Chancellor's News Brief

Blue waves behind the words Coast Colleges in dark blue

Weekly News Brief | May 17, 2024
From the Office of Chancellor Whitney Yamamura, Ed.D.

Chancellor Yamamura in front of the District Office

At their first meeting in May, Trustees voted to affirm a resolution proclaiming next week, May 20 - 24, 2024, as Classified Professionals Appreciation week.

It's hard to believe that three years ago the Chancellor's message this week was about classified returning to campus post pandemic and restoring step and column increases after a very uneasy time. The restoring of step and column and the careful and thoughtful return to campus three years ago were the results of promises kept.

Within the value of keeping promises to ourselves and each other is the promise we make to our students, established by our Vision Statement, To provide excellence, innovation, and success in education to inspire and transform lives.

It is, in effect, a promise that we will come together in support of our colleges in service to our students.

Since our first college opened its doors in 1948, this district has been asked to work collectively for this mission. Over 75 years of collaboration and compromise, challenges, successes, and to the best of our ability, promises kept.

Classified Professionals of our district are integral to our ability to keep our promises. Whether in Student Services, Administrative Services, or Instruction we rely on the engagement of classified staff in addressing the needs of our students. Every day, classified staff find thoughtful solutions to assist our students on their educational journey.

To our Classified Professionals, please know that your achievements are celebrated and that you are appreciated. Your successes are fundamental to the success of the Coast Colleges and District Office.

With gratitude,

Dr. Whitney Yamamura
Chancellor

Report from the Board of Trustees

On Wednesday, May 15, the Board of Trustees met and accepted the retirements of eight faculty members and two professionals from the three campuses with years of service totaling 250 years. Trustees lauded the years of commitment of all the retirees.

The Board then conducted a public hearing which resulted in the approval of a resolution to award a power purchase agreement for the installation of solar panels in two parking lots at Golden West College. The projected savings over the 20-year contract term is $10 million.

The Trustees then heard an update on the District's commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Anti-racism through a report comparing the District's workforce and student demographics. The report showed a difference in demographics in all groups with the largest being Hispanic/Latinx. The Trustees reiterated their long-term objective to have the workforce more closely mirror the student population.

Trustees adjourned in memory of Mercedes Esparza, who attended GWC in 2020-2022 and majored in Communication Studies. Ms. Esparza was a dedicated young woman who made a warm and friendly impression on faculty, staff, and fellow classmates. Additionally, the Board remembered Donald Craig, former president of the NAACP Orange County branch, a kind and gracious person whose leadership was marked by unwavering dedication and resolute pursuit of civil rights and equality within the community.

Prior to adjournment, Student Trustee John Bruning, who has come to the end of his term on the Board, read a letter acknowledging his time of service.

Cherryl Baker OCC, Biological Sciences faculty 23 years

Cherryl Baker, Orange Coast College - Biological Sciences faculty, 23 years

Mitch Alves, CCC, Math faculty 23 years of services

Mitch Alves, Coastline College - Math faculty, 23 years of services

Classified Professionals Appreciation Week

Classified Professionals Appreciation Week is being celebrated District-wide! Check out what's going on at your campus:

Please send examples of persistent innovation, by which I mean having a good idea and then putting in the hard work to make that vision a reality. The more examples submitted, the better I can highlight your successes in future letters and in the community!

College News

COASTLINE COLLEGE
Dr. Tobi West, Coastline College Cybersecurity Professor, was honored with the Lorraine Prinsky Innovation Award at the college's annual Academic Senate Luncheon, held Tuesday, May 14, at the Student Services Center in Fountain Valley, CA. Coast Community College District Board of Trustees President, Dr. Lorraine Prinsky, presented the award. Dr. West became an integral part of Coastline College's community the first day she began teaching and she continues to demonstrate innovation in teaching and professional development. She is also involved in the college community and shares her vast knowledge with her peers. She presented a Flex Day workshop on password security to faculty, classified, and administrators; she is a member of the Academic Senate; she is the Department Chair for her Discipline, and is an active member of several cyber organizations. Dr. West founded Coastline's CyberTech Girls for middle and high school students to support empowerment for females in technology. She also developed a week-long GenCyber camp, where she brought together high school teachers and community college faculty from several institutions to collaborate on the development of activities and curriculum. This enabled faculty to take materials back to their respective campuses to host Cyber events of their own. Her latest venture is the application for a B.A. degree for Artificial Intelligence in Cyber Security to be offered at Coastline College.

GOLDEN WEST COLLEGE
The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation has selected Golden West College Psychology major Alex Urzua as a semifinalist for the prestigious Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. If selected, the award can provide Urzua with as much as $55,000 per year for two to three years to complete a bachelor's degree at any accredited four-year undergraduate institution in the United States. Urzua applied to GWC in 2022 after seeing a commercial for the College on television. Having attended a continuation high school where he received little guidance, Urzua found support and mentorship at GWC through programs like Puente and EOPS. He is set to graduate this spring and will transfer to University of California, Berkeley, where he plans to pursue a bachelor's degree in psychology. Urzua also has been selected as this year's commencement speaker, where he plans to share his story of resilience and academic success after having endured a childhood marked by abuse, poverty and run-ins with law enforcement. Ultimately, he hopes to return to the continuation high school where he once felt "lost and hopeless."

ORANGE COAST COLLEGE
Thu Phung, an honors student at Orange Coast College, is one of 60 high-achieving community college students selected to receive the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation's Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. The highly competitive national scholarship can provide Phung with as much as $55,000 a year to complete a bachelor's degree. Phung was announced as the 2024 Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholar during the College's annual Honors Night ceremony on May 8. A Garden Grove resident, Phung began attending OCC in Fall 2021. Phung, a first-generation college student, juggles her schooling and many commitments to her local community, including being a Vietnamese language tutor at her church. She's an active member of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society and the STEM and National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) clubs at OCC, where she holds active leadership positions.