Thanks to a recent survey of students, The Learning Center will be open for extended hours beginning Monday, March 20.

The hours are as follows;

• Monday – Thursday: 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 Midnight
• Friday: 8:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Students made it clear that they would welcome study spaces on campus that stayed open later. The expansion of The Learning Center’s hours will allow students to use valuable educational resources and dedicated study spaces well into the evening. The move will also help to accommodate Skyline College’s students who take primary evening classes.

By opening up a campus resource like The Learning Center later into the evening, Skyline College aims to increase access and equity for all students.

Article by Connor Fitzpatrick

On Wednesday, March 8, a group of nine Skyline College veterans and supporters travelled to Sacramento to meet with state legislators to petition for categorized funding at California Community Colleges. The event was sponsored by the Skyline College Student Veterans of America (SVA), and joined a larger effort of over 250 advocates as part of Operation Veteran Center Funding.

The Veterans Resource Center (VRC) at Skyline College is a key component of the success of military-affiliated students, and veterans alike. The services and space that it provides have had such an impact on the students at Skyline College that they felt it was necessary to advocate for VRC’s across the state. While Skyline College is incredibly fortunate to have a VRC and full-time VRC Coordinator, many colleges lack this vital resource. Currently, only 55 of the 113 California Community Colleges have a resource center for veterans, a gap in services that veterans supporters intend to change.

While on Capitol Hill, the Skyline College SVA met with Senator Jerry Hill, Assemblyman David Chiu, Assemblyman Mark Stone, and Senator Marc Levine, who is the sponsor of a bill that would provide state education funding for VRC’s. As the largest delegation from a California Community College, Skyline College Veterans had the chance to share how the VRC at Skyline College has been instrumental in their success as a student. Additionally, the voices of non-veteran advocates were able to explain how the VRC serves as a bridge across the divide between civilian and veteran students, helping to better integrate veterans into their campus community.

The Skyline College Student Veterans of America will remain a strong advocate for veterans resources both on our own campus and at colleges across California, with the dream that all veterans across the state will be given an equal level of support. The goal of funding Veterans Resource Centers at all 113 California Community Colleges is the first on a continuing path of advocacy, service, and success.

Article by Adam Jones, President of the Skyline College Student Veterans of America

On the February 23, 2017, the Chinese Student & Scholar Association (CSSA), International Student Club (ISC), International Student Program (ISP) and Silicon Valley Intensive English Program (SVIEP) hosted the Chinese Lantern Festival celebration at Skyline College. This festival is traditionally celebrated on the fifteenth day of the Chinese lunisolar calendar to mark the final day of the Chinese New Year celebrations.

Professor Hellen Zhang began the program by introducing Dr. Regina Stanback Stroud, President of Skyline College for her welcome speech. The President stressed the importance of international education and cultural diversity, stating the college will remain strong in that belief. The President’s speech was then followed by opening remarks provided by Mr. Zha Liyou, Deputy Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in San Francisco.

It was a colorful festival and the audience enjoyed a profusion of performances organized by the Eastern Art & Dance Group and the CSSA. There were different types of dance performances on the stage such as a Chinese classical dance by Eva and the Chinese fan dance by Dancers Lilian, Angela and Eaine. The sounds of Asia were also in the air from the singing of several artists and the enchanting sound of the Dulcimer and flute by Ms. Peng Lu and Mr. Lu Xian. Towards the end of the 2-hour festival, the audience’s attention was grabbed by a martial arts performance by one of Skyline College’s very own students, Feng Si.

The event went very successful and at the end of the day a few lucky winners walked away with prizes from the draw that took part between performances. They, along with the other members of the audience, were sure to have gone home with smiles on their faces and a little bit of China in their hearts. The event was featured on a local Chinese TV channel (KTSF26): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLWKeVVBwTE

CSSA, ISP, ISC and SVIEP would like to thank all the participants who made the event a success. We will continue to provide cultural programs for the entire Skyline College community. If you are interested in learning more about future programs and events, contact ISP office at skyinternational@smccd.edu or call (650) 738-7021.

Article by Naledi Mthembu & Chikako Walker | Photo by William Nacouzi

Our campus chapter of Phi Theta Kappa has been selected as the Honors Case Study Challenge Award Winner. Beta Theta Omicron has won the Honors Case Study Challenge nine times since the competition began in 2003.

This award is based on research the student leadership and faculty adviser conducted in 2016 and which they wrote up in a series of essays and critical-thinking questions. The chapter will be awarded $500 as well as a plaque and a place of honor in the Parade of Scholars at the 2017 Phi Theta Kappa Convention.

The award-winning submission from Beta Theta Omicron was a writing and research project entitled Natural or Engineered: How Can We Feed the World? Chapter officers, Akayi Thein and Janah May Oclaman, led the research and writing.

 

Article by Dr. Christine Case

 

On Saturday, March 4, the Skyline College Concert Band performed in the 13^th Annual Pacific Western Concert Band Festival in Stockton, CA. The 44-member ensemble of student musicians from Skyline College, ranging in age from 17 to 84, was one of twelve bands participating in the festival. Professor Emeritus Billy Robinson, who taught Skyline College’s bands from 1969 to 2011, now plays as a member of the band. Other bands traveled from southern California, Oregon, and Washington, while adjudicators from collegiate faculties in Utah and Montana provided comments and encouragement. Apart from performing and listening to other bands’ performances, student musicians attended 90-minute elective clinics led by University of the Pacific Conservatory faculty with offerings such as Yoga for Musicians, Recording Studio Basics, Drum Circle for Music Therapy, Campus Tour, Flute of the Bumblebee, Tai Chi for Musicians, and Composition.

The Skyline College Concert Band will perform in the Skyline College Theater on Sunday, March 19, at 3:00 p.m., presenting “Nordic Tracks” (music of Scandinavia), including the Grieg Piano Concerto with guest artist Benjamin Warsaw and a medley of selections from Disney’s Frozen. Also on the program, Music Department faculty members Zachary Bruno, Michelle Hawkins, and Jude Navari will lead student musicians of the Concert Band, Vocal Jazz Ensemble, and Concert Choir, along with members of choirs from Oceana High School, College of San Mateo, and Notre Dame de Namur University. In total, more than 100 students will perform for this collaborative event.

Article by Zack Bruno

 

Beta Theta Omicron president Mei Ling (Karen) Lai received the Distinguished Chapter Officer award for her work leading the chapter to five-star status. Chapter Officers are nominated by their chapters and are chosen by a panel of judges based on demonstration of leadership, promotion of Honors in Action, and enthusiasm for the Phi Theta Kappa Hallmarks (Scholarship, Leadership, Service and Fellowship).

Chapter officer Janah May Oclaman received the Regional Distinguished Scholar award. This award is based on GPA, breadth of coursework, having no Ws, and an essay on the Honors Study Topic: “How the World Works.” Janah has a 4.0. Her essay was on Regenerative Medicine.

Article by Dr. Christine Case

On Friday, February 24, 2017 the Transfer Center hosted the annual Discover UC Davis Tour and it was a very successful event! Over 25 students participated in the tour. In addition to a campus tour, students attended a general admissions session and workshops on financial aid, internships, disciplines and majors, and transfer tips. They also learned about scholarships, pre-health major preparation, undergraduate research, education abroad, positioning yourself for a career in law, business, and education, and matching careers to majors. Finally, an engaging panel of current UCD Transfer Opportunity Program (TOP) students and alumni answered questions and shared their insights and experiences into the transfer student experience.

For many students this was the first time they had traveled to UCD and for some it was the school they had applied to for the Fall 2017 semester. Students responded to the overwhelming support UC Davis provides Transfer Students, some noticing the support and passion UC Davis has for their students. Many students discovered that there were many options and resources available to them at UC Davis. One student noted, “UC Davis is amazing. I wish more students could come to see how much they have to offer transfer students…they even offer student research opportunities.”

This tour is offered exclusively to campuses that partner with the UC Davis through the Transfer Opportunity Program. The attentiveness that UC Davis faculty and staff give to Skyline College students is exceptional. Many thanks to UC Davis for sponsoring the tour and to the faculty and staff at TRIO, that helped advertise, support and partnered with the Transfer Center for the event. Through this partnership, students have bi-weekly in-person access to our UC Davis Representative, Mayra Escobar where they can meet with her on our campus for more information and advising on transfer to UC Davis. UC Davis continues to be the most popular UC campus for Skyline College students – with 173 students applying for the Fall 2017, over 75% of all students who applied to a UC campus, applied to UC Davis.

Campus tours have been identified as a critical part to transfer by the Skyline College Transfer Initiative and we are looking forward to the two other tours coming up this semester. We will be visiting Sacramento State University on Friday, April 14 and University of California, Berkeley on Friday, April 21. Demand has been very high for all three tours and we are excited to be able to offer these opportunities to our students.

Article by Lucy Jovel | Photo by Michael Stokes

Once a semester the Automotive Technology department holds a hiring day for their students.  This year Julia Johnson’s internship class prepared thirty two students for speed dating interview style with over thirty automotive-related bay area employers. Just under half of the employers represented automotive manufacture dealers with the remaining employers being split evenly between independent repair shops and mass merchandisers.

Once again it was a huge success that would not have been possible without the effort, dedication and communication of automotive professor Julia Johnson. Before hiring day the students are taught employment soft skills, resume writing and ethics. Each student is put through multiple mock interviews with the assistance of additional Skyline College staff members. Program coordinator Tom Broxholm stated, “This is the largest hiring day we have ever had and I’m very excited for the students and the employers.”

Article and Photos by Tom Broxholm

On Thursday, March 9, students in Jennifer Merrill’s psychology courses took a trip to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. A tour was created specifically for the visit and emphasized the intersection of psychology and art.

While viewing the Andy Warhol exhibit the docent, Sandy Hunt, explained how Warhol’s early life experiences influenced and shaped his art. Students also examined how Warhol presented symptoms of hoarding disorder, a topic discussed in Abnormal Psychology. Students toured the works of Chuck Close, an artist who creates huge portraits, yet is face-blind. This condition, known as prosopagnosia, is discussed in General Psychology and Psychobiology. Lastly, students visited the Diane Arbus exhibit, a photographer whose images created controversy by focusing on marginalized and stigmatized populations, topics that are discussed in Abnormal Psychology.

This trip afforded students a wonderful opportunity to apply concepts discussed in psychology courses to an entirely different discipline. We felt honored that SF MOMA provided us with such an amazing learning experience.

Article by Jennifer Merrill

The Skyline College Journalism Department has had a busy month. First, roughly 20 students from the Skyline College Journalism Club toured the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday, March 3. They had the chance to visit the newsroom and sit in on an editorial meeting, where they saw the editors debate what should be the lead story in the next day’s print edition. When the meeting was over, they had a special Q&A with columnist Otis R. Taylor, Jr. who covers diversity and equality in the East Bay.

Later that weekend, The Skyline View took “Best of Show 2^nd Place Website for a Small College” at the Associated Collegiate Press Midwinter Conference held in San Francisco. Skyline College Journalism students attended workshops on design, job preparation, digital storytelling, media literacy and more, with Professor Nancy Kaplan-Biegel presenting a workshop on data journalism. They also heard keynote speaker Kurt Eichenwald of Vanity Fair, Newsweek and more evaluate coverage of Donald Trump.

Article by Nancy Kaplan-Biegel