This edition is personally special for me because our monthly “What the CVHEC is Happening” blog is written by our very own Ángel Ramírez, who celebrates his 10th anniversary at CVHEC, where he rose from a Fresno State intern to our associate director.  For those of you who know Ángel and have had the opportunity to work with him, you are aware of his immense value to us and the region.  Please enjoy his story in his own words.

We are also excited to announce the dates for our Annual Central Valley Higher Education Summit for spring 2026.  Please mark your calendars for April 8 and 9, 2026, and plan on joining us and our friends and colleagues from the region, the state and around the country.  We will look forward to seeing you there.

We are also delighted to congratulate Dr. Primavera Monarrez for being selected as the new president at Porterville College.  Presently serving as interim president since June, Dr. Monarrez’s appointment was announced by Kern Community College District Chancellor Steven Bloomberg recently, following a national search.  Please join us in welcoming her to her new role as the permanent president at Porterville College which also continues her term on the CVHEC Board of Directors.

As we all know, this year is different due to federal reductions to higher education across the country and the impacts they are having on students and the colleges and universities they attend.  In this issue we include two items that touch on this including an EdSource podcast exploring how these cuts affect our member colleges. It features Sarahi Sanchez Soto, a student at CVHEC member and Hispanic-Serving Institution Reedley College where she presently serves as student body president, discussing how these services are helping her succeed in her academic journey.   Enjoy hearing about the path she took to get to where she is now.  We are so proud of Sarahi and the bright lights that we see in these dark times from her, Angel and President  Sanchez.

Enjoy the newsletter and learn about other things that are going in in the Central Valley higher education universe.  Have a great rest of the semester!