Daily Archives: April 22, 2022

President’s Breakfast Back in Person!

Skyline College hosted its 21st Annual President’s Breakfast on Thursday, April 14, 2022 in the beautiful Farallon Room in Building 12, marking the first time the event has been held on campus. Approximately 175 guests were welcomed to campus from across northern San Mateo County, including representatives from national, state and local government; the San Mateo Community College Board of Trustees; our sister colleges and fellow educators; and the local business community.

 

This year’s Breakfast raised over $94,000 to support students through the Promise Scholars Program. In addition to providing student scholarships, these funds continue to support the innovative projects and initiatives of the President’s Innovation Fund – a mini-grant process that allows faculty and staff to launch creative and effective approaches to achieving Skyline College’s mission, vision and values. These projects continue to shape the landscape of Skyline College.

 

A live student performance of the song “Haven’t We Met” by Ruth Batchelor, arranged by Rosana Eckert, featuring soloist Amy Spencer, was performed by the Skyline College Vocal Jazz Ensemble. Attendees then watched a short film highlighting the great work accomplished by several of the President’s Innovation Fund recipients – work that is a direct result of fundraising from the breakfast.
This year’s student speaker, Promise Scholar Patricia Mae Sumang, spoke about the benefits of the Promise Scholars Program and how it has transformed her Skyline College experience. Speaking to a crowd of over 150 people in the Farallon Room at Skyline College, Patricia said the following: “I know there are so many students who have similar stories to me. The challenges we face are tough. But for so many of us Promise Scholars, this program has allowed us to meet those challenges head on and has provided us the tools to take charge of our lives.” The moving address underscored why the Promise Scholars Program is such a critical initiative to ensure that every student can attend college and graduate successfully.
Article by Cherie Colin & Connor Fitzpatrick | Photos by Mia Coo & Paul Bridenbaugh

Transfer College Hour

Thank you to the entire Skyline College community that supported the Transfer College Hour. We welcomed over 75 students to the Transfer tabling resource fair on April 20, 2022. Students had the opportunity to engage with admission professionals from universities and colleges and to win giveaways, play games, enjoy refreshments, and listen to music in the Fireside Dining Room. University admissions staff provided Skyline College positive comments on our first in-person fair since the 2019 academic year. Students gained information that will help them explore, plan, define, and achieve their transfer pathways.

We are grateful for the professors who collaborated and walked their class to the event, and to our instructors who helped spread the word in classrooms. We are thankful to ASSC, Media Services, Bookstore, Public Safety, Facilities Team, and all not mentioned, that helped put this event together. In addition, thank event planning team, Jackie Flores, Saul Milan, Dr. Nate Nevado, Joseph Jaballa, and Dr. Luis Escobar. We are incredibly thankful to our wonderful student employees for their event planning: Amal, Fatima, Robert, and Rocio.

Save the Date for Transfer Day and Alma Mater Day on Tuesday, October 11, 2022!

Article by Ernesto Hernandez

STEM Division’s Investment in Earth Day 

Today, April 22, 2022 is Earth Day. In honor of this year’s theme “Invest in our Planet,” the STEM Division hosted a series of events this week.

 

Science in Action kicked off this week’s Earth Day celebration on Tuesday, April 19th, through a film screening and discussion, facilitated by Dr. Susanne Schubert. Twenty-five students and participants engaged in conversation surrounding the importance of water quality and what we can do in our local communities to ensure equitable access to clean water in our homes.

 

Landon Smith, the Sustainability Coordinator, and members of the District Office’s Sustainability team, Georgia Roden, Evan Christo, and Kimiya Khoshkhou, hosted tables in the Quad on Wednesday, April 20th, during Skyline’s College Hour, which drew over 50 students and staff. The office provided learning opportunities for students to learn more about the community benefits and effectiveness of alternative non-electric or gas powered cookers. This also gave students the opportune moment to ask questions on a variety of sustainability topics and connect directly with members from the district office’s sustainability team.

 

For more information about sustainability on campus, please reach out to Landon Smith (smithlandon@smccd.edu), or visit the website at: https://www.skylinecollege.edu/sustainability/, to learn more about the programs on campus.

 

Article and photo by Kaileiani Louie

Rock The School Bells Hosts 15th Annual Hip Hop Conference

Rock The School Bells (RTSB) hosted their 15th Annual Hip Hop Conference on Friday, April 15, 2022, also known affectionately in the Bay as 415 Day. This year’s theme was created by our students – RTSB 15 HERE. HERE stands for Hip Hop’s Evolution through Resiliency and Energy.

 

The conference is a testimony to Tupac’s poem about roses growing from the concrete. These last two years, students have experienced so much pain and struggle navigating home, work, and school. Despite these challenges, students were able to grow from these experiences – oftentimes evolving in ways that amplified their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. Similar to Hip Hop, they found avenues to explore and elevate their sense of being and how they see themselves in the future. Hip Hop is about the remix and (r)evolution.

 

We were able to host over 200 students from Skyline College’s Middle College, San Francisco International High School, Peninsula High School, Brothers Empowering Brothers (College of San Mateo), Capuchino High School, Presidio Middle School, San Jose City College, and CHALK SF (Community in Harmony Advocating for Learning and Kids). They attended various workshops rooted in the elements of Hip Hop facilitated by Today’s Future Sound, Zulu Gremlin, Orlando ZEPS Molina, Amir Esfahani, and Janice Sapigao. Students were greeted by a powerful welcome address by Dean Russell Waldon that paved the way for keynote speaker and performer, Reza Dregs One Harris. Dregs One shared his experiences on how Hip Hop allowed him to see that he can be his authentic self in every space. As a graduate from the School of Law from UC Davis, he shared his ability to serve his community while still honoring his identity as a Hip Hop artist and muralist.

 

This event could not have happened without the support of our partners at Middle College (Martina Center-Goodman and her amazing team), Student Equity and Support Programs (Allen Ocampo), Student Life and Leadership (Alvin Gubatina and Ryan Samn), Puente (Alex Urbina), CIPHER (Sol McCarthy and Janice Sapigao), Promise Scholars Program (Kim Davalos), Outreach & Counseling (Jeremy Evangelista and Joseph Jaballa), our AV support team (Dave Camicia & Ricardo Flores) and our Counseling Interns (Atheena Haniff-Martinez and Jonathan Justo). Special gratitude to Andrea Vizenor and the Strategic Partnerships and Workforce Development team for helping with lunch; to our photographers for capturing the life and energy of the event – Tia Samn, Charlie Morales, Marisa Thigpen, and Michael Sagum; to all of our Skyline College Leadership Team especially Dean Russell Waldon and Vice President of Student Services Newin Orante for seeing us and connecting with students; lastly, to all of the student volunteers from ASSC, Outreach, and the Learning Communities who showed up and showed out. Thank you for welcoming our attendees with open arms and energy. You all truly make Skyline shine!

 

The pandemic shook us like loud Hip Hop classics reverberating from speakers. Hip Hop made us feel again. It continues to remind us who we are and who we can still become. This conference is about recognizing and lifting up students. It is a testament to the world that they are still HERE; that RTSB 15 HERE.

 

Next year, Hip Hop will be celebrating its 50th Anniversary. If you are interested in getting involved with Rock The School Bells in 2023 and/or would like to learn more about RTSB/CIPHER, you can contact Dr. Nate Nevado at nevadon@smccd.edu.

 

Written by Nate Nevado | Photos by Marisa Thigpen, Charlie Morales, Tia Samn, & Michael Sagum