from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It’s a really wonderful book. Here is a quote from the inside cover: "This enchanting novel has inspired a devoted following around the world. This story, dazzling in its powerful simplicity and soul-stirring wisdom, is about an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in search of a treasure buried near the Pyramids. Along the way he meets a [fortune teller], a man who calls himself king, and an alchemist, all of whom point Santiago in the direction of his quest. No one knows what the treasure is, or if Santiago will be able to surmount the obstacles in his path. But what starts out as a journey to find worldly goods turns into a discovery of the treasure found within. Lush, evocative, and deeply humane, the story of Santiago is an eternal testament to the transforming power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts.” |
To strengthen Laney College’s relationships with local Asian & Pacific Islander business and community-based organizations, Dr. Rudy Besikof hosted two virtual meet and greet sessions on January 13 and 14. Special thanks to community leaders Tomoko Ha (TKO Consulting) and Jessica Li (Justice and Logic LLC), who gave their time as well as their incredible talent and wisdom toward hosting these two virtual receptions introduce Dr. Besikof to the community and discuss not only needs but ways to come together and collaborate.
The Laney College Art Department is presenting its first online virtual exhibition, End of Semester Student Showcase. The students enrolled in Laney Art Classes – Drawing and Composition and 2D Visual Design – have worked to develop skills in design, drawing and compositional foundations during the Fall Semester.
The Laney Art Department is impressed by the resilience of its students, and the creative expression they have shown despite such unprecedented circumstances. Projects throughout the semester have allowed the students to explore the role art can play in their lives and how art practice can support, enhance, and create a place of expression and joy.
View the virtual exhibit online at the June Steingart Art Gallery Website: https://laney.edu/art/june-steingart-art-gallery/
The June Steingart Gallery at Laney College provides an accessible and professionally managed art gallery, reflecting the rich cultural diversity that exists on the Laney campus and the surrounding Bay Area community. When we are not sheltering in place, contemporary art exhibitions in various media are shown in the physical space ofthe gallery.
The End of Semester Student Showcase exhibition shows the perseverance, creativity and thoughtfulness of Laney’s Art students. Faculty and students have had to adjust to an online studio structure, and we are very pleased to present the amazing work that has come from dedication to the artistic practice. We hope you enjoy!
