CVHEC’s Year-In-Review 2023

Many strands coming together into one fabric
— a glimpse at the past 12 months

By CVHEC TEAM
(Tom Uribes, Dr. John Spevak and Stan Carrizosa)

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium completes our 21st year with this 2023 Year-In-Review as seen through the headlines of our monthly e-newsletter, now in its 35th edition. (A special summer edition covers June-August).

While much was accomplished the past 12 months, perhaps our main achievement was a combination of many accomplishments, with the CVHEC team working simultaneously on many strands that come together into one fabric. We have remained committed to building a road to educational and career success for all students, especially those in grades 9 to 14, by continuing to focus on efforts with these major strategies throughout 2023:

  • For community college transfer students, we expanded our Central Valley Transfer Project and its Program Pathways Mapper software, inspiring the California Community Colleges to adopt the program as a demonstration project for possible system-wide implementation in the future;
  • For high school students, we have encouraged the ongoing growth of dual enrollment, most notably by partnering with College Bridge to help initiate and develop the Central Valley Math Bridge Program involving many of our community college members and their respective feeder high schools as well as expanding our Master’s Upskilling Program initiated two years ago into Kern County;
  • We are fostering a Central Valley approach to the understanding of Assembly Bill 1705 through our English and Math Task Forces that are now in full swing with an eye to a productive 2024 and the implementation of this legislation that focuses on student success in math and English.

On a broader state and national scale, we closed the year this month with two major conferences: the Talent Hub Convening in Mobile, Alabama by the CivicLab where we revisited how partnerships between industry and education, working off the same playbook, are vital to cross-collaboration success for both landscapes; and the Complete College America conference in Las Vegas, Nevada where we explored “a clear-eyed vision for leading systems change” in higher education throughout our nation.

See this look back at the CVHEC 2023 story:

 

JANUARY

 

CVHEC Partners with College Bridge for Grant Supporting DE Courses from Six Rural Community Colleges at 21 Valley High Schools

In January, we announced that the Dual Enrollment Math Bridge Project — a partnership between the  Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, College Bridge and the Rand Corporation — was awarded a five-year $4 million federal grant in late December. The project, with a total budget of $6.7 million, involves six CVHEC community college members providing college-level math classes at 21 rural high schools that will improve and support college readiness for underprepared students in those colleges’ respective service areas beginning next fall. UPDATE: A kickoff for the participants has held in May. The participating CVHEC colleges are: Cerro Coso, Columbia, Madera, Reedley, Taft and West Hills College Coalinga.

‘First of its Kind’ CVHEC Transfer Project Gaining Statewide Interest 

The CVHEC Transfer Project with the Program Pathways Mapper that began in 2019 was invited to present at several state and national events as the consortium continues to lead a concentrated effort to increase the number and success of community college transfers from the nine-county region to four-year colleges and universities.  The project has grown to nine community colleges and three four-year institutions early research compiled for the project showing a direct correlation between students using the Program Mapper and important student success metrics.

CVHEC Website Feature: Professional Staff Page

CVHEC continued featuring the revamp of its website undertaken in the past year with a new section presented each month including the staff page in January. CVHEC’s 11 team members includes several who are retired from careers dedicated to serving students at their respective institutions of higher education – a service that now continues through CVHEC. All lend their energy, enthusiasm and experience to enhance student success and achievement throughout the region by collaborating with the consortium’s member institutions and the CVHEC Board of Directors. 

 

FEBRUARY

CVHEC Board Member Dr. Christian Makes History as CCC’s First Woman, Asian-American Named Chancellor

Feb. 23, Dr. Sonya Christian, CVHEC board member who is featured in this summer issue with a vlog, made history when she was appointed as chancellor of the California Community Colleges System — the first Asian-American and the first woman to serve as chancellor for the largest and most diverse system of public higher education in the nation as well as a first-generation college graduate. Chancellor Christian began her term July 1 and for our Mach issue, she is featured in our “What the CVHEC is Happening” Blog discussing her time in the KCCD where she was president of Bakersfield College before serving as KCCD chancellor until her new assignment.  In this issue, she is featured in the vlog discussing what lies ahead for the CCC.

Drs. Lakhani, Rozell Named Kern Faculty Mentor Coordinators; MA Upskilling Project Hires Community College Professors to Mentor HS Teachers

Two veteran Kern County educators were named faculty mentor coordinators for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium’s Kern Master’s Upskilling Project that was launched last year to help high school teachers earn master’s degrees in Math or English so they can teach dual enrollment courses on their campus: Dr. Liz Rozell (math) and Dr. Vikash Lakhani (English). UDPATE: The first cohorts of 21 math students and 25 English students in the Kern Master’s Upskill Program are underway through Fresno Pacific University and National University respectively.

CVHEC Website Feature: Dual Enrollment Page

The February issue’s website feature presented the CVHEC Dual Enrollment Page with the strategies undertaken by CVHEC’s Central Valley Dual Enrollment for Equity and Prosperity (CVDEEP) Task Force established in 2019 to identify and establish the best elements of an intentional and sustainable strategy for dual enrollment. CVDEEP is made up of more than 150 secondary and postsecondary education leaders who gather annually for dual enrollment convenings.

MARCH

The Central Valley Math Bridge Kick-off set for May 18 

In March CVHEC announced that the movement to promote equity and college-readiness in mathematics via dual enrollment courses for underprepared students at rural Central Valley high schools next fall will formally launch May 18 with the Central Valley Math Bridge Kick-off in downtown Fresno presented by co-hosts College Bridge, Central Valley Higher Education Consortium and the Rand Corporation. UPDATE: 95 representatives of the first cohort of 13 Valley high schools in the new Central Valley Math Bridge Program convened with nine community college members for the May 18 kick-off where they began planning the program’s implementation. Rural high schools may still sign up for groundbreaking project that is ‘a model for meaningful dual enrollment pathways that can be replicated statewide.

Recruitment of community college mentors for HS teachers in Kern MA Upskilling Project is underway

The Kern Master’s Upskilling Project announced the recruitment of community college professors to serve as mentors for high school teachers enrolled in the project. The teachers can earn master’s degrees in math or English qualifying them to teach dual enrollment course at their high school campus.

Historic CVHEC Transfer Project/Program Mapper Featured at CSSO

The historic Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Transfer Project and its Pathways Program Mapper continues to break ground across the state for transfer reform with a presentation at another statewide convening: the 2023 Chief Student Services Officers Association (CSSO) Annual Spring Conference March 15 in Los Angeles.

APRIL

New Dual Enrollment Math Bridge Project provides support for Central Valley non-traditional rural students

(APRIL 20, 2023) — A new state-funded math dual enrollment program will “positively impact” approximately 630 non-traditional students at seven rural high schools next fall through four area community colleges that are members of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium. The Dual Enrollment (DE) Math Bridge – a partnership between CVHEC, College Bridge, the Fresno-Madera K-16 Collaborative, the Tulare-Kings College & Career Collaborative and CVHEC-member Fresno Pacific University – will provide equitable access to transfer-level math courses with embedded support for high school students who are disproportionately impacted and/or are not traditionally college-bound.

CVHEC leads California delegation at CCA Day on the Hill 

(APRIL 20, 2023) — Dr. Benjamin Duran, executive director of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, joined Complete College America for its CCA Day on the Hill in Washington, D.C.  May 16- 17 where “a network of higher education experts shared strategies and lessons for the implementation of higher ed strategies at scale.” Complete College America is a national non-profit alliance of state and higher education leaders. He met with Valley Congressmember Jim Costa.

CVHEC Summit re-scheduled for October 2023

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Higher Education Summit 2023, originally set for May, has been rescheduled for Oct.  20, 2023. The CVHEC Board of Directors will meet the day before the summit (Thursday, Oct. 19).

Recruiting for second cohort of Kern Math/English HS Teachers for Master’s Upskill Program supporting dual enrollment with Kern K-16 Collaborative

Recruitment for the second cohort of Kern high school math teachers to enroll in the  Kern Dual Enrollment Teacher Upskilling Pathway for English and Mathematics that qualifies them to teach dual enrollment courses began in April with classes set to begin this August.

FCC: Motherlode ‘Enrollment Growth & Pathways: Strategy Session’ features CCC Chancellor-Select Sonya Christian

Dr. Sonya Christian, California Community College system chancellor, was the guest speaker for the Central Mother Lode Regional Consortium’s “Enrollment Growth & Pathways: A Strategy Session” April 25 hosted by Fresno City College President Robert Pimentel. CVHEC’s Angel Ramirez, operations and finance manager, and Elaine Cash, grants and programs coordinator, presented on the regional dual enrollment efforts taking place across the Central Valley.

MAY

CVHEC board to appoint ZTC/OER Task Force Spring board meeting: strategic planning, Transfer Project/Math Bridge convergence

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium’s new Zero Textbook Costs/Open Educational Resources Task Force will form in the coming months, West Hills College Lemoore President James Preston reported to the CVHEC Board of Directors at its quarterly meeting May 11 in Fresno. The action highlighted a full agenda of information for the board made up of the chancellors, presidents and campus directors of 28 institutions of higher education in the Central Valley’s nine-county region. The next CVHEC board meeting is set for Oct. 19.

Central Valley Math Bridge: kickoff event brings K-16 partners to the table for stronger math programs that would help preserve STEM careers opportunities

Representatives of the first cohort of 13 Valley high schools in the new Central Valley Math Bridge Program convened with nine community college members of the  Central Valley Higher Education Consortium May 18 in Fresno to formally launch the program and plan for its implementation. Presented by co-hosts College Bridge, Central Valley Higher Education Consortium and the Rand Corporation, the event drew 95 participants to kickoff the project that promotes equity and college-readiness in mathematics via dual enrollment courses for underprepared students at rural high schools in the region next fall.  Dr. Lynn Cevallos, founder and president of College Bridge, warned in her keynote, “The State of Mathematics in California,” that the dire reality of academic disjuncture which has culminated in a pending crisis could see “the doors to STEM careers closing for our students. Fortunately, the Math Bridge project is designed to keep those pathways open,” she said.

Broadband for All Digital Equity and BEAD Planning Workshops CVHEC co-sponsors Broadband Planning Workshop; featured on Radio Bilingual nationwide

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium was featured nationally on Radio Bilingue April 13 as a co-sponsor of one of 20 Broadband for All Digital Equity and Broadband Equity, Adoption, and Deployment (BEAD) Planning Regional-Local Workshops being held throughout the state by the California Department of Technology. CVHEC Executive Director Benjamín Durán served as a spokesperson at the Merced event held April 14 and was interviewed the day prior for the Spanish-language show Linea Abierta on Radio Bilingüe, the nation’s only daily Spanish-language talk show in public radio. 

Merced College milestones:  60th Commencement and first in Los Baños

Merced College observed the 60th anniversary of its Commencement Ceremony held May 26 by presenting a full commencement ceremony at its Los Baños campus May 25 for this first time. The Los Baños ceremony was the latest in a series of investments and initiatives to grow the campus and give Westside students a complete educational experience close to home.

 

SUMMER EDITION

(Published July 19, 2023)

 

Supreme Court ruling is not the death of Affirmative Action but rather a challenge  

Statement by Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director, on the June 29 United States Supreme Court Affirmative Action ruling: ‘in one week — after decades of progress — equity, diversity and access in higher education were simultaneously under attack.  However, I offer that this Supreme Court ruling is not the death of Affirmative Action but rather a challenge to renew and reinforce its spirit and outcomes.”  See July Director’s Message.

‘Merced Promise Pathway’ streamlines path for Modesto JC, Columbia College student transfer to UC Merced

Students at Modesto Junior College and Columbia College will have increased access to University of California, Merced thanks to an agreement signed July 11 between the university and Yosemite Community College District: the Merced Promise Pathway Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the three Central Valley Higher Education Consortium members that provides a clear, streamlined pathway to UC Merced for MJC and Columbia students as well as a variety of supports to help them prepare for life at a four-year university. See Merced Promise Pathway story.

SOFT START program awarded $2.4M for two CVHEC members in ‘Internet for All’ funding

A collaboration that prepares at-risk students and low-income residents for careers in IT-cybersecurity is set to launch this fall by Central Valley Higher Education Consortium members Fresno State and Fresno City College in partnership with the Fresno County Public Library as part of a two-year, $2.4 million federal grant by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program announced in February. Fresno State was one of five minority-serving institutions to receive a portion of over $18.5 million in “Internet for All” funding meant to expand community technology hubs, upgrade classroom technology and increase digital literacy skills as California faces a shortage of about 73,000 cybersecurity professionals. See CVHEC story and KSEE-24 NBC “Education Matters” report.

UPDATE: Registration is available for two new Fresno State SOFT START Cybersecurity cohorts that begin Jan. 31, 2024: the Beginning Certificate session and the first Intermediate Certificate session. FCC certificate programs will be rolled out in fall 2024.

WHAT THE CV-HEC IS HAPPENING BLOG Pt. 2: CCC Chancellor Sonya Christian

For this summer edition of our “What the CV-HEC is Happening” blog, we feature part two of California Community Colleges Chancellor Sonya Christian, Ph.D, with this podcast interview.

See CVHEC CCC Chancellor Blog.

 

SEPTEMBER

(Published Sept. 7, 2023)

 

CVHEC Summit Oct. 19-20 features keynote

Dr. Sonya Christian, chancellor of the California Community Colleges, will return “home” Oct. 20 when she delivers the keynote for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Summit 2023 in Fresno. With the theme “Student Success through Equity and Inclusion — Thriving in the Central Valley,” the summit will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20, at the Fresno Convention Center’s Ernest E. Valdez Exhibit Hall.  See summit keynote story.

Open Educational Resources movement launched with $580,180 K-16 grant to CVHEC members

The pioneering Open Educational Resources Improvement Project – a collaboration of Central Valley Higher Education Consortium members and partners – kicks off with a $580,180 state grant as well as a new CVHEC OER Task Force and convening planned for later this fall. CVHEC-member West Hills Community College District recently announced the Fresno-Madera K-16 Collaborative Mini-Grant Award for the groundbreaking initiative that is poised to usher in a new era of educational opportunities by revolutionizing learning, teaching and research materials across the Central Valley. The project is in collaboration with the State Center Community College District and its campuses — Fresno City College, Madera Community College and Reedley College (all consortium members) — and CVHEC. See OER story.

UPDATE: plans for the OER convening and task force announcement will be forthcoming in early 2024.

CVHEC 2022 Mini Grant funds FPU Tri-Alpha Honor Society for first-generation students

A Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Mini-Grant awarded to member Fresno Pacific University earlier this year helped establish a local chapter of the Alpha Alpha Alpha Honor Society (Tri-Alpha) that recognizes and engages first-generation college students. The $6,477 CVHEC grant created undergraduate research fellowships that allows the university to provide research stipends for students and faculty as well as covered student membership fees; two induction ceremonies; and speaker honoria and refreshments for monthly chapter meetings. The CVHEC Mini-Grants, funded by the College Futures Foundation, are awarded to member institutions in support of the consortium’s mission to increase degree attainment rates. See FPU Mini-grant story.

CVHEC website feature: English and Math Task Forces 

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium launches two new web pages this month featuring its two intersegmental task forces consisting of math and English educators representing the 15 community college members in the region that are part of the 28-member consortium. First formed in 2019 under the leadership of Dr. John Spevak, a CVHEC coordinator and a former Merced College vice president, the mission of the English and Math Task Forces is to streamline math and English pathways for students by examining topics and issues of those disciplines and recent legislation as part of CVHEC’s mission: improve certificate and degree completion rates in the nine-county region from San Joaquin to Kern. See the English Task Force and Math Task Force stories.

Tachi Yokut Tribe donates $3 million to West Hills College Lemoore for Native American Studies Program

The Tachi Yokut Tribe donated $3 million to the West Hills Community College Foundation for a comprehensive Native American studies program at West Hills College Lemoore. See Tachi donates story.

UCSF Fresno celebrates new doctors for Central Valley/state

It takes 11 years or more to produce a practicing physician after high school, depending on the specialty. On June 15, UCSF Fresno celebrated the completion of years of training for more than 100 graduates. See UCSF Fresno new doctors story.

WHAT THE CV-HEC IS HAPPENING BLOG (September 2023): Teachers

As students return to classrooms for the fall semester, this month’s “What the CV-HEC is Happening” Blog is a message about the lifelong impact that teachers deliver for their students by Dr. John Spevak, a former teacher who is a vice president-emeritus of Merced College and currently a regional coordinator for CVHEC.  See Teachers Blog.

 

OCTOBER

(Published Oct. 10, 2023)

 

Summit of college leaders takes on valley’s higher ed issues

Several community college chancellors and presidents lead the charge Oct. 20 when the heads of 28 valley colleges and other educators and policy makers convene for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Summit 2023 in Fresno that includes a student panel discussing 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 by Dr. Sonya Christian, California Community Colleges chancellor with the theme “Student Success through Equity and Inclusion — Thriving in the Central Valley,” at the Fresno Convention Center’s Ernest E. Valdez Exhibit Hall. See the CVHEC Summit panelists story.

UPDATE:  At the Central Valley Higher Education Summit, Chancellor Christian announced an historic new initiative, the Central Valley Transfer Pathways Demonstration Project, in a partnership with and modeled after CVHEC’s Transfer Project.

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

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 the face of implementation deadlines looming in 2024. In partnership with the California Community College Chancellor’s Office and the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin, CVHEC presents a virtual sessions Oct. 6 to addressing areas of confusion regarding the bill and its implementation and an in-person session, “AB1705 Student Success Workshop,” Oct. 13 to  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. See MTF AB1705 story.

Historic Transfer Project spurs statewide movement to increase transfer rates

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 as well as  at the  Central Valley Higher Education Consortium’s 2023 Summit Oct. 20. 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 with the Program Pathway Mapper software and laid the groundwork for the California Community Colleges’ Central Valley Transfer Pathways Demonstration Project announced at the summit. See Transfer Project update story.

WHAT THE CV-HEC IS HAPPENING BLOG: Master’s Upskill Program Success Story

Sanger West High School teacher JADE MARTÍNEZ recounts road to a post-bac degree and her first dual enrollment class.  See Master’s Upskill blog.

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

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 about the Central Valley Math Bridge Program that is now in full swing. See Math Bridge story.

 

NOVEMBER

(Published Nov. 6, 2023)

 

CVHEC Summit leaves myriad of takeaways for participants

For Araceli Tilley, an alumna of Merced College, the Program Pathway Mapper used by the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Transfer Project proved to be not only useful for her transfer to UC Merced in fall 2022, it provided her an easy way to map her college courses for her final two years of college at UC Merced that is leading up to graduation in May 2024 with a degree in psychology. Araceli shared her experiences on the student panel at the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Summit 2023 held in Fresno Oct. 20 where the breadth and depth of CVHEC activities such as the Transfer Project were showcased.  Joined by four other students who shared their experiences in activities CVHEC has sponsored and how much their success could be attributed to those initiatives, Araceli’s remarks at the summit “earned” her a trip with the CVHEC team to share her transfer experiences statewide.  Presented by CVHEC and sponsored by the College Futures Foundation, the summit attracted 184 higher education officials and educators, legislators and partner representatives for a full day of discourse surrounding Dual Enrollment, Transfers, Math Pathways and Open Educational Resources with several panels introduced and moderated by CVHEC board members.  See CVHEC Summit 2023 story and photo gallery.

 CCC Chancellor announces Transfer Pathways Demonstration at CVHEC Summit

The California Community College Chancellor’s Office will launch a new initiative, the Central Valley Transfer Pathways Demonstration Project, Chancellor Sonya Christian announced at the 2023 Central Valley Higher Education Summit in Fresno Oct. 20. In a partnership with the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, the CV Transfer Pathways — modeled after CVHEC’s Transfer Project — entails developing and publishing 2 + 2 transfer pathways using the Program Pathways Mapper software to clarify the path to four-year colleges for transfer students as well as for campus staff in creating clear paths for transfer students to reach their educational goals while closing equity gaps. See the CCC Chancellor Transfer Announcement story.

Math Task Force begins discussion of AB1705 implementation – Nov. 17 next

With an eye towards ensuring the success rates of their students enrolled in corequisites to gateway math courses, community college members of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Math Task Force kicked off a series of convenings in October to begin preparing for implementation of Assembly Bill 1705 in the 2024-25 academic year. CVHEC announced that follow up meetings are set for Nov. 17 and Jan. 26 to continue a year-long discussion of ideas and options with the task force members and other educators in an ongoing quest for equitable mathematics under AB705 and AB1705. See Math Task Force AB1705 covenings summary story.

 

WHAT THE CV-HEC IS HAPPENING BLOG: Expanding the Reach of the Central Valley Math Bridge 

College Bridge Vice President Owynn Lancaster updates the Math Bridge project and, after successful College Orientation meetings in September, the College Bridge team has been darting up and down the San Joaquin Valley meeting with interested feeder highs schools to onboard and launch them for the coming academic year’s CV Math Bridge Project. See Math Bridge update blog. 

The San Joaquin Valley Broadband Summit Nov. 9 seeks affordable internet across the region

The San Joaquin Valley Affordable Broadband Summit Nov. 9 will bring key community leaders together to strategize for the adoption of affordable internet across the region. The California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF) is hosting the virtual summit that includes a pre-summit Nov. 1 to address broadband barriers, resources and solutions such as the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). At the summit, a diverse group of experts, community leaders, and advocates will share their insights and experiences in addressing Broadband Access in the San Joaquin Valley as they seek to bridge the digital divide in the San Joaquin Valley. See Broadband Summit story.

Comcast pledges $100,000 in scholarships to 5 CVHEC CC members

Comcast California presented a $100,000 donation to five Central Valley Higher Education Consortium-member community colleges ($20k each) to support the next generation of students eager to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM): Fresno City College, Clovis Community College, Madera College and Reedley College all in the State Center Community College District and College of the Sequoias.  See Comcast STEAM story.

Community College CEOs first caucus: area state legislators address policy issues  

The newly-formed Central Valley Community College CEO Caucus held its first convening Oct. 26 with valley legislators to discuss a variety of policy issues facing community colleges. The CVCCCEO Policy Summit and Legislator Convening, which brought together Central Valley state legislators, chancellors and presidents, was hosted at Madera Community College by President Ángel Reyna and led by Merced College President Chris Vitelli, chair of the Central Valley Community College CEO Caucus, and West Hills Community College District Chancellor Kristin Clark, board chair for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium. See CVCCCEO Caucus story.

KCCD receives ACCT 2023 Pacific Region Equity Award 

The Kern Community College District was awarded the 2023 Pacific Region Equity Award from the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) at ACCT’s annual conference in Las Vegas, Nevada last month. ACCT is an organization representing more than 6,500 community college trustees throughout the United States. See the KCCD equity award story.

CVHEC In The News 2023: Affirmative Action OP ED 

https://cvhec.org/cvhec-in-the-news-affirmative-action-oped-fresno-bee/

Following the historic Supreme Court June 29 decision that severely limited, if not effectively ended, the use of affirmative action in college admissions, Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Executive Director Benjamín Durán wrote of his reaction and that of many colleagues, family and friends in his Director’s Message for the CVHEC summer newsletter edition. Dr. Durán’s message also served as the basis for this op-ed column that was published in the Valley Voices section of The Fresno Bee Opinion page July 24.

CVHEC In The News 2023: Bee panel examining decline of Latino higher ed enrollment features CVHEC leader

Dr. Benjamín Durán, executive director, of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, will participate on a virtual panel presented Nov. 8 (6-7 p.m.) by The Fresno Bee’s La Abeja staff, “Central Valley Latinos and higher education completion: Is there a growing gap?”  The hour-long panel, presented in three 20-minute breakouts, features state and Central Valley education leaders examining the barriers to Latino student success and opportunities available. Dr. Duran will be joined by Michele Siqueiros, president of the Campaign for College Opportunity as well as Olga Rodríguez, director of the Public Policy Institute of California Higher Education Center who recently presented at the CVHEC summit in Fresno, and Carlos Nevarez, interim provost and vice president of academic affairs at Sacramento State.  Fresno State students Crystal Navarro and Joseph Aquino also will discuss their experiences. See story.

CVHEC In The News 2023: CETF helps Planada establish digital community  

Together with Comcast, California Emerging Technology Fund provided a $15,000 grant for the Planada Elementary School District to replace 3 laptop carts and purchase 40 Chromebooks for their students.  Dr. Benjamín Durán, executive director, of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium and Merced College president-emeritus, returned to his hometown for the presentation. See story.

CVHEC In The News 2023:  Valley college leaders unveil plan to increase university transfers  

The recent Central Valley Higher Education Summit and announcement of the California Community College Central Valley Transfer Pathways Demonstration Project, by Chancellor Sonya Christian was featured by KVPR Radio and GV Wire. See story

 

DECEMBER

(Published Dec. 20, 2023)

Happy Holidays from CVHEC!

CVHEC’s Year-In-Review 2023

“The CVHEC Way to Math Success — Implementing AB1705” – Jan. 26 convening set

WHAT THE CV-HEC IS HAPPENING BLOG (September 2023): Gift of Math

Merced College: DR. BENJAMÍN T. DURÁN BUSINESS RESOURCE CENTER

Fresno Bee panel: “Central Valley Latinos and higher education completion: Is there a growing gap?”

New CVHEC board members: Bloomberg named Kern CCD chancellor; Sanders is Modesto Junior College president 

CVHEC takes unified Central Valley voice to national/state higher ed conferences

WHAT THE CV-HEC IS HAPPENING BLOG (December 2022): Year-In-Review/Silver Edition

Celebrating Our 25th Edition with a Look Back at 2022 E-Newsletter Stories

The December “What the CV-HEC is Happening” Blog is presented by Tom Uribes, CVHEC’s communications/media coordinator who joined CVHEC in 2020 after serving as a California State University public affairs specialist for two Fresno State offices in a 30-year career from 1988-2017: the University Outreach Services and University Communications offices, where he also served as the University’s public information officer for two decades of that career. Among his current projects is editor of the CVHEC e-newsletter which presents its 25th edition with this issue. His blog looks back at some of the newsletter stories published in 2022.

By Tom Uribes
CVHEC Communications/Media Coordinator

With the close of 2022 – and near resumption of post-pandemic “normal life” – we present our now annual review of top stories featured in the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium e-newsletter for this December issue: our 25th edition!

This Silver Edition of the CVHEC e-newsletter crowns a venture that started when I signed on with the Consortium in March, 2020 just as the pandemic broke — sending me back home after just one day in CVHEC’s office in Fresno to work out of a hastily revived bedroom office.

Under the direction of my new CVHEC boss at the time, Virginia Madrid-Salazar (who I had hired as one of my first news interns when she was a Fresno State student in the late 80s), we published our first issue in June 2020 and when Virginia left us in August 2021 to play lawyer, Ángel Ramírez assumed this CVHEC communications partnership as my lead. His able and competent guidance and leadership has continued the solid foundation started by Virginia for the growth of this e-newsletter into this, its 25th edition.

We hope you enjoy this milestone issue — a compressed journey through the past 12 months of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium. Topics range from our Dual Enrollment Convening and Legislative and Policy Summit in in the spring, the historic CVHEC Board of Directors quarterly meetings, the appointments of new campus leaders, the growth of our “What the CV-HEC is Happening” Blog first introduced in 2021 and more.

We strive to tell the CVHEC story: bringing together 30 Central Valley institutions of higher education through its board of directors made up the presidents and chancellors in the nine-county region who make history every time they meet to deliberate, act and speak as one voice on higher education issues and policies affecting our region — a feat not seen too often throughout the academia CEO world.

We presented our first year-in-review looking back at 2021 in January with Dr. Benjamín Durán, CVHEC executive director, ushering in the New Year in his monthly director’s message:

“We at CVHEC wish you a dynamic start to the spring 2022 semester with hopes of reaching some sort of a new normal that will lead us to working, meeting our students and convening in-person in the near future,” Dr. Duran messaged that month. “While the pandemic has put the squeeze on all of us the past two years, we are more determined than ever to conquer that challenge as we have so many others.”

CV-HEC BLOG: Dual Enrollment – An Equity Change-Maker

Our first CV-HEC Guest Blog of the year in February featured a guest writer who was instrumental in planting seeds for our “What the CV-HEC is Happening” Blog, the aforementioned Virginia Madrid-Salazar, Esq., former CVHEC strategies lead turned private law practice dependency attorney. Virginia shared some observations on dual enrollment from her unique dual perspective stemming from when she worked with CVHEC setting up the CVDEEP and its convening and as a mom of a dual enrollment student.

“As the strategies lead for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium, it was an honor to work alongside area educators to affect transformational changes that have occurred in the region’s higher education sphere during that period,” said Virginia who wrote CVHEC’s white paper in 2020: CVDEEP White Paper: “Dual Enrollment in the Central Valley, Working Toward a Unified Approach for Equity and Prosperity.” 

Dual Enrollment Convening: Face-To-Face Space for K-12 and Higher Ed and new DE Video

More than 135 secondary and postsecondary educators assembled for the “Establishing Dual Enrollment Pathways in the Central Valley” Convening March 17 in Fresno to address challenges and barriers to dual enrollment success. Presented by CVHEC’s Central Valley Dual Enrollment for Equity and Prosperity (CVDEEP) Task Force, the five-hour convening was opened by Dr. Mayra A. Lara, associate director of Educator Engagement for The Education Trust-West, discussing her organization’s report, “Jumpstart California: A Roadmap for Equitable Dual Enrollment Policy & Practice.”

The event also featured the premiere of CVHEC’s latest education video, “Blurring the Lines Between High School and College: Dual Enrollment in the Central Valley.” The video depicts three student success stories as well as three area educators advocating for dual enrollment including CVHEC board members Dr. Kristin Clark, chancellor of the West Hills Community College District, and Dr. Chris Vitelli, president of Merced College. Convening participants also heard four valley students – including three from the video — share their success stories. Two completed associate degrees before their high school graduation.   See press release.

CVHEC Founder Welty To Return for Summit and 20th Anniversary

This year for our 20th anniversary, the Consortium reunited with President-Emeritus John D. Welty, CVHEC’s founding president at our Higher Education Policy And Legislative Summit May 6, where the founding president witnessed a 30th member added to the board (see May).

SUMMIT NEWS: Attendees Hear the Voice of Student Experiences

A special feature of the 2022 CHEVC Summit was the student experiences panel including students who were featured in two Central Valley Higher Education Consortium videos in the past year.

CVHEC’s Higher Education Policy and Legislative Summit (Photo Gallery)

Nearly 300 intersegmental educators, legislators and partner representatives from throughout the Central Valley and the state joined us for our Higher Education Policy and Legislative Summit May 5-6 to examine such issues as equity, dual enrollment, transfer pathways and broadband disparity and access under the theme, “Post Pandemic World: Recovering with Equity and Inclusion in the Central Valley.” The event marked CVHEC’s 20th anniversary featuring the return of founding board of directors president Dr. John D. Welty, president-emeritus of Fresno State, who joined fellow founding board members Dr. Frank Gornick, West Hills Community College District chancellor-emeritus, and Dr. Benjamin Duran, Merced College president-emeritus and current CVHEC executive director, on a summit panel recalling the early days of the consortium. A special feature of the 2022 CHEVC Summit was the student experiences panel including students who were featured in two Central Valley Higher Education Consortium videos in the past year.  The night before (May 5), CVHEC presented its Cinco de Mayo Reception providing the occasion to reconnect in-person with colleagues, new and old, after a two-year pandemic-forced hiatus from in-person convenings. The reception featured Las Hermanas Medinas from Hanford, two college grads and a current student (two of the three attended CVHEC member institution Fresno State and the third is a UC Santa Cruz alumna). See summit agenda.

BOARD NEWS: UCSF-Fresno Becomes CVHEC’s 30th Institution of Higher Education Member

At its quarterly meeting May 5, the CVHEC Board of Directors formally accepted the membership application from the University of California San Francisco – Fresno Campus and welcomed the 30th institution of higher education to join the Consortium. Michael W. Peterson, MD/MACP, associate dean for Undergraduate Medical Education and Research at the UCSF-Fresno Campus, was seated on the Consortium board joining the presidents and chancellors of 29 colleges and universities in the nine-county region from San Joaquin to Kern counties.

CVHEC Teacher Upskilling for Master’s Degrees Supports Dual Enrollment in South Valley Via Kern K-16 Collaborative

CVHEC’s Dual Enrollment Teacher Upskilling Program for English and Mathematics pilot program first launched in Fresno by CVHEC in 2021 was funded in June for the South Valley. In partnership with the Kern Regional K-16 Education Collaborative, the program will provide 100 South Valley high school teachers with the opportunity to earn a master’s degree that achieves state qualifications for teaching community college dual enrollment English and math courses on local high school campuses.

Dr. Krista Herrera was named executive director of the newly formed Kern Regional K-16 Education Collaborative, a partnership between Kern County Superintendent Of Schools, institutes of higher education including the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium and Kern business partners to significantly expand Kern County’s workforce development efforts (reported in our July issue).

CVHEC BLOG: UC Enrollment Push Supported by CVHEC/UC Merced Transfer Project and new Mapper Software

The June “What The CV-HEC Is Happening” Blog featured guest contributor Dr. James Zimmerman, senior associate vice provost and dean for Undergraduate Education at the University of California-Merced where he is also director of the Center for Engaged Teaching and Learning and a physics professor. He serves on the CVHEC/UC Merced Transfer Project committee and for this blog he connects the committee’s work the past year to a recent article on UC enrollment expansion.

Pathway for Community College Students to the Medical Field: California Medicine Scholars Program-SJV: a collab of UCSF Fresno and CVHEC members  

A valley wide collaborative by CVHEC partners and Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger) led to a major accomplishment for the Central Valley with the launch this summer of the California Medicine Scholars Program and the designation of the University of California, San Francisco – Fresno as one of four Regional Hubs of Healthcare Opportunity (RHHOs) in the state. Sen. Hurtado cited a healthcare provider shortage in the Central Valley and credited CVHEC for rallying leaders of the Consortium from Stockton to Bakersfield to support UCSF-Fresno as one of the state’s four hubs authorized by the legislation.

Zero-Textbook-Cost/OER Movement picks up steam with $115m state grant West Hills College Lemoore among leaders; CVHEC plans regional task force

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC) is creating a regional task force to support its member institutions interested in reducing the overall cost of education for students and decreasing the time to complete degree and certificate programs by using alternative instructional materials and methodologies, including open educational resources (OER).

CV-HEC BLOG: The ZTC/OER Movement

The September blog is the first by a CVHEC Board of Directors member: West Hills College-Lemoore President James Preston who writes about the Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) Program and the California Community College Chancellor’s Office supporting the system with $115 million to do the work in the “OERevolution” (Open Educational Resources).

CVHEC NEWS: Elaine Cash Is Grants & Program Coordinator as Consortium Grows

Educator Elaine C. Cash, retired superintendent of Riverdale Joint Unified School District and a K-12 liaison for the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium since 2017, was named to a full-time position as CVHEC’s Grants & Programs coordinator. In her new capacity effective Oct. 1, Elaine is responsible for grant writing, management and reporting of grants and sponsored programs, announced CVHEC Executive Director Dr. Benjamín Durán. “This new position for CVHEC will help support the growth and sustainability of the consortium and our work,” Durán said.

MINI GRANT SUCCESS STORY: AOA Journal Features CHSU ‘Pre-Med Bootcamp’ for Promoting Cultural Competency, Osteopathic Medicine Awareness

The Pre-Med Bootcamp Program of the California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine was recognized nationally for its success in promoting cultural competency and osteopathic medicine awareness and assisting students in applying for the medical school. The bootcamp, held in 2019 and the first of five held since then, was supported by a Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Mini-Grant.

North Valley, East Sierra CVHEC Members Partner for K-16 Collaboratives State Planning Grants Could Lead to Expansion of CVHEC’s Dual Enrollment Initiatives

Two more Central Valley regions – North San Joaquin and Eastern Sierra – were each awarded one-year $250,000 state planning grants for the establishment of Regional K-16 Education Collaboratives Grant Programs as part of the statewide drive to strengthen the K-16 education-to-career pipeline. Both collaborative efforts are headed by Central Valley Higher Education Consortium member institutions.

In the Northern San Joaquin Region, the University of California, Merced is the lead agency for the newly formed North Valley Tri-County Workforce and Education (WE Will!) Regional Collaborative that includes four other fellow CVHEC-members: Merced College, Modesto Junior College, San Joaquin Delta College and California State University, Stanislaus. For the Eastern Sierra Region, CVHEC-member Columbia College is heading up the K-16 collaborative planning along with several school districts, colleges and employer groups. These allocations amount to a total of four such collaboratives involving CVHEC members that will help bolster dual enrollment initiatives like the consortium’s successful Master’s Upskilling Program that has already been implemented in the mid valley region through the Fresno-Madera K-16 Collaborative and will be getting underway in 2023 in the south valley area through the Kern K-16 Collaborative.

CVHEC Board Winter Meets  (Photo Gallery)

The Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Board of Directors held its final quarterly meeting of the year Dec. 8 highlighted by a discussion of Assembly Bill 928 regarding transfer reform and a farewell to a beloved colleague: Dr. Lori Bennett, outgoing president of Clovis Community College who delivered her final State-of-the-College at the CCC President’s Breakfast Oct. 25. See the board photo gallery.

CV-HEC BLOG: Year in Review-2022

The December “What the CV-HEC is Happening” Blog takes a look back at some of the newsletter stories published in 2022.

CVHEC Mini-Grant Application 2022

Read more

CVHEC 2022 Mini Grant Applications Now Open  

Applications for the next Central Valley Higher Education Consortium 2022 Mini-Grant cycle are now being accepted and will continue until funds are allocated.

Once funds are allocated, grantees have until May 30, 2023 to finalize expenditures.

The CVHEC Mini-Grants project, currently funded by the College Futures Foundation, provides awards from $5,000 to $7,500 each which faculty from member institutions have creatively used for individual projects that help achieve the consortium’s strategy of increasing degree attainment rates.

Previous Mini-Grants have supported assistance and professional learning associated with Guided Pathways, Math Pathways, implementation of Corequisite English and math, course development and advancement of Pathways for Associate Degrees for Transfer.  The grants may also incentivize basic needs and equity, race and social justice work.

Member institutions are encouraged to apply soon to allow enough time for project completion before the expenditure deadline.

The mini-grant application can be found at https://www.cvhec.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/CVHEC-Mini-Grant-2022-Application.pdf.

For application details, contact CVHEC Operations Manager Angel Ramirez at angelr@mail.fresnostate.edu.

 

Previous CVHEC Mini-Grants success stories:

CVHEC Director’s Message: Turning the Corner

 Greetings colleagues,

I am happy to present our February CVHEC e-Newsletter amidst recent encouraging news showing our country may be turning the corner on this historic pandemic that has transformed the way we deliver instruction and services to our students in the region.

With that in mind, we are pleased to announce that this spring CVHEC will return to in-person convenings with two major events for the Valley’s education community, pandemic conditions permitting.

The first event March 17 will bring the Central Valley Dual Enrollment for Equity and Prosperity (CVDEEP) Task Force together with regional and statewide partners.  See details in this issue.

For our second event, CVHEC leaders are excited about the return of our annual Legislative and Policy Summit in the late spring – details to follow in next month’s issue.  The Summit has been on “pandemic hiatus” since 2019 and many are anxious to come together in person to follow up on much progress that our Valley higher education community has been pursuing.

Additionally, CVHEC will hold other professional development and regional meetings in-person when campus COVID regulations allow.

Also in this issue, we announce a new round of mini-grants launching this spring throughout the Central Valley. For the last three years, CVHEC has been able to offer this funding to member colleges and universities in the Central Valley providing opportunities for faculty and staff to target areas on their campuses that have been identified by the Consortium as regional strategies and priorities. We invite our member institutions to utilize this opportunity for services that can help your students.

Finally, we are especially pleased to publish the fourth installment of our “What the CV-HEC is Happening Blog”  that features an entry by former CVHEC team member Virginia Madrid-Salazar, Esq. regarding dual enrollment from the personalized perspective of a parent of a high school student benefiting from taking college courses at his local high school. Dual enrollment is one of the equity strategies CVHEC is pursuing throughout the region and Virginia’s blog is a great warm-up for the CVDEEP Convening next month. I am proud to note that Virginia was instrumental in developing our CVDEEP Task Force while she was with us. We appreciate her taking some time from her busy law practice that she began last summer.

We hope you enjoy our newsletter for the month and we welcome your feedback

A NEW YEAR: Recharged for a Dynamic 2022

Hello friends and colleagues of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium (CVHEC)!

With 2022 well underway, we are pleased to share with you our first e-newsletter of the year.  We at CVHEC wish you a dynamic start to the spring 2022 semester with hopes of reaching some sort of a new normal that will lead us to working, meeting our students and convening in-person in the near future.

Though 2021 was a challenging and unprecedented year for us all, CVHEC members and partners were fully engaged in working to deliver productive educational programs for our students and valuable professional development opportunities for our faculty and staff in the region.  This  month’s newsletter provides a brief summary and reminder of the good work that was done in the Central Valley this past year.

Among these are our  Dual Enrollment Upskilling Teachers Master’s Program; announcement of our  CVHEC Equity, Race and Social Justice Taskforce; success stories about our dual enrollment efforts featuring some of our Central Valley students as well as innovative initiatives undertaken with our popular CVHEC Mini-Grant Program; our communications initiatives resulting in ongoing development of this e-newsletter including  a new blog feature, development of our public information officers/communications committee and a video on broadband disparity, one of three videos we are producing; our historic  CVHEC/UC Merced Transfer Project and the appointment of several new chief executives for member campuses.

This newsletter will also provide a preview of higher education efforts to come in the valley this year.

Be on the lookout for a continuation of the work around equity and inclusion in member institutions through our Equity Task Force, the pursuit of dual enrollment as an equity strategy in rural parts of the Valley and the Consortium providing assistance in creating K16 collaboratives in the north and south counties of the region.

CVHEC is also partnering with state and regional advocates to work to bring broadband to rural parts of the Central Valley to ensure that internet connectivity and bandwidth are no longer a barrier for our students and residents.

Also, the CVHEC Board of Directors is considering conditions that will allow for delivering our annual Legislative and Policy Summit in an in-person setting later in the spring, for the first time since 2019.

Needless to say, while the pandemic has put the squeeze on all of us the past two years, we are more determined than ever to conquer that challenge as we have so many others. To that end, we look forward to continued partnerships with you all in the coming year.

Mini-Grant Success Story: CHSU Pre-Med Pathway Bootcamp

Pre-Med Bootcamp Helps Local Students
with CHSU-COM Med School Applications 

NOTE: For the past three years, CVHEC Mini-Grants have been awarded to member institutions in support of CVHEC’s mission to increase degree attainment rates. We are highlighting how our member institutions’ innovative uses for the grants are positively impacting students. 

A Pre-Med Pathway Bootcamp helped 25 local students prepare to apply to California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine (CHSU-COM) thanks to funding from Central Valley Higher Education Consortium’s Mini-Grant project.

CVHEC’s $6,000 mini-grant offset course fees for students so they only had to pay $25 to reserve their seats. The grant also provided all MCAT prep supplies and instruction, T-shirts, certificates of completion and a catered lunch for the attendees.

“Our local pre-med students greatly benefited from only having to pay $25 for this in-depth Pre-Med Pathway Bootcamp,” said Dr. Kevin Steed, assistant professor of Biomedical Education who served as program director with Samuel Kadavakollu, PhD, chair of the Biomedical Education Department and associate professor at CHSU-COM.

“We appreciate CHSU’s and CVHEC’s commitment to keeping this program affordable for local students, many of whom would not have been able to participate if they had to pay thousands for a program of this caliber,” Dr. Steed said.

CHSU’s four-weekend bootcamp held in October was divided into three main categories with sessions that provided the aspiring pre-medical students an opportunity to prepare for the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), learn about the medical school application process and experience the medical school environment.

In addition to classroom learning, pre-med students experienced HoloAnatomy using the Microsoft HoloLens; participated in a culinary workshop in the CHSU-COM Teaching Kitchen where they practiced cooking healthy recipes; and stepped into the shoes of a current medical student by participating in medical simulation scenarios in the CHSU Simulation Center with manikins and real Standardized Patients.

Graduates of the bootcamp were presented with certificates by John Graneto, DO, dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine and Lisa Chun, DO, associate dean of Osteopathic Clinical Education and Simulation.

CHSU is now planning for its next Pre-Med Pathway Bootcamp in spring 2022.

The CVHEC Mini-Grants project, currently funded by the College Futures Foundation, provides awards up to $10,000 each which faculty from consortium member institutions have creatively used for individual projects that help achieve CVHEC’s strategy of increasing degree attainment rates.

Previous mini-grants have supported assistance and professional learning associated with Guided Pathways, Math Pathways, implementation of Corequisite English and math, course development and advancement of Pathways for Associate Degrees for Transfer.

The 2021 funding cycle also sought to additionally incentivize basic needs and equity, race and social justice work. Details about applications for the 2022 funding cycle will be announced in January.

For more information about CVHEC Mini-Grants, contact Angel Ramirez at angelr@mail.fresnostate.edu.

See CHSU press release.

Students prepared to apply to California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine (CHSU-COM) at the Pre-Med Pathway Bootcamp with funding from the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Mini-Grant project.

Boot camp students participated in a culinary workshop in the CHSU-COM Teaching Kitchen where they practiced cooking healthy recipes.

Mini-Grants – COS Equitable Teaching Institute Supports Faculty Learning

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Mini-Grant Success Stories

COS Equitable Teaching Institute supports faculty learning

NOTE: For the past three years, Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Mini-Grants have been awarded to member institutions in support of CVHEC’s mission to increase degree attainment rates. We are highlighting how our member institutions’ innovative uses for the grants are positively impacting students. 

The Equitable Teaching Institute at College of the Sequoias this summer engaged 10 faculty in an innovative four-week interdisciplinary cohort-based summer learning session that studied equitable pedagogy and how to apply it to gatekeeping courses at COS thanks to a $7,500 Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Mini-Grant.

The CVHEC Mini-Grants project, currently funded by the College Futures Foundation, provides awards up to $10,000 each which faculty from member institutions have creatively used for individual projects that help achieve the consortium’s strategy of increasing degree attainment rates. Previous mini-grants have supported assistance and professional learning associated with Guided Pathways, Math Pathways, implementation of Corequisite English and math, course development and advancement of Pathways for Associate Degrees for Transfer.

The 2021 funding cycle also sought to additionally incentivize basic needs and equity, race and social justice work.

At COS, ten faculty selected a different gatekeeping course and examined ways to reduce equity gaps for that specific course. This occurred in two phases done over four weekly themed sessions led by project coordinators Megan Baptista and Matthew C. Nelson, English professors at COS.

The Equitable Teaching culminated with the ETI Faculty Presentation Showcase Aug. 11 as part of the college’s Faculty Development Workshop Series attended by over 40 faculty colleagues during Fall 2021 Convocation Week.

At the culminating showcase, the ETI participants shared their findings, proposed changes and new pedagogy insights, reported Nicole Bryant Lescher, Far North regional coordinator for the California Community College Success Network (3CSN) who served as observer for the project’s first phase in June.

“The presentations were received well with many staying more than 30 minutes over the scheduled two-hour time slot to engage their colleagues about this work,” reported Lescher, who is a professor of English at the College of the Redwoods. “Faculty who attended this workshop left very positive comments in their evaluations and often remarked on changes they hope to make in their courses as a result of these presentations.”

Dr. Benjamin T. Duran, CVHEC executive director, said the COS Equitable Teaching Institute is “a perfect example of how Mini-Grant funds can support faculty learning toward equitable teaching.”

The faculty participants had three learning outcomes for the institute, Lescher reported: review equity concepts and identify local contexts driving equity gaps; explore culturally relevant teaching pedagogy; and use culturally relevant teaching and other equity frameworks to developed student-centered practices, policies, language and assignments for each cohort member’s identified gatekeeping course.

They also had three deliverables as a result of the program: a detailed reflection on their learning that outlined the changes they intend to make for their gatekeeping course; a proposal for a project inspired by the institute (the deliverables for each project varied, but typically these deliverables were tied to ETI faculty presentations during convocation week); and the final presentation at the ETI Faculty Presentation Showcase.

“One key takeaway many instructors found in the data was that small changes in how we teach can help us reduce and even close gaps,” Lescher said. “For example, in English 1, we observe equity gaps for African-American and Hispanic students.

“Between 2014 and 2021, those students were significantly less likely to succeed in English 1,” she explained. “However, the minimum number of students from those groups who would have needed to pass to shrink the gaps is 13 and 80, respectively. If we could get 31 more African American and 181 more Hispanic students to pass English 1, the equity gap disappears.”

She said there are 116 sections of English 1 being offered in fall 2021 and “each of us, making small changes focused specifically on disproportionately impacted student groups, can help close these gaps. If we can help just one more disproportionately impacted student meet the learning outcomes and pass in each English 1 section, we will have almost closed these gaps.”

The participants observed similarly achievable goals in all the gatekeeping classes examined during the institute, Lescher noted.

Nine out of the ten faculty members who presented and their topics are:

  • Randy Villegas – “Students in Political Positions of Power”
  • David Jones – “Grading Systems and Income Inequality”
  • Jenny Heaton – “Reducing Student Anxiety and Fostering Student Agency”
  • Samantha Sousa – “Creating a more equitable syllabus”
  • Tracy Redden – “Syllabus Updates for Equity”
  • Lisa McHarry – “Freeman, Engaging Diverse Voices with Social Annotation”
  • Melissa Myers – “Creating Equitable Math Content Courses for Pre-Service Teachers”
  • Courtney Traugh – “Student Learning Teams”
  • Victoria Rioux – “Using UDL to Make Fieldwork More Equitable”

The project also provided an additional outcome: faculty participants engaged in learning together and found ways to apply what they learned to their courses, said Baptista.

“The grant money allowed us to pilot a project that engaged faculty in equity work, improving both our understanding of the work and how that work appears in our classrooms,” she said. “In the words of one of the participants, ‘I was unsure of this equity work, but after finishing the course, I am fully onboard.’”

The COS project’s $7,500 funding was proposed in the two phases with two main categories: stipends (6,500) and materials (1,000). For stipends, $1,000 each was earmarked for the two coordinators and $2,250 each for the nine participants.

The remaining $1,000 was used to purchase texts to facilitate continued faculty learning and engagement with equity conversations in their discipline and in their courses.

Applications for the next Mini-Grant cycle will be accepted beginning November 1, said Angel Ramirez, CVHEC operations manager (angelr@mail.fresnostate.edu).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Mini-Grants – Reedley College’s Motivational Poster Project 

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Mini-Grant Success Stories

Reedley College’s Motivational Poster Project 

seeks equitable, inclusive spaces on campus

NOTE: For the past three years, CVHEC Mini-Grants have been awarded to member institutions in support of CVHEC’s mission to increase degree attainment rates. We are highlighting how our member institutions’ innovative uses for the grants are positively impacting students. 

More than 70 motivational posters profiling a diverse range of student success stories were produced by the Reedley College Academic Senate thanks to funding from Central Valley Higher Education Consortium’s Mini-Grant project.

Currently funded by the College Futures Foundation, the Mini-Grants project provides awards up to $10,000 each which faculty from member institutions have creatively used for individual projects that help achieve the consortium’s strategy of increasing degree attainment rates. Previous mini-grants have supported assistance and professional learning associated with Guided Pathways, Math Pathways, implementation of Corequisite English and math, course development and advancement of Pathways for Associate Degrees for Transfer.

The 2021 funding cycle also sought to additionally incentivize basic needs and equity, race and social justice work.

At Reedley College, Rebecca Al Haider in the Communication and Languages Department undertook the Motivational Poster Project as part of the college’s Academic Senate’s anti-racism action plan “to create campus spaces that are equitable inclusive and diverse” by producing 70 posters that were printed in various languages, framed and displayed on campus.

The posters contained messages in English, Spanish, Arabic and Punjabi representing 33 students and 12 faculty, staff and administrators from various ethnicities/races, genders, sexual orientations, ages, religions, abilities, educational achievements and goals.

One of the posters highlighted Business Administration student Alejandra Reyes Enriquez, who began her higher education at Reedley College in the English as a Second Language program where she earned her high school diploma and enrolled in Business Administration classes. She transferred to Fresno State where she is pursuing a degree in accounting. Al Haider said Alejandra’s posters highlight her great achievements as a mother, immigrant and first-generation college student.

“What started out as a desire to simply learn a new language, turned into a desire to build a better future for myself and my family,” Alejandra said. “It is never too late to achieve your goals and change not only your story, but your family’s story for generations to come.”

In addition to poster printing and frames costs, Reedley College’s $8,100 grant provided two monitors and computers installed in the cafeteria and Math/Science Building to display videos of twelve profiled students and employees sharing their educational experiences and achievements as well as offering advice.

For more information about the Mini-Grant process, contact Angel Ramirez at angelr@mail.fresnostate.edu.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Mini-Grant Success Stories – MJC’s Faculty Mentor Plan Supports AB705

Adjunct Faculty Embedded Into Accelerated/Co-Requisite English, Math 

Modesto Junior College recently used its Central Valley Higher Education Consortium Mini-Grant to support compliance with California Assembly Bill 705 by funding a faculty mentor program that embedded adjunct faculty into accelerated/co-requisite English and math courses during the Spring 2021 semester, addressing the key elements of persistence; time to degree; and decreasing equity gap.

“Modesto Junior College’s use of the grant funds is the epitome of the benefits we seek when distributing the mini-grants,” said Dr. Ben Durán, CVHEC executive director. “The grants are intended to spur up creative approaches to institutionalizing equitable systems. Modesto College has done just that.”

Now in its third year, the CVHEC Mini-Grants program, currently funded by the College Futures Foundation, provides awards with a maximum $7,500 each which faculty from member institutions have creatively used for individual projects that help achieve the consortium strategy of increasing degree attainment rates.

Last year, the grants awarded for projects in various amounts provided assistance and professional learning associated with Guided Pathways, Math Pathways, implementation Corequisite English and math course development, and advancement of Pathways for Associate Degrees for Transfer. The 2021 funding cycle also sought to additionally incentivize basic needs and equity, race and social justice work.

With its $7,500 grant, Modesto Junior College eyed a plan to enhance its approach to AB705. The goal of MJC’s project was to expand the courses in highest demand — English 100 (transfer level English) and Math 34 (statistics) — by mentoring adjunct faculty in the pedagogy and andragogy used in the co-requisite and accelerated courses. While being mentored, the adjunct faculty were embedded with an experienced mentor, a faculty member who teaches accelerated and co-requisite courses.

At MJC, changes were made to both English and math using best practices from the California Acceleration Project leading to significant gains in transfer-level completers, and throughput for both departments, reported Dr. Laura Maki, dean of Science, Math and Engineering.

Comparing 1-year throughputs in fall 2017 to fall 2019, English 1 year throughput increased from 45.2 percent to 51.9 and math 1 year throughput more than tripled from 10.7 percent to 34.2, Dr. Maki said in MJC’s final mini-grant report.

In English and in math, two adjunct faculty were embedded into the accelerated composition course (English 100), and into the statistics co-requisite courses (Math 34) respectively in Spring 2021, she reported.

During the semester, each mentee received hands-on experience in the activities and lessons being used in the course, with the goal of increasing their understanding of the acceleration pedagogy and andragogy.

In math, faculty also discussed and reviewed the impact of AB705, equity gaps and disproportionate impact with their mentor adjunct faculty. Adjunct participants were provided with a stipend and FLEX credit during Spring 2021.

In fall 2021, with Modesto Junior College’s high demand for the co-requisite statistics courses, both adjunct faculty mentees will teach a section of Math 34, a 28 percent increase in the number of sections offered.

The co-requisite mentor program has given the instructors the confidence and preparation needed to independently teach the co-requisite statistics course emphasizing the ability to identify equity gaps and provide support for students with a variety of academic and social backgrounds, Dr. Maki reported.

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