The International Student Program (ISP), the Chinese Student & Scholar Association, and the Skyline College Asian Studies Center hosted the Chinese Lantern Festival celebration at Skyline College on February 20, 2019 at the Fireside Dining Room. 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 Hui Pate opened the program by welcoming everyone to the event. The event then began in earnest with Rachel Zhang captivating the audience with a story about the history of Chinese New Year and why it is celebrated. She then invited the audience to try out the event’s activities.

Students and staff alike tested their chopsticks and Chinese trivia skills by trying to pick up a ping pong ball from a bowl of water. Each ping pong ball has a number that corresponded to a question. Correct answers were rewarded with a choice of traditional Chinese treats such as milk candy, rice crackers or sachima (a Chinese pastry). Students were also shown how to do traditional Chinese papercutting (jiǎnzhǐ  剪纸) and Chinese calligraphy (shūfǎ 书法). The highlight of the event was a tasting of yuánxiāo (元宵) or tāngyuán (汤圆), a traditional Chinese dessert made of sticky rice with a sweet paste filling of peanuts or sesame. It is typically eaten with family members as it represents the family coming together.

The event was a great success with many attendees leaving with traditional Chinese treats, their own jiǎnzhǐ or shūfǎ and new knowledge of the Chinese culture.

Article & Photo by Clair Yeo-Sugajski

On Friday night, February 22, 2019, the Skyline College Women’s Basketball Team defeated the San Jose City College Jaguars by a score of 64-47. This victory was notable for several reasons. One, it was the 20th victory of the season by the team (20-8) making them only the second women’s basketball team in Skyline College history to amass 20 or more wins. The last team to accomplish that was the 2008-2009 team that finished at 24-7. Second, the win gave Skyline College a share of second place in the Coast Conference and qualified them for the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) Women’s Basketball playoffs.

Skyline College received the 11th seed and will be playing the Sierra College Wolverines in Rocklin on Friday, March 1, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $12 for adults at $8 for students and can be purchased only at the Sierra College gym. For information about and directions to Sierra College, please view their athletics website.

With the victory on Friday, Skyline College Head Coach, Chris Watters, earned his hundredth career victory.  Coach Watters, who is an adjunct faculty member, has been at Skyline College for 12 years, seven years as the Head Coach, and has a career record of 100-91. This marks the fifth time in seven years that his team has qualified for the playoffs.

Article by Joseph Morello

The Skyline College Strategic Planning and Allocation of Resources Committee (SPARC) met on Thursday, February 14, 2019.

Judy Hutchinson briefed on the District Committee on Budget and Finance (DCBF) monthly meeting held on January 22, 2019. Highlights include review of the Governor’s State Budget Proposal for 2019-2020 and State Apportionment Attendance Report (CCFS-320) for First Period (July – December 2018). Click here to see the Governor’s Budget proposal for details.

For fiscal year 2018-2019, the District is projecting annual Full Time Equivalent Student (FTES) enrollment at 15,188, compared to 15,722 FTES for fiscal year 2017-2018. The committee also received an update from Paul Cassidy, Manager of Finance and Operations, on the FTES and instructional costs. Of note, the FTES has dropped more than 15% over the last six years.

Eloisa Briones, Vice President of Administrative Services, gave an overview of District Innovation Funds program which began in fiscal year 2015-2016. The District, through the Chancellor’s Cabinet, has allocated funds for projects that align with their strategic planning goals as well as Skyline College’s. These funds are ongoing. SPARC will be involved with reviewing and prioritizing proposals submitted by Skyline College and will make a recommendation to the President, who will evaluate and develop the  recommendation to the Chancellor’s Cabinet.

SPARC will be conducting 10 CPRs this spring on March 28, 2019 and April 11, 2019. Karen Wong, Coordinator of Institutional Effectiveness and Zahra Mojtahedi, Planning and Research Analyst, continued training with the committee on the Comprehensive Program Review (CPR) process.

For further information and resources, please see the Program Review website skylinecollege.edu/programreview.

Next meeting is Thursday, February 28, 2019 from 2:10 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in Building 6, Room 6-203.

Article by Judy Hutchinson