CHANCELLOR’S C-DIRECT
May 17, 2017
Dear Colleagues:
Last week the Governor released the May Revised Budget. It contains some very good news for
the community colleges. I am preparing a special message for Peralta with regard to the May
Revised Budget and will be sharing this news with all of you.
The message will include an item-by-item run-through of the budget and a “what that means to
Peralta” section prepared by Acting Vice Chancellor Williams. It will be paired with the first part
of a series of messages that will be shared with faculty and staff, relative to the economics of
the budget and what it means in light of the financial bargaining agreement we have with all
three Unions, which also affect administrators. Providing these messages was a suggestion from
Trustee González Yuen, when we discussed enrollment management last week.
The Contracts have language wherein 1.5% of the one-time raise could become permanent if
we achieve 20,000 FTES. That is approximately 1,500 over our current enrollment. If we can
achieve the additional FTES, a sizable amount of new revenue will be generated. Taking out
what we expend to get there and increasing our efficiency, we would then be able to increase
the affordability of STRS and PERS increases, as well as projected catastrophes. There are some
small things we may be able to do to get us to the desirable number of FTES.
Beyond the revised published budget, the Consortium of Large Community College Districts – of
which we are a part – wrote a letter to the leadership of the California Legislature asking for
some additional funding for part-time faculty office hours, and urging that college be made free
for a large number of students. These accomplishments would pretty much fund our Peralta
Promise for years to come. In return, we would raise funds to support students with the rest of
their college obligations, such as textbooks.
Again, stay turned, as I will send the budget analysis in a separate communication.
Presidents’ Meeting: Parcel Tax, Use of Equity Funding
At the Presidents’ meeting with the Chancellor last week, we discussed the Parcel Tax funding
and the potential to award some additional funds to support activities and programs that meet
the ballot language. The Presidents will also work to see how we can use Equity funds for parttime faculty without harming any other programs.
Mayor’s Award
Mayor Libby Schaaf and the Workforce Innovation & Opportunity
Act Board recognized several community partners for their
contributions to the youth of Oakland.
The Peralta District was recognized as well. We are asking someone
from the Mayor’s Office to attend the next Board meeting to
present the award to the Board.
Manuel Alcala: Si Se Puede
Professor Alcala is a counselor at Laney College. He approached us with regard to developing a
three-pronged program to serve Latino students: Adult Education, college attendance and
transfer. President Gilkerson is evaluating the potential for the program. We have a dearth of
programs serving Latinos, yet none are sufficiently organized to maximize Latino student
support. Whether this or another program, I want to see that we do more to support this
growing segment of our student body.
BCC President’s Awards
Congratulations to President Tomaneng! She
successfully defended her dissertation last
week.
Additionally,
Dr.
Tomaneng
held a lunch
gathering to
honor the
individuals
the College nominated as outstanding employees. Dr. Crawford
and I attended the event and want to congratulate all the
honorees. Lisa Cook, a MLDAP participant, was among the
honorees.
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Spotlight on Laney Faculty
Michael Goldberg, one of our outreach specialists,
wanted me to meet two faculty members. They
dropped by last week for a chat. I already knew both
Douglas Cobb and Johnnie Williams. These are two fine
young men working very hard with our students. Until
he became Chair of the Counseling Department,
Professor Cobb provided outstanding services to our
football players and other student athletes. One fact I
did not know is that he oversaw a program to help the
players succeed academically. He is one of our most
respected counselors as I hear people speaking about him. Johnnie Williams is also very special.
He teaches computer science and reaches out to OUSD students and is part of a summer
academy that challenges these young students to excel in several academic fields, including
CTE. One of my goals is to connect Johnnie to the Cyber Security program at Merritt College.
Thanks to Michael for identifying two fine educators at Laney who make us proud.
Chancellor Trophy Winner
Every year from the four Presidential Medallion winners, the
Chancellor chooses one individual as the Chancellor Award
winner. This year’s winner is Aaron James Price, who is graduating
from Laney. I met him last week, and he confessed to me that
helping his daughter get through school is what made him
become a student majoring in Psychology. We shared our
children’s stories and I urged him not to give up on his daughter’s
potential advice based on struggles my own son had. The love,
compassion and patience we extend to our children can only
nurture a successful adult. Winning the trophy was important, but
the bond of parenting we shared was greater still.
College of Alameda Awards
This was another enlightening experience I had recently and I want to thank VPSS Tina
Vasconcellos and President Karas for inviting us to the COA Awards program. Trustees Withrow
and Handy and I were treated to seeing and hearing from some high achieving students. One,
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from Iraq, immigrated to Jordan and then found her way to COA is the valedictorian of the
graduating class and is now heading to UC Davis to study to be a pharmacist. Athletes were also
recognized, as well as student leaders. The salutatorian delivered a speech that was so good, I
asked her to come and deliver it to the Board on June 13. I hope you can be there to hear her. I
will not share anything more about her until you hear what she has to say. We are so blessed in
the community college to witness to such great students.
Merritt College Student Scholarship Awards
The Associated Students of Merritt College turned the student
lounge into a festive space for its scholarship awards. I was given
the opportunity to be the guest speaker for the occasion. It was an
honor to celebrate our students who are genuine educational
exemplars.
FDIP Celebration
Someday, I hope we can take the time
to celebrate all the beautiful things
about Peralta. Last Friday, one of
those beautiful things was on display
as Professor Scott Hoshida,
Coordinator of the Faculty Diversity
Internship Program, recognized the part-time faculty and part-time faculty-to-be who went
through the Program. Scott’s dedication to the prospective employees is excellent. There were
almost a dozen recognized. The beauty of the recognition and celebration is that some of the
recent graduates from the Program served as mentors to the new faculty. Our FDIP is one of
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the rare, but successful, programs in our community colleges. Congratulations to all of you who
keep the Program going year after year. This is a shining example of what is right with Peralta.
East Bay College Fund (EBCF)
I certainly have had some great meetings with community members. My meeting with Diane
Dodge of the East Bay College Fund (along with Dr. Crawford) was most valuable. Here, the
EBCF is making a three-year commitment to our students with scholarships, regular on-campus
support, books and mentoring. All we need to do is welcome them. EBCF and Diane understand
the importance of a community college and what it can do for our youth, and they are pushing
our Peralta brand for students to access. EBCF provides scholarships for students who go out of
state to attend college. If they fail to make it there and return to Oakland, EBCF sends them to
one of our Colleges and provides support for the student to rebound and go back to the fouryear institution. One very exciting undertaking is a commitment we made to start a campaign of
free community college tuition for eligible students. We will discuss this further. Diane is
determined to enroll as many students as possible. She notes that yearly 600 new graduating
seniors from OUSD stop their formal education. They do not go to the military, get training or
attend college. That is an area she and WDCE will collaborate on.
Chris Iglesias: Unity Council
Chris is the Executive Director of the Unity Council based in the
Fruitvale District. The Council and Peralta have had a relationship
for a long time. That relationship primarily focuses on Merritt
College. Our relationship has had its ups and downs. At our
meeting, we discussed how to strengthen our relationship. The first
thing we want to explore is how to get all of our Colleges involved in
the Council, so that Merritt College does not feel a heavy load as
the sole partner of the Council. The other discussion point was the
need to establish one point of contact for the Council. As I have said
many times, WDCE was formed to be the initial point of contact for
employers and community partners, so that it can bring needed
College resources to the table and College needs to the community.
WDCE will serve as that point of contact for the Unity Council. We
have scheduled a follow-up this week where all Presidents, VPIs and others will be in
attendance, so we can refresh our relationship with the Unity Council and to generate a greater
impact on the Latino community.
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Information About Changes in the District Office
This chart shows the movement of staff starting this summer. It will be updated as we move
along.
Position
Current Status (16-17)
2017-2018 Status
Ed Services VC
Filled
Eliminated
Executive VC
Filled
Eliminated
Academic VC*
Interim
In recruitment
Student Services VC
Filled
Eliminated
Assoc. VC WDCE
Filled Interim
Extended to 12/2017
Asst. VC Enrollment
Filled Interim
Filled interim
Director of WDCE
Filled interim
Filled interim
Budget Director WDCE
Filled Interim
Extended to 12/2017
Research Department
Maintained
Reporting to IT
Chief of Staff**
Filled
Filled
Finance VC
Filled interim
Director of Facilities
Filled interim
Distance Education
Moved to IT
Staffing will be
determined
Filled
To be revamped
To be filled in 2018
Stipend
Stipend
To continue to help us
work on services to
Colleges and students
Director of International
Education
Communication
To be filled in fall –
potential
reorganization
To be filled by Spring
2018
Remarks
Will not be filled
Will not be filled
To be filled by July 2017
Replaced with a
Registrar
Will be in recruitment in
fall of 2017
Recruitment in Spring
2018
Recruitment in Spring
2018
Will be in recruitment in
Fall 2017
All positions to be filled
Will incorporate some
Student Services
Search during Fall 2017
semester
A reorganization of DGS
is being explored
Waiting for feedback
from Distance Ed
Committee
*This position will pick up some Student Services duties like Enrollment Management and Admissions
**This position will incorporate some duties of Student Services like Peralta Student Organization and the
Office of Records/Registrar
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Achieving Communication Excellence Campaign
Submitted by Dr. Mary Denise Jackson
The Achieving Communication Excellence (ACE) Campaign held its second workshop last week
and it focused on the topic of Nonverbal Communication and how it contributes to the setting
of a positive or negative communication climate in the work place. One nonverbal code is time
— how we structure, perceive and value it. How long it takes employees to respond to e-mails
and phone calls was a primary complaint in a survey of Peralta employees located at the district
headquarters.
Attendees left the workshop with the task of coming up with suggestions on how to improve
this issue. The goal is to attempt to have a response rate time of 48 hours or less. Department
managers are expected to meet with their staff and then submit their recommendations to
Chancellor Laguerre in June. For more information on the ACE. Campaign, please send an e-mail
to [email protected].
Jowel
Jowel C. Laguerre, Ph.D.
Chancellor
Happy Mother’s Day!
Mom, thanks for always being slightly less disappointed in me than Dad is.
– Someecards
I love you very much. I love you as much as I love anybody, as much as I love myself. And in a
few years when I haven’t been around to be on your tail about something or irritating you, you
could…remember that time that I bought you the baseball glove when you thought we were too
broke. You know? Or when I read you those stories? Or when I let you goof off instead of
mowing the lawn? Lots of things like that. And you’re gonna realize that you love me. And
maybe you’re gonna feel badly, because you never told me. But don’t – I know that you love me.
So don’t ever do that to yourself, all right?
– Terms of Endearment
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