Reporting is hard enough without a Covid-19 getting in the way. But despite the challenges of living through a global pandemic, 2020-2021 brought many accolades for The Skyline View and its staff.

In the fall 2020 semester, The Skyline View staff was awarded a prestigious nationwide online pacemaker award from the Associated Collegiate Press for its website, www.theskylineview.com.

The team also won several awards for Journalism Association of Community Colleges NorCal Regional Contest in November 2020, including a general excellence award for online journalism, amongst many individual awards.

During spring 2021, The Skyline View took a second-place win in editorial writing in the Associated Collegiate Press Clips and Clicks competition, the only two-year college to win in this category.

In March, The Skyline View won general excellence for its online site from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges at the Associated Collegiate Press Spring National College Media Convention. Staff also took home several awards in both the mail-in categories and the on-the-spot competitions at the virtual event.

Throughout the year, the staff was honored 17 times with stories that made it to www.bestofsno.com, a recognition program for School Newspapers Online, which hosts the websites of hundreds of high school and college newspapers across the country. Only 10% of stories that are submitted to this program are awarded Best of SNO delineation.

And to finish off the year, staff was also recognized in the California News Publisher Association in the campus two-year college division with a third place for print journalism and a fifth place for online journalism.

Article by Nancy Kaplan-Biegel

The deadline for the Fall 2021 Global Virtual Team Internship Program has been extended! Students can apply here by Thursday, June 3, 2021 to be considered for the Fall Global Virtual Team Internship Program and its accompanying scholarship.

 

Students can intern internationally from home to complete a team project for a company in Australia, Canada, England, India, Japan, South Africa, or the U.S. (New York or San Francisco). Team internships run from September 13 – December 3, 2021.

 

What’s the benefit of participating in a global team-based internship online? The world of work is changing. Gain exposure to and proficiency within a remote workplace, experience working with a global team, expand your knowledge of an industry, further your understanding of global culture, and make international connections. Exact internships are determined through a placement process, but students may be matched with companies in various industries, including Business and Economics, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Marketing and PR, Policy and Government, Public Health and Education, Sustainability and Environment, Technology, and more.

 

To learn more, please visit the Fall 2021 Global Virtual Internship page or view the recording from our information meeting earlier this month. Check out this past Skyline Shines article to read one student’s global virtual internship story.

 

Article by Stephanie Wells

The CIPHER Hip Hop Learning Community hosted their Virtual Graduation and Scholarship Recognition Celebration last Thursday, May 20.  Despite the numerous challenges they faced this past year, our CIPHER student persisted and leaned into their strengths to complete their educational goals. Inspired by J Cole’s new album titled, “The Offseason”, their hard work often goes unnoticed; however, in the end, they were able to demonstrate that through hard work and their connectedness to the CIPHER Hip Hop Learning Community, they can achieve anything.  Many of our students are transferring to the University of Hawaii-Manoa, University of Oregon, UC Berkeley, SJSU, and SFSU to name a few.

 

We were blessed by a set of speakers throughout the evening starting with the Vice President of Student Services, Dr. Newin Orante, who reminded us that our presence in educational institutions is a form of protest and a process of reclamation.  To serve as our keynote speaker, we were privileged to have one of our former Skyline College students and Rock The School Bells Scholarship recipient in 2011, Kenny Foster, to share some words about his journey through education and acknowledging the importance of knowing where you came from.  We were also moved by our CIPHER Graduate Speaker, Nhikkie Sagum, who shared her experiences in CIPHER and how she wanted to give back by helping others in her future profession.  Lastly, Professor Sol McCarthy, a recent recipient of the Meyer Teaching Award, blessed the graduating class with inspirational wisdom for them to take with them in their next chapters in life.

 

The program also included an opportunity for all graduates and transfer students to share about their experiences, their next steps, as well as advice for prospective and current CIPHER students.  This would not be an official CIPHER event without the vibrant energy and music by our students.  One of our CIPHER graduates and transfer students, Jose Rodriguez, provided us with the musical beats to keep the energy live throughout the event.  We are also fortunate to have one of our former CIPHER graduates, Keane Nishikido, perform a spoken word piece as a message directed to our new graduates and transfer students.

 

It was certainly an evening filled with energy, vibrant energy, hope, and excitement.  This event would not be possible without the support of many people who helped behind the scenes.  Thank you to Dean Russell Waldon, Michelle Amaral, Lauren Ford, Marisa Thigpen, and Jackie Flores for their support in the financial processes.  Huge gratitude to the CIPHER faculty team – Janice Sapigao, Soledad McCarthy, Dr. Rod Daus-Magbual, Kim Davalos, and Grace Beltran for helping with the coordination of the event.  Thank you to all of the administrators, counselors, faculty and allies for their presence in our space – President Moreno, VPSS Newin Orante, VPI Jennifer Taylor Mendoza, VPAS Eliosa Briones, Dean Michael Kane, Dean Andrea Vizenor, Board of Trustee member Maurice Goodman, Martina Goodman, Danielle Powell, Pcyeta Stroud, Josh Kizler, Melanie Espinueva-Aure, Mandy Lucas, Alejandra Tovar, and many others.  Your presence means a lot to our students, serving as a reminder that our Skyline College community genuinely care for our students.

 

For more information about the CIPHER Hip Hop Learning Community, you can email Nate Nevado at nevadon@smccd.edu.

 

Article by Nate Nevado

Photos by Kim Davalos

The online chat room was already buzzing when Dean of Social Science & Creative Arts, Danni Redding Lapuz, and Vice President of Instruction, Jennifer Taylor-Mendoza, welcomed attendees to the 1^st Annual Stories of Transformation Film Festival on Thursday, April 29^th. The evening’s topic, Vital Voices: Transformative Stories of Middle Eastern Women, was uniquely relevant, and the organizers and participants were ready to spotlight the strength and spirit of a group and individuals who had experienced their own transformative journeys.

 

Funded through the generosity of the San Mateo Community College District EEOC Diversity Project Grant. The “Stories of Transformation” Film Festival provides a forum to celebrate through film our Skyline College community’s rich cultural diversity as well as our district’s diverse student enrollment and discuss important issues of diversity, equity and inclusion that promote a shared humanity.

 

To import the Stories of Transformation module into Canvas, search for Skyline Stories of Transformation Film Festival or Pia Walawalkar in Canvas Commons. Faculty who prefer to provide direct links to films can find the links to the Films in Panopto on the Canvas page along with a link to the panel discussion. Library resources on the two films and on related topics can be found at:  https://guides.skylinecollege.edu/sotff/home

 

The organizing team behind the film festival are excited to share stories that reflect the ideas of discovery, innovation, and change that are integral to stories of transformation. All members of the Skyline College and greater district community are welcome to email organizing team members with any questions:

 

Tamara Perkins                               Film Instructor/Filmmaker

Danni Redding Lapuz                     Dean, Social Science & Creative Arts

Pia Walawalkar                               Associate Professor, Outreach and Equity Librarian

Chris Woo                                          Program Services Coordinator, SS/CA

Clair Yeo-Sugajski                           Interim Program Services Coordinator, International Student Program

 

Event attendance and participation spanned the district with 169 registered faculty, staff, and student attendees from all three district campuses as well as community members. The panel of all women included a renowned San Francisco Film Editor, the President of the CSM Muslim Student Association, Editor-in-Chief of Skyline View, an instructor from SVIEP the districtwide Intensive English Program, and Skyline College faculty in art and film.

 

The Films

 

Event Emcee Clair Yeo-Sugajski introduced the highly anticipated first film which offers a unique portrait of Judge Kholoud—the first female Shari’a Court Judge in the Palestinian territories. Depicting her brave journey as a lawyer and her tireless fight for justice for women, THE JUDGE presents an unfolding vérité legal drama, with rare insight into both Islamic law and gendered justice. In the process, the film illuminates some of the universal conflicts in the domestic life of Palestine.

 

Judge Kholoud’s statement about the origin of the idea to become a judge, “I should throw a rock to stir these stagnant waters”, resonated with attendees.

 

WE ARE NOT PRINCESSES is a documentary film about the incredible strength and spirit of four Syrian women living as refugees in Beirut as they come together to tell their stories of love, loss, pain, and hope through the ancient Greek play, Antigone. One attendee expressed “it’s just uncanny how well Antigone paired with their (the cast members) experience.”

 

The play is not included in the film as some cast members were restricted from appearing on camera. Animated sequences are used instead to represent these cast member’s stories and attendees noticed that the “animation has patterns and colors reminiscent of the (centuries old Palestinian) tatreez embroidery.”

 

The Filmmakers

 

Organizers were thrilled to have Sara Maamouri, Co-Producer and Editor of both films at both the event panel discussion and filmmaker reception. Sara is an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker and editor who has explored a diverse range of topics for over 20 years. Her work touches on social, educational, and political issues. Her most recent films include We Are Not Princesses (2018) and the Peabody Award-winning film The Judge (2017). A multilingual Tunisian, Sara brings cultural sensitivity to her editing, production, and story development, creating impact-focused narratives to attract and engage rapidly evolving audiences.

 

Skyline College Film Instructor Tamara Perkins is an award-winning filmmaker and changemaker focused on documentaries that inspire transformative change through dialogue, healing and advocacy. Tamara’s film Life After Life (2018) began in her yoga class inside San Quentin State Prison when the men asked her to tell their story. Her upcoming films, Clarissa’s Battle and Rebound, are each similarly inspired by a personal connection to the subject matter.

 

As the panel moderator Tamara showed her expertise in documentary film, as she deftly directed panelists through a variety of questions and topics.

 

The Panelists

 

The amazingly articulate Umaima Ejaz is a Skyline College student and Editor-in-Chief, Skyline View whose “brilliant star” shined at the event. Umaima shared during the panel, “I think these films (The Judge and We Are Not Princesses) are so important. Highlighting the success of women and amplifying our voices”; and made even more impactful by the fact that they were directed and edited by women.

 

Hajer Mkawer is a student at College of San Mateo and President of CSM Muslim Student Association. Hajer took on the challenging topic of how to separate conservative traditional Muslim culture from Islamic religious values and the ignorance that exists around this subject. Her scholarship and critical thinking impressed attendees who said “Thanks for educating us, Hajer!”

 

Mahsa Tavakkoli, an ESL instructor for the Silicon Valley Intensive English Program (SVIEP), was born and raised in Iran, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in English-Farsi translation and a Master’s degree in TEFL. She’s enjoyed teaching language learners of all skills and backgrounds for 14 years.

Mahsa reminded everyone during the panel that “feminism or women’s rights are not an attack on men, we are all living on this earth . . . Women’s Rights are Human Rights” and connected the festival films to the importance of communication, education, and creating understanding.

 

Kathy Zarur, PhD, Associate Professor Art History at Skyline College, is an educator, curator, and conference organizer in the San Francisco Bay Area. Kathy’s curatorial work centers on place as both a lived and imagined subject to consider themes such as belonging, exile, landscape, and mutual care in collectivity.

During The Judge, Dr. Z pointed out that individuals could not “get past the checkpoints, so their case was dropped”, leading chat participants to make connections to voter suppression and red lining in the U.S.  Later during the panel, Dr. Z described how the roads dividing Palestine create the equivalent of the “Bantustans in South Africa.”

 

Sara Maamouri ended the panel by sharing the experience of traveling the world with both of these important films, reinforcing the mission of Stories of Transformation to share transformational stories from around the world. Attendees ended with a litany of thanks to the panelists including…

 

“Sara, Umaima, Kathy, Tamara, Mahsa, and Hajer…thank you for this wonderful conversation and for debunking all the stereotypes!”

Watch the panel discussion. View information about our panelists.

 

Want More Film?

 

Checkout these Film course offerings for summer and fall 2021.

 

Summer @ Skyline College

FILM 440 – Film Study and Appreciation

 

Fall @ Skyline College

FILM 100 – Introduction to Film

 

New this Summer @ CSM, Coming Soon to Skyline College

FILM 123 – Documentary Film: Studies & Practice

 

Library Films on Kanopy – https://skylinecollege.kanopy.com/

 

Article by Chris Burwell-Woo

In Fall 2020, five students in the English 103: Applied English Skills in Cultural Production course, wrote an 80-page original play for the 16^th annual Pilipino Cultural Night. Princess Annielyn Miles Basilio, Caitlin Collantes, Nicholas Escobar, Asa Mobley, and Jamil Pidlaoan worked together to create A Mother’s Love, a coming-of-age story about a Filipina high school student reluctantly sent home to the Philippines to learn about herself, her culture, and the importance of family. Mel Altre, Abigail Aquino, and Omar Dweik joined the cast in Spring 2021.

 

While the last 14 shows were performed onstage over the years (last year’s show was made into a podcast), this year’s production was completed via Zoom under the direction of instructor Liza Erpelo, with assistance from Alex de Leon, dance assistant for Barangay Dance Company, and Joel Jayce Capistrano, U-Jam Fitness and Zumba instructor and hip hop choreographer.

 

The video for this 8-student production is currently being edited and will premiere on Zoom on Wednesday, June 16, 2021 at 7 pm PST. More information will be announced soon, including ways to support KLC students via the Friends of Kababayan scholarship fund at https://www.skylinecollege.edu/kababayan/.

 

Follow @skylinekababayan on Instagram or contact Liza Erpelo at erpelol@smccd.edu for more information about this year’s show and how you can get involved in next year’s Pilipino Cultural Night!

by Liza Erpelo

Skyline College Early Childhood Education Department hosted a Graduation Drive-Through Celebration, Monday, May 24^, 2021, from 4:00 p.m.- 5:00 p.m. Kate Williams-Browne, Kristina Brower, Tina Watts, Michelle Amaral, Sujatha Ventkataraman, and Steven Chan cheered on students who drove through the parking lot of the Child Development Lab Center.  The department staff clapped for the students while they honked their horns.  The students were handed a gift bag with a graduation sash.  We congratulate all ECE students on their continued success.

 

Article and photo By Michelle Amaral

The Associated Students of Skyline College (ASSC), the Skyline College Classified Senate, and the Skyline College Academic Senate recognize our diverse family and wish to show support to our many students and colleagues with heritage or community and family ties to the nation of India. India is struggling amid a devastating second wave of COVID-19 as well as the effects of a destructive hurricane. Please consider donating to Save Lives, Save India via the charity Vibha. Any amount will help us reach our $1000 goal, so please give as generously as you are able.  To donate, visit  bit.ly/skylinesaveindia or go to our donation page at https://campaigns.vibha.org/campaigns/vibha-a-ray-of-light/skylinecollege.

Article by Leigh Anne Shaw

Last Friday, the Bay Area Entrepreneur Center of Skyline College held it’s End of Year Student Recognition Event for the spring 2021 cohort of Job Shadow students.  Congratulations to all of our students this semester!  Since the shift to a virtual job shadow, the BAEC has provided opportunities for career exploration and development to over twenty five students and provided support to local organizations and campus departments.  This past spring, our students supported the work of the BAEC, local businesses in San Bruno, Skyline College’s Study Abroad & Exchange Program, and the San Bruno Chamber of Commerce.  After completing this job shadow, our students have access to paid internships, job opportunities and professional and career development resources.  The Internship Job Shadow Program remains committed to supporting our students’ career and educational goals, regardless of the modality and will continue offering a virtual component to the program.  Application deadline for our summer 2021 Virtual Job Shadow is Thursday, June 17^th.

For more information on the Internship Job Shadow Program please contact baec@smccd.edu.

Article by Pcyeta Stroud

Image by Olivia Vialau

On May 27, 2021 San Bruno business owners gathered in a virtual space, to talk about how the Bay Area Entrepreneur Center of Skyline College has impacted their business during these challenging and changing times.  They shared how the Micro Grants, a Small Business Recovery & Assistance Program (SBRAP) initiative, has supported their recovery and rebound from the restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Last year Micro Grants provided 16 struggling businesses with coaching, resources and over $4,000 each in funding, to keep them afloat.  One of the most impactful outcomes of these micro grants has been the new relationships created among the community of San Bruno businesses.  Because of this program, and the support it continues to receive, local business owners are in a stronger position to weather the challenges.  The Micro Grants initiative is in its second round of programming, applications are due Monday, May 31^st, click here to apply or share: http://bit.ly/SBRAPgrant7.

 

The BAEC is here to support all businesses, regardless of location, with resources, coaching, workshops, business tools and information on funding opportunities.  Visit our BAEC YouTube channel to see videos of tutorials and workshops on many business topics.  Connect with us here: baec@smccd.edu, find us on Instagram here: @skylinebaec.

 

The SBRAP and Micro Grants initiative is made possible with funding from the San Bruno Community Foundation.

 

Article and Image by Gisel Martín and Pcyeta Stroud