Welcome Madera Community College!

The state’s 116th community college
celebrates accreditation, CCC  approval

Madera Community College made its official debut July 21 with a ribbon-cutting celebration after the California Community Colleges Board of Governors voted unan­imously the day before to recognize MCC as the 116th campus of the state’s community college system.

In June, the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges granted accreditation to what until then was known as the Madera and Oakhurst Community College Centers affiliated with Reedley College of the State Center Community College District.

With the new designation, the  Madera Community College (4,780 enrollment) is no longer a satellite campus and will now receive funding for additional programs and staffing.  Over 80 percent of Madera Community’s students are from historically underrepresented populations and the school has been recognized as a Hispanic Serving Institution.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”President Ángel Reyna” link=”” color=”#33ACFF” class=”” size=”18″]“As a new college we want to be an institution that is student- and community-centered, and provides equitable outcomes for each of our students.”[/perfectpullquote]

President Ángel Reyna takes a place on the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium board of directors, joining 27 other Central Valley presidents and chancellors.

“This accomplishment is something that our community has been waiting for a long time and much needed,” Reyna said in a CCC Board of Governors article.

“It has been a collective and collaborative effort, and we look forward to the continued work to better serve our students as a college,” he said. “As a new college we want to be an institution that is student- and community-centered, and provides equitable outcomes for each of our students. To that end, we commit towards transforming ourselves into an anti-racist institution while producing the future workforce our community needs.”
 
See the July 21 ribbon-cutting video.
 
News coverage of Madera Community College:

Board of Governors Recognizes Madera Community College as the 116th Community College in California — California Community Colleges (07/20/20)
Madera Center becomes California’s newest community college — Fresno Bee (07/21/20)
The Central Valley’s Madera Community College becomes California’s newest community college — Ed Source (07/20/20)

Stan State, Merced College celebrate improved transfer program

Stan State, Merced College celebrate improved transfer program

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stanislaus State and Merced College signed a historical agreement on Friday, Feb. 21, at the Merced College amphitheater. The agreement — which will ease the transfer process for Merced College students who plan to attend California State University, Stanislaus — symbolizes a renewed support of educational success between the two institutions.

The “Warriors on the Way” celebration began as Chris Vitelli, president of Merced College, took the stage to welcome students, faculty, and community members in attendance.

“This is a very exciting opportunity and event for both of our institutions,” he began. “This will provide the streamlined support and wrap-around services for our students that want to transfer to our largest receiving institution, Stanislaus.”

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between Vitelli and Ellen Junn, president of CSU Stanislaus, permanently acknowledging the agreement. The partnership will allow Merced College students guaranteed priority admission to Stan State when they complete their Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) at Merced College and meet all application deadlines.

“This is an agreement that can be seen as a renewal of our commitment to work together and further cements the relationship that began when Merced College was established 58 years ago,” Junn said.

As Merced College provides Stanislaus State with the greatest student admission, it is only seen fit for the two institutions of higher education to work together to provide better resources for their students.

The program will not only make the transfer process run smoother, but will also provide the Central Valley with more educated residents as the years roll out. As the population grows in both Merced and Stanislaus Counties, a greater transfer and graduation population can be predicted for both schools.

“We recognize the tremendous partnership between two institutions that believe in the future of many of the students that are here, and the hundreds of thousands in this community that will benefit from the relationship that we have been forging over the last several years,” Vitelli continued.

The MOU calls for a counselor at each campus, guaranteed up to 32 hours per week, that will be available to the disposal of its transfer students. This role will be beneficial as students are made aware of the different opportunities that are available to them at the Stan State campus.

Briana Sanchez, a Merced College student graduating in the fall, stood at the podium as she emphasized how important the Warriors on the Way program currently is for her.

“I am a first generation college graduate,” Sanchez began. “I had to learn my own steps. Learning everything on my own wasn’t easy. Many people told me I shouldn’t apply to transfer out of Merced College because it wasn’t going to happen for me.”

Thanks to determination and the Warriors on the Way program, Sanchez says she is now able to see her dreams within reach. Sanchez will be graduating with her ADT in communications, social and behavioral psychology, and administrative and office professional.

“Thanks to Merced College and Stanislaus, I am now a Warrior on the Way,” Sanchez concluded.

 

 

The original post can be found at https://mercedcountytimes.com/stan-state-merced-college-celebrate-improved-transfer-program/

CAP’s ‘Honey Badger Award 2020’ honors CVHEC for pre-AB 705 success

CAP’s ‘Honey Badger Award 2020’ honors CVHEC for pre-AB 705 success

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium was honored in February 2020 with the California Acceleration Project’s Honey Badger Award for its early role in implementing Assembly Bill 705 that helped remove barriers to college completion by transforming placement and remediation practices at 14 of its member community colleges.

Presented at the California Acceleration Project (CAP) regional conference February 28 in Sacramento, the award acknowledged CVHEC’s early implementation efforts even prior to enactment of the bill.

Enacted in 2018, the state legislation restricts colleges from requiring students to enroll in non-transferable English and math courses that lengthens their time to attain a degree. AB 705 guides colleges toward corequisite models in which students receive additional concurrent support during the same semester that they take a transfer-level English or mathematics course.

At its annual summit in October 2016,  the CVHEC Board of Directors, which is made up of the region’s 27 college and university presidents and chancellors, launched its move to implement corequisite measures at member valley community college campuses as documented in a report by CAP commissioned by the Campaign for College Opportunity,  “GETTING THERE: Are California Community Colleges Maximizing Student Completion of Transfer-Level Math and English?” This regional progress report examined AB 705 implementation at 47 community colleges in the Central Valley, the Inland Empire and greater Los Angeles.

“The CVHEC board came to understand that transforming placement and remediation was critical to their larger effort,” the report said. “They set goals for implementing corequisite models and enlisted partners like Complete College America, the Charles A. Dana Center, and the California Acceleration Project to lead summits and workshops for Central Valley faculty and administrators.

“By the time AB 705 came along, the region was primed for action,” the Campaign report declared.

Dr. Benjamin Duran, CVHEC executive director and Merced College President Emeritus, said in the Getting There report, “More and more colleges in the Central Valley are realizing the importance of AB 705. They’re recognizing that, because of these changes, children of doctors and children of farmworkers could all have the same shot at succeeding at a community college or CSU.”

Duran credited Central Valley faculty and administrators for their work in implementing corequisite measures before and after AB 705 with the support of CVHEC, which was founded in 2002 to improve the college-going culture in the consortium’s nine-county region from San Joaquin to Kern counties.

The consortium’s corequisite movement also took center stage at its 2018  CVHEC Education Policy and Legislative Summit featuring discussions about AB 705 and the California State University Executive Order (EO) 1110.  Issued in 2017, CSU Chancellor Timothy White’s order eliminated non-credit-bearing developmental courses in written communication and math/quantitative reasoning and required campuses to provide new types of course models to help students succeed in entry-level college courses. EO 1110 also eliminated the use of the English Placement Test (EPT) and Entry-Level Mathematics (ELM) exam.

CVHEC media contact: Tom Uribes • tom@uribes.com • 559.348.3278

 

BACKGROUND

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC) is a 501(c)3 incorporated non-profit organization comprised of 27 accredited public and private colleges, universities, and community college district members in California’s nine-county region (San Joaquin to Kern counties). CVHEC serves as the convener and facilitator of technical support experts as needed by its members and executes the policy objectives of the CVHEC Board that is made up of the presidents and chancellors of the member institutions. A key CVHEC objective is to increase the Central Valley’s certificate and degree attainment rates.

The Campaign for College Opportunity is a California nonprofit organization devoted to ensuring that the next generation of college-age students in California has the chance to go to college and succeed. The goals of The Campaign are to substantially increase the number of students attending two- and four-year colleges in the state and to significantly impact the rate that students succeed and achieve their postsecondary education objectives.  The Campaign was founded by the California Business Roundtable, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and the Community College League of California in 2003.

The California Acceleration Project was founded in 2010 by two community college teachers who wanted to do something about the poor outcomes of students placed into remediation. The faculty-led professional development network supports the state’s 114 community colleges in the campaign to implement reforms that substantially increase student completion of transferable, college-level English and math requirements, a critical milestone on the path to degrees and transfer. These include using high school grades in placement, replacing traditional remedial courses with corequisite models, tailoring math remediation to students’ program of study and teaching with high-challenge, high-support pedagogy in English, math and ESL.  CAP is funded through grants from the James Irvine Foundation, the College Futures Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Foundation for California Community Colleges is CAP’s fiscal sponsor.

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Central Valley Community College Leaders Form Caucus to Advocate for Full Funding

Central Valley Community College Leaders Form Caucus to Advocate for Full Funding

FEBRUARY 26, 2020

When the California Economic Summit was held in Fresno late in 2019, it helped shine the light on the need for more investment in services in inland California.

State legislators can expect to hear more from some Central Valley community college leaders due to shortfalls after a new statewide funding formula was put in place. Concerned about the impact on their work, the college leaders decided to organize a caucus.

The Student-Centered Funding Formula (SCFF), covering all of the California Community Colleges, was intended to provide additional resources to districts serving large numbers of low-income and disadvantaged students and districts experiencing high graduation and transfer rates. This move to fund student success was one of the core commitments of the Colleges’ Vision for Success, pairing high expectations with high support.

“The community colleges have a simple goal—put the students first. For many of our students in the Central Valley, they are the first of their families to attend college. If we are going to be successful in lifting them up and into California’s middle class—it makes no sense to reduce investments now,” said Dr. Stu Van Horn, CEO of the West Hills Community College District. “We believe drawing attention to this shortfall through our caucus will help us make the case that our students deserve the attention and investment of their peers elsewhere in California.”

A full one-fourth of this statewide funding shortfall occurred within the Central Valley: $27 million in unrealized funding. All community college districts in the Central Valley have been underfunded to some degree, according to a letter issued by the community college leaders:

  • Kern Community College District ($10.5 million underfunded)
  • West Hills Community College District ($4.7 million underfunded [10% of operating budget])
  • Merced Community College District ($4.2 million underfunded)
  • Yosemite Community College District ($3.0 million underfunded)
  • Sequoias Community College District ($2.1 million underfunded)
  • State Center Community College District ($1.4 million underfunded)
  • West Kern Community College District ($0.5 million underfunded)
  • San Joaquin Delta Community College District ($0.3 million underfunded)

The Central Valley Community College Caucus, composed of CEOs, is calling for fiscal stability for the districts and the future viability of the funding formula:

  1. Allocating state general funds to backfill any remaining shortfall in apportionment funding to community college districts for 2018-19
  2. Ensuring the Student-Centered Funding Formula is fully funded for future years by authorizing adjustments to state General Fund apportionment to match the true cost of the SCF.

The leaders say these measures will contribute to fiscal stability for districts and the future viability of the funding formula as a tool for California Community Colleges to carry out the goals of the Vision for Success and help California stay competitive.

“Our first unified message of advocacy for the funding formula is being distributed to all members of the San Joaquin Valley delegation, as well as selected other individuals and entities,” Dr. Van Horn wrote.  “West Hills continues to spearhead collaboration among the region’s colleges, and I remain committed to stand shoulder to shoulder with you to ultimately improve the funding formula to align with the state’s Vision for Success.”

The California Economic Summit’s vast network continues to work on leading and promoting regional, inclusive strategies in advance of the 2020 Summit scheduled for Monterey on December 3 and 4. Read more about the Summit’s priorities in the 2020 Roadmap to Shared Prosperity, including lifelong learning strategies that will help prepare the workforce of tomorrow.

 

 

The original post can be found at https://cafwd.org/reporting/entry/central-valley-community-college-leaders-form-caucus-to-advocate-for-full-f

West Hills College chancellor named new chair of Central Valley Higher Education Consortium

West Hills College chancellor named new chair of Central Valley Higher Education Consortium

Monday, November 18, 2019 – 11:22am
FROM WEST HILLS COLLEGE

The top administrator at West Hills Community College District was recently named to a key Central Valley higher education board. Dr. Stuart Van Horn, Chancellor of the West Hills Community College District, is the new chair of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Board.

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium is a non-profit organization made up of members from private colleges, universities, and community colleges.

“I’m honored to serve in this role,” said Van Horn. “The consortium board does important work and has moved the needle on regional collaboration among and between two and four-year colleges, including private and independent universities, in the Valley. I’m looking forward to working with everyone on important initiatives that are designed to increase student success and completion for all valley communities and residents.”

The 27-member strong consortium brings together members serving over 250,000 students in the Central Valley.

Van Horn has been a part of CVHEC’s executive team since 2016 when he started serving as treasurer.

Dr. Benjamin Duran, Executive Director of CVHEC, said Van Horn brings a breadth of knowledge and experience to the role.

“We are delighted to have someone like Dr. Van Horn, with his experience and reputation in higher education, to serve as Chair of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC),” he said. “He has the full confidence of the presidents and chancellors of the 27 member institutions to lead CVHEC, which is recognized as the organization in the Central Valley and the State that speaks with one voice for higher education in our region.  Dr. Van Horn will bring much to the dialogue about improving the well-being of our students in our Central Valley colleges and universities.”

Van Horn has served as the Chancellor of the West Hills Community College District since 2017. Before taking on the role, he served as the district’s Vice-Chancellor of Educational Services and Workforce Development.

He has an extensive history in higher education, including serving as Dean of Instruction at Folsom Lake College from 2005 to 2013 and as Associate Commissioner of the Community College League of California’s Commission on Athletics (COA) for nine years. Other experience includes serving as Director of Public Information Services of the California Association of Community Colleges (known today as Community College League of California), Director of Community Relations at Mt. San Antonio College, and Senior Vice President of The Resource Group, an economic development entity, where he consulted 42 community colleges in California in program development and labor market acquisition projects.

 

 

The original post can be found at http://www.mylemooreleader.com/167669

Giving children of farmworkers an education like that offered to children of doctors

Giving children of farmworkers an education like that offered to children of doctors

BY BENJAMIN DURAN

I grew up in a family of migrant farmworkers, working in the Central Valley fields with my parents and seven brothers and sisters. But since elementary school, I only ever wanted to be a teacher. My own teachers helped make this dream a reality. They believed in my potential and paved the way for me to become an educator and eventually Merced College president. They also inspired my lifelong mission to advance educational equity.

I’m heartened that a new report, Getting There, shows that changes underway in the Central Valley will help make sure children of doctors and children of farmworkers have the same shot at succeeding at a community college.

Getting There examines colleges’ progress in implementing Assembly Bill 705, a law that addresses the poor outcomes and inequities of traditional remediation. In the past, most California community college students were required to take remedial courses based on their performance on a standardized placement exam, and just 18 percent of students would complete a transferable, college-level math course in a year. Among students required to take remedial English or math, only 41 percent would transfer or complete a degree in six years, compared to 70 percent of students not required to take those classes.

AB 705 is overhauling these awful statistics because colleges must now employ multiple measures instead of a standardized exam, so as to place students into courses that give them the best chance of completing the gateway English and math courses required for a bachelor’s degree. The law is already doing more to close the achievement gap and bring equity to higher education than any public policy I’ve seen in decades, but to achieve its promise, colleges must implement AB 705 in the fullest possible spirit of the law.

That’s because students’ initial placement in English and math is the largest driver of racial achievement gaps in college completion. It is estimated to account for 50 to 60 percent of equity gaps in students’ completion of long-term goals like earning a degree, completing a certificate program, or transferring to a four-year university.

Among the three regions studied in Getting There, the Central Valley has the highest proportion of colleges deemed “strong implementers” of AB 705, meaning that remedial classes make up less than 10 percent of our introductory English and math offerings. Porterville College is offering 100% transfer-level classes in both English and math. At Reedley College, just 2 percent of introductory English and math offerings are below that level. West Hills, Lemoore and College of the Sequoias eliminated remedial English and are close to doing the same with math.

This is a big change from two years ago, when AB 705 was signed into law. In fall 2017, almost half of the region’s introductory English classes were remedial, with college composition comprising only 52 percent of introductory reading and writing courses. Fast forward to today, and that number has jumped to 93 percent.

These are incredible gains, but there’s more to do.

Central Valley colleges are still offering too many remedial courses, especially in math. Non-transferable courses make up 24 percent of introductory math across the region, and at a couple of colleges, they make up more than 40 percent of the schedule.

This matters — research shows ALL students are more likely to complete their coursework when they enroll directly into college-level courses than when they start in remediation. Plus, when colleges put their limited resources into maintaining so many remedial classes, there won’t be enough seats in transfer-level classes for the students who are legally entitled to take them.

Instead of continuing to hang onto ineffective remedial classes, Central Valley colleges need to continue their efforts to ensure that their course schedules meet the AB 705 standard of maximizing student completion. If we can’t identify any students who actually benefit from taking remedial classes, we shouldn’t be using our limited public dollars to offer them.

When we set high expectations for students, students will meet them. When we set low expectations, students will meet those, too. As a young boy, I was able to make my dreams come true because people believed in me enough to open the doors of opportunity. Let’s put our faith in our students’ capacity on full display — let’s go all-in on AB 705, and offer classes that give students the best chance of completing their degree and reaching their goals in a timely manner.

Dr. Benjamin Duran is the executive director of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, and president emeritus of Merced College.

 

Read Full Report Here | CAP Report v8

 

The original post can be found at https://www.mercedsunstar.com/opinion/article235281187.html

Getting There: Are California Community Colleges Maximizing Student Completion of Transfer-Level Math and English?

Getting There: Are California Community Colleges Maximizing Student Completion of Transfer-Level Math and English?

September 2019

A new law, Assembly Bill 705 (Irwin), is driving dramatic changes in how California Community Colleges place students into English and math courses. Beginning in fall 2019, AB 705 requires the colleges to use students’ high school grades as the primary means of placement; restricts colleges from denying students access to transferable, college-level courses; and gives students the right to begin in courses where they have the best chance of completing the English and math requirements for a bachelor’s degree.

This report—a collaboration of the Campaign for College Opportunity and the California Acceleration Project—analyzes early AB 705 implementation efforts at 47 community colleges in the Central Valley, the Inland Empire, and greater Los Angeles. We examine fall course schedules and websites to identify bright spots and problems in implementation, with particular focus on the extent to which college course offerings are aligned with the AB 705 standard of “maximizing” student completion of transfer-level math and English courses.

Read Full Report Here | CAP Report v8

 

The original post can be found at https://accelerationproject.org/Publications/ctl/ArticleView/mid/654/articleId/76/Getting-There-Are-California-Community-Colleges-Maximizing-Student-Completion-of-Transfer-Level-Math-and-English

 

Porterville College president happy to be back in Central Valley where she achieved her American dream

Porterville College president happy to be back in Central Valley where she achieved her American dream

Being a college president was never a position Claudia Habib thought she would fill. Her career, much like her life, has been an evolution with no specific end position or goal in mind.

She came to the United States from Colombia with no English under her belt, and to make ends meet, she cleaned homes and offices.

Three decades later, she is Porterville College’s newest president.

“I’m in a place 30 years ago I never dreamed of,” she said.

When she first arrived to the United States, she landed in the Central Valley. Through community college, she learned how to speak English, and she earned a bachelor’s degree in interior design from Fresno State.

One of the best parts of her newest position, which she officially assumed on Monday, has been being back in the area where it all started.

“Being an immigrant who landed here where I achieved my American dream, I’m grateful for that, to be able to serve this community,” she said.

She was a designer for eight years, but decided to switch to education. She taught for 12 years and saw, through interactions with students, how her own story helped her better understand what many were going through.

“You go through that and think it’s your life and luck, but 10 years later, seeing students having similar challenges and how I could help them, that’s what led me to look at an administrative position,” she said. “It’s been an evolution.”

She later earned a master’s degree in instructional technology from National University and an Ed.D. in education and leadership from Fresno State.

She has served as interim dean of instruction of fine, performing and communication arts at Fresno City College, as well as interim dean of instruction of agriculture/natural resources, manufacturing and business and vice president of student services at Reedley College.

Most recently, she was the vice president of Madera and Oakhurst Community College Centers in Madera. With each administrative role she has taken on, she said she learned how to make a difference in students’ lives even though she was not in the classroom.

In her newest role, her main priority is to listen, learn about the campus as much as she can and preserve its longstanding legacy. She also understands budget constraints may lead to some changes.

“We’re always looking at ways to better our students, and we’ll tackle that with our talented faculty and staff. My job is to support those efforts and advocate for those students,” she said. “Navigating the budget constraints is something we do together as a district and that we don’t sacrifice the services we provide to students. I’m here not to change for change sake, but observing and learning the culture.”

She is looking forward to seeing the completion of several Measure J construction projects taking place on campus and higher enrollment numbers in coming years. This past school year saw its largest graduating class yet with 1,001 degrees handed out. In 2018, there were 725.

Working with the other Kern Community College District campus presidents — Bakersfield College’s Sonya Christian and Cerro Coso Community College’s Jill Board — also is a perk. “They’re doing great things,” she said.

Though she herself never thought she would be a president, her colleagues say otherwise.

“She’s very hardworking, she’s very dedicated to the community and students. Many times it would be 8:30 or 9 p.m. and she was just leaving to go home,” said Monica Armenta, Habib’s executive assistant at Madera. “When we were together at Fresno, I told her that she would probably be president at Fresno City.”

“When I found out she was going to interview, I knew for sure they were taking her away from us. We lost her,” she added.

But perhaps her biggest advantage is that she recognizes what programs and resources students need.

“Sometimes we forget that for immigrants, they’re leaving behind their country, family, friends and part of their heart. It’s a difficult decision,” she said. “I am respectful of the practices that need to take place, but we need to approach our work with passion and humanity.”

Habib succeeds former President Rosa Flores Carlson, who retired in spring 2018, and interim President Bill Henry, who retired in June.

 

Original Post can be found at :https://www.bakersfield.com/news/porterville-college-president-happy-to-be-back-in-central-valley/article_a0f20810-a271-11e9-9b64-8b10b414af07.html

2018 – 2019 Best Community Colleges in California

California has one of the most prolific community college scenes in the country. The Golden State is home to more than 110 public two-year institutions and features some of the lowest reported costs for community college tuition of any state in the U.S.

Ever since President Obama introduced America’s College Promise in 2015, a proposal to make community college tuition-free for qualifying students, legislators and education administrators in California have been working to make that dream a reality in the Golden State. The California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) reported in 2016 that 23 regional Promise programs were active in the state, and that the program’s reach was expected to extend to even more students in the coming years.

Whether you’re looking to save some money on your first two years of school before transferring to one of the dozens of California universities or learn a new set of skills to help you advance in your career, the best community colleges in California have programs that can help you get there. We crunched the numbers and sorted the top 10 California community colleges from the rest — check out the list below.

https://www.schools.com/community-colleges/top-community-colleges-in-california?utm_content=bufferfd404&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

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