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.
The Fall 2020 semester has begun at all four Peralta Colleges and we are excited to welcome students to classes again. Online learning can be challenging but there are many resources available for students from each of the colleges.
Student Services
Each college offers a wide variety of student services.
Here are links to each campus's student resources:
Berkeley City College
College of Alameda
Laney College
Merritt College
The free food giveaway programs at the Peralta Colleges we first announced in May and which now include all four colleges are certainly good news for students and the community. And now the program is in the news! Maaziq Madyun, a reporter for KRON TV Channel 4 recently stopped by the College of Alameda and filmed the following story, "East Bay grab-and-go lunch program helps fight food insecurity during pandemic," which was broadcast across the Bay area. The story is also available online here: https://gems.peralta.edu/all-four-colleges-now-offering-free-meals
The Peralta Community College District Board of Trustees were extremely busy in July following the unexpected resignation of Chancellor Dr. Regina Stanback Stroud on July 16, 2020.
On May 26, 2020, Peralta Community College District reported that Laney College and College of Alameda had formed partnerships with Steph and Aisha Curry's non-profit Eat.Learn.Play and the World Central Kitchen to provide free meals for students. Now all four colleges have solidified their partnership with these great nonprofits to serve our community. Merritt College started their program on May 28. Berkeley City College began their program on Friday June 5th.
