CAMPUS NEWS

All College Meeting Scheduled for Feb. 5

President Tom Mohr has scheduled the first all college meeting of the Spring Semester for Tuesday, Feb. 5 at 1:30 p.m. in Building 3, Room 142. Topics include the move to block scheduling for Fall 08; hiring decisions; a discussion of ongoing facilities renovations; and presentation of the three SOTL scholars.

Online Scheduling for Placement Tests a Hit With Students

Nearly 200 more students have taken placement tests this spring compared to last year thanks to a new electronic scheduling system that makes it easier to schedule tests. The new system helps reduce the number of in-person trips to the college a new student has to make. After an initial live testing period, the college hopes to expand the online appointment scheduler to encompass the Counseling Department and allow students to make their own counseling appointments. Since the implementation of computerized placement testing at the college two years ago, the number of new students testing has increased an average of 6 percent each semester. With greater choice and flexibility in testing days and times, the college hopes to increase this number even further.

Information Sessions Set for Feb. 6-7 Regarding New Health Sciences Degree

Health care is a booming industry with many different career opportunities so Cañada College in Redwood City is teaming up with Cal State East Bay to offer a new bachelor’s degree in Health Science at the Cañada College University Center. Two public information sessions are scheduled. The first will be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 6 in Room 312 of the library. The second will be held at the same time and in the same place on the next day, Thursday, Feb. 7. All of the courses will be taught at Cañada College by professors from Cal State East Bay and some will also be offered on-line. “This is a fantastic opportunity for students who want to enter the health care industry,” said Jeanne Gross, dean of the University Center. “It’s also a good program for people working in health care that are having a difficult time advancing because they don’t have a bachelor’s degree.”

Cañada Continues Partnership with TheaterWorks for Summer Acting Intensive Program

Last year’s successful Summer Acting Intensive Program will be repeated this year after the college and TheaterWorks renewed their existing agreement. Last year’s four-day intensive program drew 31 students including
10 concurrent enrollment students.

Name the New Coffee Kiosk

Do you have a great idea for the name of the new coffee kiosk being built near Building 13? If so, consider making recommendations at the Feb. 7 College Council meeting or forward your ideas to Debbie Joy by Feb. 5 in the Office of Student Services. The District has suggested two names "Grounds" and "The Daily Grind." What are your ideas?

Blood Drive Set for Feb. 5-6

San Mateo County's blood supply is so low that elective surgeries are being canceled. But there's something you can do to help. The college is hosting a blood drive Feb. 5-6 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Each donor will receive a $50 gift certificate towards any regularly scheduled brunch or dinner cruise for two from Hornblower Cruises and Events. Please register online at www.BloodHeroes.com with the sponsor code Cañada College.

Meeting to Discuss Summer Bridge Program

A meeting to discuss a proposed summer bridge program will be held Wednesday Feb. 6 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Building 3, Room 142. The plan is to develop some type of program for the two weeks prior to the start of the fall semester that will prepare incoming students for success. At this time no plans are in place and everyone is encouraged to bring their ideas to the meeting. The program should include a review of Math and English as well as study skills, career focus, and a general orientation to college. There is also a need to develop significant outreach for the program to attract students.

Campus to Host Housing Summit

Cañada College will host a two-day “deliberative poll” involving 400 participants on March 15-16 as part of Threshold 2008, an effort to confront San Mateo County’s housing crisis. The program will be designed and facilitated by Professor James Fishkin of Stanford University’s Center for Deliberative Democracy. President Tom Mohr sits on the Threshold 2008 Advisory Committee. The project is funded by local philanthropists with support from the county.

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FACES OF CAÑADA

Anniqua Rana Named Project Coordinator for Statewide Basic Skills

Rana will assist the project director in planning and coordinating the statewide and regional events and workshops and help educators with technical assistance.

Anniqua Rana, professor of English and ESL, has been named project coordinator for ESL on the Statewide Basic Skills Committee. Rana will help coordinate training for ESL faculty across the state as the State Chancellor’s Office tries to address the substantial demographic shift that is occurring in California. The staff development activities are designed to improve curriculum, instruction, student services, assessment, program practices, and campus culture in the areas of ESL and basic skills. Research shows that Latinos will comprise approximately 43 percent of high school graduates by 2010, yet current data points to lower skills achievement in this population. In the 2003 California Standards Tests, only 20 percent of the fifth-grade and 15 percent of the eighth-grade Latinos were proficient in English language arts compared to 54 percent of the sixth-grade non-Latino Whites and 47 percent of the 8th grade non-Latino Whites. According to the state, approximately 80 percent of all students coming to the community colleges assess into one or more pre-collegiate skills courses. Responding to this trend, the System Office Strategic Plan called for the implementation of a range of strategies to meet the state’s growing educational needs including an enhanced need for ESL/basic skills courses and support services. Training college personnel will help them meet the goals of the state.

Joan Rosario Joins Cañada in Office of Instruction

San Francisco resident Joan Rosario has joined the Office of Instruction as Marilyn McBride’s new administrative secretary.

Joan (pronounced Jo-an) most recently worked at San Francisco State University, School of Social Work Department, in the Title IV-E Child Welfare Training Project as the administrative assistant. She received her bachelor’s degree in Asian American Studies from San Francisco State University.

Joan’s family emigrated from the Philippines in 1987 when she was 10-years-old and relocated to San Francisco. In 1992, she attended one year of high school in the Philippines before moving back to San Francisco the next year and graduating from Sacred Heart Cathedral.

She enjoys attending San Jose Sharks hockey games, traveling to different countries, reading fiction, and is currently playing Lord of the Rings, Battle for Middle Earth, a PC strategy game.

Ariackna Alvarez is Named College Recruiter

Ariackna Alvarez has been hired as the new college recruiter at Cañada and she has one goal in mind – to make sure potential students know about the college.

“My job is to recruit students to the college and that means they have to know about the good things we are doing at Cañada,” said Alvarez, who had been working for the past year in the college’s Financial Aid Office as an hourly employee while pursuing her master’s degree. “Cañada is a great institution and it provides a wide variety of students opportunities to achieve their educational goals.”

President Tom Mohr said he believes Alvarez will be a tremendous asset to the college.

“I’ve had the chance to work with Ariackna and she is a great ambassador for the college,” he said. “She brings energy and enthusiasm to the job and she believes in the mission of the college.”

Alvarez grew up in Yucaipa and graduated from Loma Linda University. She came to the Bay Area to earn her master’s degree in special education from Notre Dame de Namur. Once she is finished with her master’s degree she wants to pursue a career as a school administrator.

Alvarez, who lives in Redwood City, said she enjoys the small school atmosphere at Cañada. “Students have the opportunity to know the president by his first name,” she said. “That’s very unusual and very special. As staff and faculty, we are fortunate that we are small enough to interact with students and able to get to know them on a personal level.”

Siew Kuek Joins Cañada as Psychological Services Counselor

Dr. Siew Kuek has joined Cañada as the new psychological services counselor.

Dr. Kuek has been active in private practice on the Peninsula. She grew up in Singapore and moved to the Bay Area 10 years ago. She received her undergraduate degree form the University of Calgary, her Masters in Counseling Psychology from Notre Dame de Namur, and her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the Wright Institute in Berkeley.

“I think I understand what many of our students go through to achieve their education,” she said. “My educational path was unusual and I started very slowly. I’m encouraged by what the college has done to help low-income, first-generation students and ethnic minorities. I am encouraged by the breadth of services available for our students.”

Dr. Kuek is a contract clinician and will work 15 hours per week. Her office hours are: Monday and Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Thursday from 2 to 7 p.m. She can be located in Building 5- Rm 207, just round the corner from the cafeteria.

Professor Harold Borrero Invited to Participate in Oxford Round Table

Professor Harold Borrero, a member of the college’s Health Sciences Department, has been invited to attend the 20th Anniversary Oxford Round Table March 9-14. Borrero in included in a group of 35 scholars from around the world that will address the topic, Obesity: The Affluent Society and the Quest for Treatment. Scholars are invited to make presentations on school and community health programs, exercise regimens for young adults, eating habit psychology, nutrition, and research findings in obesity and poor health.

Katie Townsend-Merino to Attend Early College Summit

Katie Townsend-Merino will attend the Woodrow Wilson Early College High School Network Winter Convening in Princeton, New Jersey the first week in February. She’ll join officials from East Palo Alto Academy and
Stanford University. The Woodrow Wilson Early College High School Network is paying for Townsend-Merino to attend.

Editor's Note: If you have ideas for the Faces of Cañada section of the online newsletter, please contact Robert Hood at ext. 3340 or by e-mail at hoodr@smccd.edu.

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SPOTLIGHT ON STUDENTS

Filipino Immigrant Turns Work Ethic Into Acceptance at Cornell

Froilan Malit used the work ethic instilled in him by his grandparents to succeed at Cañada and Skyline Colleges and gain acceptance to Cornell University where he will study political science

As a six-year-old child, Foilan Malit would wake up at midnight to begin a seven-hour shift picking flowers in the Pampanga Province of the Philippines. Malit has applied that work ethic instilled in him by his grandparents into a successful college career that includes acceptance to Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where he began classes Jan. 21.

“I am the first person in my family to attend college,” said the 19-year-old Malit, who immigrated to the United States two years ago following his graduation from high school in the Philippines. Malit made the decision to leave the Philippines and move to East Menlo Park with his mother in order to pursue a college education. “I don’t know anybody else from the Gaddang Tribe who has attended college in the United States.”

Malit, who transferred approximately 40 credits from Cañada and Skyline college to Cornell, said it was clear, even as a youngster, that he was expected to work. “In the agricultural provinces of the Philippines, if you don’t work, you don’t eat,” he said. “My childhood experience played an important role in my success at Cañada.”

Shortly after entering Cañada College two years ago, Malit approached Chuck Carlson, professor of history, and asked him for some advice on classes and subjects he was curious about. “He was an outstanding student in my African American History class and dove into the material with a great deal of interest and a deep desire to learn every aspect of American culture. As a professor, he is the kind of student you dream about getting – always going above and beyond what’s required of him.”

Elizabeth Terzakis, a reading professor, saw the same qualities in Malit. “Froilan’s enthusiasm and love of learning were apparent from the moment he entered my Reading class, as was his willingness to share his insights and time with others,” she said. “He added a level of energy and seriousness to the classes he took with me that helped everyone involved to get the most out of their time.”

Malit takes that same enthusiasm to Cornell where he’s going to study political science, economics and philosophy with an eye towards law school. “I want to go to Harvard, Yale or Oxford for law. I would like to earn my law degree in order to help contribute to the future economic development of my country.”

While Malit said he’s excited about the move, he said he does have some reservations about the cost of attending Cornell (approximately $50,000 a year for room and board). “My parents can’t help me financially. I’m looking at scholarships and prepared to take out student loans.”

There is one other issue about moving to Ithaca, New York in January. “I’ve never seen snow,” he said. “I’ve never lived in a cold climate so I’ll need to adjust.”

That hasn’t been a problem so far in his life.

ASCC Schedules Event for Evening Students

Evening students will have an opportunity to learn about student services thanks to a special event being organized by ASCC. The ASCC Evening Event will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Feb. 19-20 in the college cafeteria. The event will be broken up into half-hour sessions so that professors can bring their classes to a small portion of the event. The goal is for evening students to gain a better understanding about the services the college offers and to raise awareness of ASCC. For more information, contact Anahi Chavez at chaveza@smccd.edu.

ASCC Faculty & Staff Meet and Greet Reception Set for Feb. 13

Staff and faculty are invited to meet with ASCC leaders at the ASCC Faculty & Staff Meet and Greet Reception Feb. 13 from 1:30 to 3 p.m. in Building 3, Room 142. The event will include fun and interactive activities, a lunch buffet, and conversation. The objective is to provide the ASCC with an opportunity to meet new and returning staff and faculty; share with the Cañada community their goals and activities for the upcoming year; and learn more about the departments, programs, and the faculty and staff responsible for these programs. If you plan to attend, please contact Aja Bulter by Feb. 11.

Voter Registration Drive Helps Register 115 Students

The Political Awareness Club successfully registered 115 students as part of its annual voter registration drive. PAC teamed up with members of Phi Theta Kappa to organize the voter registration event. A voter education event is being organized for Monday, Feb. 5 to help students learn more about the candidates and issues on the primary ballot.

Editor's Note: If you have an idea for a student feature, contact Robert Hood at ext. 3340.

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Please see the EVENTS CALENDAR for the latest event listings.

Editor's Note: If you would like to submit an event to the Cañada Calendar of Events please contact Debbie Joy at joyd@smccd.edu.