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.” |
Part of the Peralta Colleges' commitment to the full breath of it's community is efforts at the college and district level to provide targeted services for groups typically underserved by higher education.
Merritt College's Next UP program works to provide a smooth transition to college for current and former foster youth students, with the goal of creating an engaging, inclusive, and equitable community in which current and former foster youth can attain their educational, career, and personal goals. The program provides a “One-Stop-Shop” that offers personalized assistance with educational goals by offering holistic services such as academic counseling, personal support, book grants, transportation, tutoring, food, emergency housing, and referrals to community resources like transportation; tutoring; food; and emergency housing.
The Peralta District and Merritt College welcome Henry Mai as the new Merritt College Web Content Developer. We look forward to his work to modernize Merritt's web presence to better serve our community. A little introduction from Henry:
The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) is visiting (virtually) the Peralta Community College District on December 16 and 17 to follow up on our Colleges’ accreditation submittals, specifically the Special Reports submitted on November 1, 2020.
While the Colleges remain fully accredited during a probationary period announced by ACCJC in January 2020, we are pleased to report that the District and Colleges are making progress on removing that probationary status.
As you may recall, the probationary status was not about academics or education, but solely about finances and organizational matters.
The ACCJC required the Colleges to provide additional evidence of financial improvement. That is exactly what College of Alameda, Berkeley City, Laney and Merritt Colleges have done, and we believe the reported results are excellent.
We are confident the colleges have addressed the ACCJC concerns and have demonstrated each campus meets the requirements to be removed from probationary status.
Each of the four Colleges reported growing enrollments and services to students through online winter and spring intersession offerings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, the campuses successfully conducted marketing and outreach campaigns to potential students seeking online instruction in California State University and University of California-transferable courses.
All of the four Colleges noted increases in their individual “Dual Enrollment Programs,” which offers high school students an early start on their career technical education and opportunities to earn units toward their college degree.
The Colleges partner with high schools in Oakland, Berkeley and Alameda to promote educational equity by offering empowering, transformative educational experiences to local high school students.
By increasing the Colleges’ offerings to high schools these new enrollments hopefully mean these students will have already begun their college experience by the time they graduate high school, giving them both a head start in college as well as saving them money.
The Peralta Community College District is pleased to announce that Berkeley City College, Laney College, and Merritt College are being recognized for their exemplary educational work in implementing the Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) programs by the Campaign for College Opportunity.
All four of the Peralta Colleges are fully accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) and remain so during a probationary period that began in January 2020. We are pleased to report that the colleges of Peralta Community College District are making progress on removing their probationary status.
Recognizing that a website is the front door to an institution, Merritt College has partnered with Lyra Design to improve the functionality and aesthetics of the college’s online presence. Lyra is the creative force behind the Merritt Cybersecurity website, so they will be building on a track record of success!
Merritt had several different companies submit proposals and also administered surveys and solicited feedback from the members of the Merritt Technology Committee and the Career Education. Mark Johnson, the Peralta District’s Executive Director of Marketing, Communication and Public Relations, played a critical role in helping Merritt identify potential partnerships as well. The college looks forward to unveiling a beautiful new website in early 2021, and thanks the Board of Trustees for supporting this important project.
We are excited to announce that the the Certificate of Achievement in Urban Agroecology program at Merritt College has earned an 100,000 U.S.Department of Agriculture grant to train students to become urban farmers using sustainable agricultural practices during the summer session.
Merritt College is proud to be one of the founding partners of East Side Oakland Ventures (ESO Ventures). Formerly known as the East Oakland Entrepreneur Initiative, ESO Ventures provides pathways, support, and funding sources for entrepreneurs from historically disadvantaged communities. To address long-standing patterns of economic inequity, Merritt College and ESO Ventures are focused on bolstering entrepreneurial development and growing the self-employment sector by ensuring that black and brown businesses have greater access to funding capital. Toward that end, Merritt will also leverage our existing Level UP partnership program with Facebook to offer co-branded Digital Marketing Certificates for Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs. As always, we remain committed to collaborating with Oaklanders to build community-wealth and ensure that our people are thriving.
From the ESO Ventures Website:
ESO Ventures is an initiative to grow community wealth and rebuild East Oakland through entrepreneurship. We are a collaborative of entrepreneurs with deep roots in Oakland and business incubation, who have come together to support the development of an entrepreneurial pipeline along the Eastmont Corridor. This project has grown out of District 6 Council Member Loren Taylor and his partnership with California Community Colleges, specifically Merritt College and the Peralta Colleges Foundation, to create opportunities for the young people and residents of District 6 who want to start a business to have the resources they need to be successful.
We welcome anyone who is interested in learning more about this initiative to visit: https://www.eso- ventures.com/ or reach out to Dean Marie Amboy or Dean Jason Holloway.
