CVHEC Math Task Force meets in-person Oct. 13 for AB 1705 follow-up  

Registration is still open for the CVHEC Task Force in-person convening, “AB 1705 Student Success Workshop,” at the Fresno Convention Center Valdez Hall Oct. 13.

Impactful legislation is focus of two math convenings
as community colleges prep for deadlines

With two convenings this month, the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Math Task Force is tackling questions regarding California Assembly Bill 1705 requiring that California’s community colleges expand their efforts to enroll and support students in transfer-level math courses.

In partnership with the California Community College Chancellor’s Office and the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin, CVHEC presented the first session via zoom Oct. 6 (see recording)  and the second will be an in-person convening Friday, Oct. 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Fresno Convention Center – Valdez Hall (702 M Street).

Registration is still being accepted for the free all-day session which includes a lunch.

Titled, “AB1705 Student Success Workshop,” the  Fresno convening will explore how to best support students within the framework of AB1705 — a follow up to AB 705, previous legislation that fundamentally reshaped placement and remediation at the community colleges.

Dana Center representatives will be present to facilitate the development of materials and strategies that promote student success in the quantitative reasoning, statistics and BSTEM pathways.

“Additionally, we will explore the skills and andragogy (pedagogy) needed for the modern calculus course,” said Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director.

The 18-member CVHEC Math Task Force consists of math educators and administrators representing CVHEC’s 15 community college member institutions (total 28 CVHEC members with CSU, UC and private colleges in the nine-county region).

Central Valley Math faculty, chairs and deans are invited and encouraged to attend the Oct. 13 convening, said Dr. Durán.  (See registration information below).

“Throughout California, there is varied understanding of the impacts of this assembly bill on college structures and on math educators,” said Dr. Durán.  “These convenings provide the opportunity for our region’s community college math educators and administrators to strategize on paths to effective implementation.”

He said this is especially critical now given the deadlines next July that were discussed in the first session last week calling for colleges to validate the effectiveness of the transfer level prerequisites to gateway STEM calculus by July 1, 2024.

That was one of the areas covered by Dr. Erik Cooper, CCC assistant vice chancellor for Data, Visualization and Research,  at the first session Oct. 6 in an hour-and-half virtual meeting entitled “AB 1705 in the Central Valley.”

Cooper addressed areas of confusion regarding the bill and its implementation with 44 math educators and administrators representing most of CVHEC’s 15 community college members.

Participants were asked to review the AB1705 FAQ prior to the virtual session and submit additional questions which Dr. Cooper addressed during the Oct. 6 meeting.

Passed in 2022 for implementation July 1, 2024, AB 1705 expands the provisions established in AB 705 (2017) by explicitly requiring community colleges not only to place students directly into transfer-level English and math courses but also to ensure that students actually enroll in those courses.

The recent legislation also establishes that for students who need or desire extra academic support, community colleges shall provide access to such support. The new law clarifies that a community college can require students to enroll in additional concurrent support if it is determined that the support will increase the student’s likelihood of passing transfer-level English or math.

Cooper’s presentation included a briefing on remedial education reform; multiple measures and prerequisites; throughput (successful completion of the gateway course in the discipline ); resources for implementation of the $65 million allocation and its impact on  college plans; the AB 1705  Implementation Guide and AB 1705 FAQs; transferability;  using data and using data locally; prerequisite validation; course success and its potential impact on prerequisite validation; meeting deadlines and matching majors; modalities; and limitations.

For deadlines, he explained that the Implementation Guide spells out that non-STEM programs were to validate transfer-level prerequisites to gateway English and math/quantitative reasoning courses by July 1, 2023 and make changes if necessary by July 1, 2024.

“STEM programs are limited to two transfer-level prerequisites prior to gateway STEM calculus after July 1, 2024,” Cooper emphasized. “The college must validate the effectiveness of the transfer level prerequisites to gateway STEM calculus as described by July 1, 2024 and make changes if necessary by July 1, 2025.”

Dr. John Spevak, Merced College vice president-emeritus who now coordinates CVHEC’s math and English task forces, noted that decisions need to be made by this fall and that many colleges have deadlines in early 2024 if not sooner for fall 2024 catalog course listings.

“The Math Task Force is using these fall sessions to get ahead of such deadlines,” Spevak said and noting that a possible third session may be discussed at Friday’s meeting.

For more information: Angel Ramirez, CVHEC finance operations manager, angelr@mail.fresnostate.edu. (For media inquiries, contact Tom Uribes at cvheccommunications@mail.fresnostate.edu).

 

Registration: CVHEC in-person Student Success Workshop registration (Oct. 13)

See agenda.

(Those unable to attend the Oct. 6 virtual meeting are asked to view the recording of that session prior to the Oct. 13 meeting. The recording link will be available Oct. 7 at the CVHEC website).

 

See:

• Original Math Task Force fall convenings news release  online

• CVHEC Math Task Force: legislation review, Math Bridge and current best practices

After a review of AB 1705 via Zoom Oct. 6, the CVHEC Math Task Force will convene in person Oct. 13 in Fresno with other valley math educators and administrators to map out strategies for student success in the law’s new environment. Registration is still available,

CVHEC Summit 2023 panelists: summit of college leaders takes on valley’s higher ed issues


 

(UPDATED OCTOBER 19, 2023) – Several area chancellors and presidents lead the charge Oct. 20 when the heads of 28 valley colleges and universities and other educators and policy makers convene for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Summit 2023 in Fresno.

Panel discussions include the historic CVHEC Transfer Project and its Program Mapper software that is widely acclaimed statewide and nationally and other topics such as a student panel sharing their higher education experiences and a federal education legislative update by U.S. Congressman Jim Costa.

CVHEC released its line-up of panelists for the summit which features a keynote address at 9:15 a.m. by another former valley higher education leader and former consortium board member, Dr. Sonya Christian, who became chancellor of the California Community Colleges July 1.

With the theme “Student Success through Equity and Inclusion — Thriving in the Central Valley,” the summit will be 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20, at the Fresno Convention Center’s Ernest E. Valdez Exhibit Hall (702 M Street). See summit agenda).

About 200 higher education officials and educators, legislators and partner representatives are expected to attend the summit sponsored by the College Futures Foundation.  The quarterly meeting of the CVHEC Board of Directors – consisting of the chancellors, presidents and campus directors of the consortium’s 28 member colleges and universities in the nine-county region from San Joaquin to Kern – will precede the summit the day before.

CVHEC’s Welcoming & Networking Reception also will be the day before the summit, Oct. 19 following the board meeting to provide summit participants an opportunity to connect with other attendees and the CVHEC Board of Directors in an informal relaxed setting.

Reception music will be provided by Fresno vocalist Merlinda Espinosa, an alumna of CVHEC-members Fresno City College and Fresno State where she studied early childhood education. Merlinda is a preschool teacher at St. Joachim School in Madera and performs regularly at events throughout the Valley.

The summit will feature conversations on Dual Enrollment, Central Valley Transfer Project, Math Pathways and Open Educational Resources starting with  Dr. Kristin Clark, chancellor of West Hills Community College District and the chair of the CVHEC Board of Directors, who will open the event with a welcome at 9 a.m.

For the keynote remarks, Chancellor Christian will be introduced by Tom Burke, interim chancellor of Kern Community College District who is temporarily filling the position vacated by her CCC appointment.

Following the keynote, Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, president of Fresno State, will introduce the first topic of the day, “The Central Valley Landscape: Pathways to and through College in the San Joaquin Valley.”  Olga Rodriguez, director and senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, will share some data and findings about the Central Valley’s educational landscape.

Dr. André Stephens, president of Fresno Pacific University, will introduce the first panel, “Central Valley Transfer Model: The Breakthrough.”

Panelists will be facilitator Stan Carrizosa, CVHEC regional coordinator and president-emeritus of College of the Sequoias in Visalia; Dr. James Zimmerman, special assistant to the executive vice chancellor and provost for Transfer Initiatives at University of California, Merced; and KCCD Interim Chancellor Burke.

Dr. Lisa Aguilera-Lawrenson, superintendent/president of San Joaquin Delta College, will introduce the second panel, “Different Approaches to Equitable Dual Enrollment.”

For that panel, Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director and president-emeritus of Merced College, serves as facilitator for panelists Lynn Cevallos, founder and president of College Bridge; Dr. Vivie Sinou, dean of Regional Education and Distance Learning at San Joaquin Delta College; Dr. Richard Aguilar III, director of Dual Enrollment/Early College at West Hills College Coalinga; and Dario Diaz, principal of McFarland High School.

Following lunch, Chancellor Clark returns to introduce Rep. Jim Costa, 16th Congressional District Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives for his annual “Federal Legislative Update” remarks.

In the panel, “Real Colleges Serving Real Needs,” Madera Community College President Ángel Reyna will introduce fellow community college chief executive, James Preston, president of West Hills College Lemoore, as facilitator. Panelists are fellow CVHEC-board member Fresno City College President Robert Pimentel and Jeff Garner, executive director of the Kings Community Action Organization.

The final panel of the day, “What Does this Mean for Students?,” features student voices introduced by Dr. Claudia Habib, president of Porterville College and facilitated by Dr. Carole Goldsmith, chancellor of the State Center Community College District. The student panelists will be:

  • Alondra Veloz, an  Open Educational Resources student at Fresno Pacific University discussing her experiences with OER;
  • Araceli Tilley, discussing her transfer experience from Merced College to University of California, Merced;
  • Hailee Guerra, an OER Student at West Hills College Lemoore  transferring to Fresno State;
  • Jesús López Nuñez, whose dual enrollment experiences led to an associate of arts degree from West Hills College Coalinga while attending Avenal High School and is now enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles.

The closing session at 2:50 p.m., “Where We Go from Here” will be brief remarks delivered by Durán.

Registration for the free event is now closed. Summit updates are available at https://cvhec.org/event/2023-cvhec-summit/ or email Ángel Ramírez, finance and operations manager, at centralvalleyhec@gmail.com.

 

 

CVHEC media inquiries: Tom Uribes at 559.348.3278 (cvheccommunications@mail.fresnostate.edu)

 

ABOUT CVHEC — The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC) is a California non-profit made up of 28-institutions of higher education in the nine-county region from San Joaquin to Kern that is the size of some states. Through CVHEC, higher education professionals and academicians in the Central Valley address difficult and complex initiatives, scaling them up across the region for mutual effectiveness to serve our students and communities. CVHEC provides its members a unified voice at local, state and nation levels to address issues of higher education affecting the region.

CVHEC Summit 2023 – Student Panel


CVHEC reception music Oct. 19 will be provided by vocalist Merlinda Espinosa, an alumna of two CVHEC member colleges.

MEMBER NEWS: Reedley and Merced Colleges host Math Bridge orientation for feeder high schools  

Reedley College President Jerry Buckley addresses math officials from feeder high schools Sept. 21. Earlier in the day, his counterpart at Merced College, President Chris Vitelli, addressed his north valley districts. Both are CVHEC board members.

Central Valley Higher Education Consortium members Merced and Reedley community colleges hosted high school math educators and administrators from their respective service area schools Sept. 21 for an orientation and onboarding about the Central Valley Math Bridge Program that is now in full swing.

In a morning, session, Merced College hosted about 30 math officials from its service area feeder school districts who were welcomed by President Chris Vitelli. At the afternoon session in Reedley 30 were welcomed by President Jerry Buckley.

They met with the CVHEC and College Bridge teams led by Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director, and Dr. Lynn Cevallos, president and cofounder, of College Bridge to discuss how the program could benefit their students and follow up steps.

“We wanted to bring all the feeder high school leaders for Merced College and Reedley together to create a Math Bridge cohort of high schools involved in the project and create a regional community of practice for networking and collaboration,” Cevallos said.

She said interactions with participating high schools has been positive and supportive, “focusing on opening up options for their students and helping them to strengthen their connection between their college and feeder middle schools.”

Among several program features, the educators learned that this funding opportunity earmarked for the Central Valley specifically, will bring $160,000 in services per high school at no cost to districts.

Funded by a five-year $4 million grant through the US Department of Education’s Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Program, the ambitious endeavor was kicked off in May with a convening of more than 150 valley K-16 educators in Fresno to begin the onboarding process for this historic intersegmental collaboration designed to improve math outcomes for struggling 11th and 12th graders and streamline Math pathways into college for their students.

See: 

UPDATES

Merced College

Reedley College

Historic Transfer Project spurs statewide movement to increase transfer rates

 

CVHEC Summit Oct. 20 features Central Valley Transfer Project/Mapper update

 

BY STAN CARRISOZA, CVHEC Regional Coordinator
President-emeritus – College of the Sequoias

At left, CVHEC Regional Coordinators Stan Carrisoza and Tom Burke present the Transfer Project (Burke is now serving as interim chancellor of the Kern Community College District).

As we enter the third phase of the Central Valley Transfer Project, we are pleased to report great progress has been made ranging from its infancy two years ago to nationwide interest —  including possible expansion into another region of California in the near future — as our team is invited regularly to present at state and national conferences.

A presentation and update will be given at the upcoming  Central Valley Higher Education Consortium’s 2023 Summit Oct. 20 in Fresno, as well as at conferences in November and December.

Originally born out of dissatisfaction with Central Valley community college transfer rates to University of California, Merced, this effort has spurred a statewide movement at multiple levels to increase the number of successful community college transfers to four-year institutions.

The state budget allowed CVHEC to help the community colleges secure state funding to purchase ongoing access to the software element of the project known as Program Pathways Mapper (PPM).

Recent reporting regarding the California State University and the UC Board of Regents has energized efforts to increase community college transfers and mobilize around successful transfer strategies.

Successful strategies are the foundation of the CVHEC Transfer Project. We have codified simple, straightforward activities for CC and CSU/UC faculty to convene and collaborate to map accessible transfer pathways in numerous discipline majors. In a breakthrough effort by UC Merced, its faculty agreed to review and build on the already successful CSU transfer patterns approved in the Associate Degree for Transfer (ADTs).

Following the pilot project in 2021 with UC Merced, Bakersfield College and Merced College, the CVHEC/UC Merced Transfer project has grown to include several more CVHEC colleges including Porterville, Reedley, Madera, West Hills Coalinga, West Hills Lemoore, Modesto, San Joaquin Delta, Yosemite and Columbia. The project has also included Central Valley four-year institutions CSU Bakersfield and CSU Stanislaus.

Over the past year the project has piqued the interest of the Aspen Institute, the Public Policy Institute of California, the  Chief Student Services Officers Association, College Futures Foundation and Complete College America.

Interviews and conferences with these organizations have brought broad exposure to the project and this fall CVHEC will initiate the SoCal Transfer Project being planned to emanate from the North Orange County Community College District. These plans include NOCCCD colleges Fullerton and Cypress to engage with UC Merced, UC Irvine and CSU Fullerton.

As previously reported, early results from the first 5,000 incoming freshmen at Bakersfield College in 2022 shows a strong positive impact from the Transfer Project.

At the core of the project is the Program Pathways Mapper software platform. The ease of access for students, counselors, advisors, HS counselors and parents has proven to be the key factor in success versus other degree auditing software systems.

Among those first 5,000 freshmen tracked, students using the PPM vs. their counterparts not using PPM eliminated the achievement gap among underrepresented students in their On-Path Percentage of courses successfully completed. This significantly reduced their number of units to degree.

We invite interested colleagues and partners to join us in this movement to increase successful transfers by attending our scheduled presentations this fall and winter. In addition to our summit in Fresno later this month, you will find CVHEC’s Transfer team sharing the project at the annual Community College League of California  Conference in November and at the Complete College America Conference in December.

For more information:  contact Stan Carrizosa at scarrizosa44@gmail.com or visit the Central Valley Transfer Project page on the CVHEC website.

 

See our full list of Transfer Project stories:  Central Valley Transfer Project Archives

See the Central Valley Transfer Project page.

CVHEC Blog: Master’s Upskill Program Success Story

 

This month’s “What The CV-HEC Is Happening” guest blog is presented by Mrs. Jade Martinez, an English teacher at Sanger West High School in Sunnyside (east Fresno) who earned a master’s degree from National University in December 2022  through CVHEC’s Master’s Upskilling Program. Jade earned her bachelor’s degree at Fresno State in 2020 and began her teaching career at SWHS that fall.  Here, she shares her experience fulfilling an academic dream of obtaining a Master’s that has led to teaching dual enrollment courses this fall, the primary objective of the Master’s Upskill Program.

 

Sanger teacher recounts road to a post-bac degree
and her first dual enrollment class  

 

BY JADE MARTÍNEZ
Dual Enrollment English Teacher
Sanger West High School

I went back to school when my son was two years old and my daughter was six months old, starting at Reedley College. I worked nearly full-time and was a full-time student as well, inspired to be a life-long learner ready for the demands of teaching.

I knew that I wished to complete my Master’s degree in English but soon realized that I would need an additional year or two of prerequisite courses before I could do it. The idea was placed on the backburner, as I needed to focus on becoming a teacher and providing for my family after nearly eight years of building debt.

When I was in my final student-teaching at Sanger West in 2020, my master teacher became our English Language Development curriculum support provider (CSP) so I interviewed for his vacated position. Because of his promotion, I continued working with my students for the whole year rather than one semester. Within a few months of becoming a teacher, I learned about CVHEC Master’s Upskilling Program being offered through Sanger Unified in partnership with National University that would qualify high school teachers to teach dual enrollment courses at their high school campus.

An additional plus was that there would be a specialization in rhetoric attached to this degree, which matched my undergraduate emphasis on composition and rhetoric. I was instantly interested because I already qualified without the additional prerequisites but I was also hesitant since I was still considered an intern with an emergency credential at the time.

After consulting with my mentor and professors, I was ready to take on the challenge.

I began the upskilling program while I worked on induction simultaneously, spending nearly every hour away from work completing assignments for each program. Many mornings I woke up early to complete work before my kids were awake. When I had free time at work, I read various texts for classes and completed mentor logs, professional development, and my individual learning plan. Once I was home, I could afford to take a short break for an hour and had to begin work once more. There were many times when my kids would ask me “Are you done with homework yet, mom?” and unfortunately, I would not be finished until long after they went to sleep for the evening.

Once again, the mom-guilt set in as I tried to see the positives that this program would bring, trying to avoid the voice in my head telling me that I am not a good mother because of all the years of sacrificing time together so that we could be financially stable enough to not struggle anymore. Many days I forced myself to stay strong and keep pushing, knowing that with each completed class I would be closer to the end of my education journey for a while.

I received the news that my thesis was approved right before my 30th birthday. I always told myself that I would graduate college by the time I turned 30 yet I went one step further and completed my master’s as well as having my dream job being a teacher. All of the sacrifices and long hours had finally paid off once that piece of paper was framed and hung on my classroom wall.

A world of opportunities opened in front of me, as I soon became the leader for my professional learning team (PLT) and most recently I was asked to begin the dual enrollment program for English 1A at Sanger West High School.

In August, I received confirmation for that assignment and now this fall I am teaching the dual enrollment course thus achieving the objective CVHEC set with its leadership in this area not only for both high school student advancement to degree or certificate attainment but also for high school teachers seeking professional development.

In just one month, I am enjoying the freedom that teaching dual enrollment provides. Even the challenges we face — that any program in its infancy may experience — are providing a valuable learning episode of its own. But the overall sense of accomplishment that comes from knowing we are forging a path that ultimately helps our students is the motivating inspiration.

And I know that my degree affords many other opportunities such as editing, freelance writing or even becoming a professor at the community college level. I have progressed two unit levels on the payscale and also receive a monthly stipend just for having my postbac degree.

At last, I can fully provide for my family without hardship or struggle!

CVHEC DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE (October 2023)

CVHEC Summit panelists bring dynamic convos to the table

Greetings Colleagues and Friends of CVHEC,

We are delighted to welcome you to the October edition of our CVHEC e-newsletter as we enjoy fall in the valley, which is always a special time of the year.

With our 2023 CVHEC Annual Summit, “Student Success through Equity and Inclusion — Thriving in the Central Valley” just around the corner (Friday, October 20), we present our lineup of distinguished panelists and the official agenda.  We are especially excited to welcome back to the Central Valley our own Dr. Sonya Christian, newly appointed Chancellor of the California Community Colleges as well as the many CVHEC board members who will introduce and serve on the four dynamic panels we are presenting this year.  Dr.  Christian, the former chancellor of the Kern Community College District and former CVHEC board member, will serve as our special guest and deliver the keynote address.

If you have not registered for our no-cost summit yet, please take the time to do so. Join us as we showcase the great work being done by our colleges and universities in our nine-county region that continues to capture state and national attention.

You will hear about and discuss our innovative Math Bridge Project intervention for targeted high school students and our Central Valley Transfer Project, which is providing pathways to our partner universities from our local community colleges (for a preview, see colleague Stan Carrisoza’s Transfer Project update in this issue). The summit also will feature a panel of Central Valley students who have benefited directly from these initiatives.

As always, we also direct you to our “What in the CV HEC is Happening?” Blog that features guest contributors each month.  This month we are pleased to share the contribution from Sanger West High School (SWHS) English teacher Jade Martínez.

Mrs. Martinez is amongst the first of our Fresno/Madera K-16 Collaborative Master’s Upskilling grads from National University. This fall, she has taken her new degree into the classroom at SWHS and is delivering her first college English dual enrollment class to her students.  This, folks, is what it is all about.  Great job Jade!!

We hope to see you on Oct. 20, at the Fresno Convention Center for our CVHEC Summit.  Feel free to bring your colleagues and partners (registration).

MEMBER NEWS: CSU tackles equity gap with Fresno State Feria de Educación

CSU Grad Rates Initiative college fair in Spanish Oct. 14

features West Hills College Lemoore alumnus social media star


 

One Graduation Initiative 2025 measure by California State University to help eliminate equity gaps in college readiness is its Feria de Educación, college fairs to assist primarily Spanish-speaking parents and their students access resources and information to prepare for college success.

Each year, tens of thousands of students and families across California participate in two ferias that are held throughout the state including at Fresno State on Sat. Oct. 14 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Sacramento State is the other feria host campus).

Co-sponsored by the Fresno State Outreach and Special Programs, UnivisionFresno with the CSU and other community organizations and agencies, the family-oriented Fresno State Feria de Educación features a resource fair and workshops in Spanish as well as entertainment and food trucks.

CVHEC Board of Directors member Dr. Saúl Jiménez Sandoval, president of Fresno State, reads to schoolchildren during the University's 2022 Feria de Educación last October.

CVHEC Board of Directors member Dr. Saúl Jiménez Sandoval, president of Fresno State, reads to schoolchildren during the University’s 2022 Feria de Educación last October.

Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, president of Fresno State and a Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Board of Directors member, welcomes Feria participants with a bilingual message and participates in the event’s Reading Garden where children hear local community leaders read to them in the Kids Zone.

Famed Mexican singer Beatriz Adriana will attend and be honored as the Feria’s 2023 Embajadora de Educacíon.

Also participating will be an alumnus of a CVHEC member college, Leo Gonzalez who graduated from West Hills College Lemoore in June and has gained fame as a social media influencer on Tik Tok. He will be presented the “Orgullo del Valle” award and acknowledged by President Jiménez-Sandoval and West Hills Lemoore President James Preston.

Info: Martina Granados, OSP senior director, at 559.278.5374 or martinag@mail.fresnostate.edu. She serves as co-chair of the event with Lupita Lomeli, Univision Fresno anchor.

Leo Gonzalez

See Fresno Bee article (Oct. 8, 2023).

How one TikTok star went from living in his car to building a comedy career

TikTok star Leo Gonzalez among graduates at California college

 

MEMBER NEWS: UC Merced Automatic Admission Program (MAAP)

UC Merced MAAP partnership creates pathways to success

from high school to higher ed in Central Valley

The University of California, Merced is partnering with several school districts and schools to create an academic pathway for their students that, when satisfied, the student is guaranteed admission* to UC Merced.

Through the Merced Automatic Admission Program (MAAP), high school junior students will submit their application to participate in the guaranteed admissions program by July 1, during the summer before their senior year. Students will be notified to submit their UC application by November 30. Program participants will be prioritized in the application review process and notified of their admissions in February.

Partners – to date

Central Unified High School District
Chowchilla Union High School District
Cutler-Orosi Joint Unified
Dinuba Unified School District
Dos Palos-Oro Loma JUSD
Golden Plains Unified School District
Los Baños Unified School District

Le Grande Union High
Madera Unified School District
Mariposa County Unified School District
Merced Union High School District
Modesto City Schools
Parlier Unified School District

Riverbank Unified School District
Sanger Unified School District
Sacramento City Unified School District
Tulare Unified School District
Visalia Unified School District

 

See details and MAAP application.

MAAP Webinar

UC Merced Holds Event For Incoming MAAP Students (Slideshow)

See story at www.yourcentralvalley.com.

MEMBER NEWS: CVHEC Merced members team up to build joint $100M student housing complex

The proposed housing complex for Merced College and UC Merced students is shown in an artist’s rendering. Credit: UC Merced.

The dual project – a first in the Valley – will provide affordable,


on-campus housing for both Merced College and UC Merced students

 

By RACHEL LIVINAL and BRIANNA VACARRI

Central Valley Journalism Collaborative and KVPR

 

MERCED Oct. 2, 2023 (CVJC and KVPR) – Braulio Bustos-Guzman just started his freshman year at Merced College, but he’s already looking ahead at his options for transferring to a four-year university.

The 18-year-old business administration student could head to a bigger city, like Sacramento or Fresno. Or, he could stay local and attend UC Merced, though he would have to figure out his living situation.

Right now, the graduate of Merced’s Golden Valley High School shares a five-bedroom home with nine other family members. On a good day, it’s seven. Either way, the busy house isn’t always conducive to studying. In a town where rental vacancies remain tight, stories like Bustos-Guzman’s are not rare.

“I feel like I can’t focus unless I’m at school,” he said. “So I usually go to school earlier to study with my friends.”

A new program could encourage community college students like Bustos-Guzman to transfer to UC Merced rather than going elsewhere, while also providing options for affordable student housing.

This spring, UC Merced and Merced College officials are set to begin construction on an apartment-style building with capacity for nearly 500 beds.

The new building is a cornerstone of “The Merced Promise,” a partnership between Merced College and UC Merced to smooth the transition for students moving from the community college to the university.

The project is the culmination of talks between UC Merced Chancellor Juan Sanchez Muñoz and Merced College President Chris Vitelli to address an acute housing shortage affecting all residents, particularly those who earn lower-than-average incomes. 

Local education officials such as Mike McCandless, vice president of student services at Merced College, said the project is a win for retaining local transfer students in the Valley. It will also provide more local student housing, which in recent years has been drastically low.

“One of the things that we really want to work against is that brain drain where our best and brightest are (going) through our high schools here and then they leave,” McCandless said.

After hearing about the project’s plans, Bustos-Guzman said he added UC Merced to his list of transfer options. “I’d just be right around the corner from home,” he told CVJC.

 

Project split evenly between schools

Fully funded by a $100 million allocation from the state’s general fund, the housing project is a unique partnership between the University of California and a California Community College campus – the first collaboration of its kind in the San Joaquin Valley.

Plans call for a mix of studio, two- and four-bedroom apartments, along with a shaded courtyard and outdoor meeting and assembly space. The facility is set to be built on UC Merced’s campus, replacing a parking lot on the west side of campus near existing student housing.

UC Merced and Merced College students would fill the beds equally. Monthly rent estimates range from just under $600 per bed to $700.

The state Legislature gave its final stamp of approval for the project funding on Aug. 30, dividing the money evenly between the two campuses.

The project is also meant to increase a sense of belonging for Merced College students eyeing transfer to UC Merced.

McCandless said Merced College students who live at the complex would see perks special to on-campus life such as access to UC Merced sports games, the recreational center and the dining hall, to entice those students who might otherwise leave the area to continue their education.

“They may have a little trepidation about being three, four, five, six hours from mom and dad and going to a large city, but still thinking they want the college experience,” McCandless said.

“We can provide the best two years of education that you can get anywhere, right at Merced College, but you can still get that four-year experience by participating in the Merced Promise and the Merced Promise housing program.”

 

Potential for more transfer students

For transfer students, the path to a University of California campus hasn’t always been easy.

Charles Nies, UC Merced’s vice chancellor for students affairs, says that’s partially because of differentiation in eligibility requirements between the system’s nine campuses.

While the California State University system has taken decades to create an easier path to their campuses, Nies acknowledged UC campuses have not been as quick to act. He’s hopeful the Merced Promise program will help change that.

“Around 200 to 220 transfer students come to the campus each year,” Nies said. “We believe we’ve got the capacity to double that number easily.”

In 2021, UC Merced established a projected goal to enroll 11,800 students by the 2023-2024 academic year. The campus’ strategic plan is aiming for 15,000 students by 2030.

Right now, the campus has an enrollment of 9,147 students according to university officials.

“We believe we’ve put in place the necessary infrastructure to achieve (the strategic plan’s) goal and support that number of students on campus,” said Alyssa Johansen, UC Merced public information officer.

Nies said the new housing project will include an office of administrative services that could help streamline the process for transfer students. The campus is also considering moving their transfer center closer to the project.

 

Valley lawmakers acted to protect funding

On behalf of local education officials, State Sen. Anna Caballero and Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria, both Valley Democrats, said they made a point of protecting the $100 million for the project, even in the face of a potential budget deficit earlier this year.

A report from the state’s Legislative Analyst Office initially said removing the Merced housing funding was a “budget solution.”

Luckily, the necessary plans and studies for the project were already completed, making the project almost ready to begin construction, Soria said.

She and Caballero helped coordinate what she called “critical meetings” during the budget process to make sure the funding stayed in the budget. “So luckily, not only were the dollars preserved, the budget actually called out specifically this project, which is remarkable,” Soria said in a phone interview with CVJC.

Caballero said the project is important because Merced County, like most of California, has a lack of affordable housing. Merced’s shortage is exacerbated by the region’s lower-paying jobs.

“Anytime you build a UC campus, you’re going to end up with the need for student housing,” Caballero said. “What happens is that, as the college grows, the ability of the college to house the students on its site becomes less and less and it starts impacting the community that they’re located in.”

 

Who’ll qualify to live in the building?

McCandless said housing eligibility for the project will be determined using a nine-tier “Waterfall  System” of student demographics ranked from highest to lowest priority.

The highest priority is given to income-eligible, academically qualified Merced College students who either have or intend to enroll at UC Merced.

From there, the enrollment structure will work its way down the list of priority students, ranging from community college students regardless of income to undergraduate and graduate students at UC Merced.

The new housing complex at UC Merced is expected to be completed in 2025. For more information about Merced Promise, visit UC Merced’s website.

 

See original story at the CVJC Substack

MEMBER NEWS: 150 future physicians take Osteopathic Oath at CHSU White Coat Ceremony

 

 BY RICHELE C. KLEISER – Vice President, Marketing & Communications

California Health Sciences University

There is more hope on the horizon for the thousands of patients in the Central Valley who face health inequities while seeking health care. The California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine hosted a White Coat Ceremony for its first-year medical students on Saturday, Sept. 30.

Austin Jones from Porterville is one of the 150 medical students in the class of 2027 who received a white coat and recited the osteopathic oath in the presence of family and friends.

Jones will be the first in his family to become a physician after his parents immigrated here from South Korea.

Austin Jones received a white coat Sept. 30 and recited the osteopathic oath in the presence of family and friends.

“I know what health care disparities this area faces, and to me it is personal,” said Austin Jones, first-year medical student at the CHSU College of Osteopathic Medicine. “If I could be a piece of the puzzle that fixes this disparity, that would be fulfilling.”

Jones intends to stay here and serve the health care needs of the people he grew up with in the Valley.

“I am proud that our medical students, like Austin Jones, represent the diverse Central Valley populations we serve, and they have an opportunity to help address health inequities experienced in our community,” said John Graneto, DO, Dean of the CHSU College of Osteopathic Medicine

At the ceremony, Dr. Graneto shared the history of the white coat and the importance of maintaining professionalism and humanism in health care careers.

An inspiring welcome address was provided by Alan Shatzel, DO, MBA. Dr. Shatzel spoke about his personal journey through medical school and how osteopathic medicine helps him provide better care for his patients. Dr. Shatzel serves as the Chief Executive Officer for Mercy Medical Group and Second Vice-President of the Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons of California. Dr. Shatzel holds board certifications in Neurology, Sleep Medicine, and Clinical Neurophysiology.

The white coats were generously sponsored by the Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons of California, an organization focused on advancing and supporting osteopathic physicians in California by serving its mission to engage, educate, and advocate for DOs, so doctors can focus on being doctors. Founded in 1961, the association serves over 9,000 current and future doctors of osteopathic medicine throughout California.

 

See original CHSU press release.

White Coat ceremony video clips and photos available for download here, courtesy of California Health Sciences University here. 

Media Contact: Richele Kleiser, (559) 312-3892, rkleiser@chsu.edu

 

About California Health Sciences University

California Health Sciences University (CHSU) is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). CHSU is the first university of its kind in the Central Valley and offers a local option for medical school and a master’s in biomedical sciences to help remedy the shortage of health care services offered in the Valley.

The CHSU College of Osteopathic Medicine now has about 500 medical students in attendance and plans to grow to approximately 600 medical students in the next year. Applications are being accepting for its fifth cohort of 150 medical students to matriculate in 2024. (link)

The university plans to open up to 10 post-baccalaureate colleges on their 110-acre campus in Clovis, California to train health care professionals in the coming years. The timing and specific discipline for each new program will be determined based on the need and opportunity for job placement within the region.

For more information about California Health Sciences University, visit chsu.edu or find them on Instagram, Facebook, and Linkedin.

 

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