On February 10th, 2023, twenty-five Skyline College students and representatives from the Skyline College Transfer Center traveled to UC Davis to attend Discover UC Davis, a free career-planning and exploration symposium for community college students from participating TOP institutions. Activities included campus tours, student panels, a resource fair, workshops, and seminars tailored to students’ program of interest.
This was the first in-person campus tour since the pandemic, and students were eager to engage and participate as indicated by the excellent turnout. The Transfer Center is sponsoring several other tours this semester, including a first gen focused tour co-sponsored with TRiO at San Jose State University on March 3rd, 2023, and a trip to UC Berkeley for Cal Day on April 22nd.
Please contact the Skyline College Transfer Center at skytc@smccd.edu if you are interested in participating in future events.
On February 10, 2023, the STEM Clubs Boba Social took place at Skyline College’s STEM Center. The event was hosted by Skyline College’s MESA (Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement) program and showcased all the many STEM clubs that Skyline College has to offer.
With over 60 participants, the event was well-attended by both new and familiar faces who enjoyed a variety of sweet boba drinks.
The presentations began with Megan White speaking about the BioMedical Engineering Club’s recent achievements and future plans. During the Fall 2022 semester, the club won the best table award at Skylloween and experimented with electrocardiograms (EKGs) and muscle twitching. This semester, there are open roles for the Secretary and Vice President positions, plans for a robotic hand project, and the club hopes to brainstorm more projects and workshops.
Matthew Dacanay highlighted the Computer Science Club’s productive Fall 2022 semester with events including a guest speaker presentation by Tony Hong, an Arduino workshop, and the completion of a heatmap project. Looking ahead, the club has even more opportunities to develop new skills and learn more about the industry as they have another guest speaker coming up with Frank Schubert – an engineering manager at LYFT – and a Coding Interview Prep Series.
John Michael Rada and Leonardo Calle of the Engineering and Robotics Club (ERC) discussed how they’ve successfully reorganized the club and started working on a Solar Boat project. One of ERC’s upcoming events is to use the Solar Boat to compete in the California Solar Regatta on May 6, 2023, while other future events focus on recreation with a Game Day and a Chess Tournament in the works – to be played across students and faculty.
Paul-Frederik Schubert presented about the nEXO program and their research in collaboration with SLAC National Laboratories in pursuit of neutrinoless double beta decay. In his presentation, he covered upcoming workshops for students regarding soldering and 3D printing. Furthermore, the nEXO group will be partaking in the Expanding Your Horizons (EYH) workshop to increase interest in STEM for middle-school-aged girls and would love to have additional volunteers from the community.
Mayra Lopez-Thibodeaux and Gabe Hapin-Aranda of the Skyline Physics and Astronomy Club (PAC) showcased the many activities that will be held for students. The projects being held will have activities such as creating comets and working with telescopes. If you enjoy star gazing, come join their observation nights. Upcoming events this semester they will have are a Field trip to SLAC on April 20, 2023, and an EYH workshop: Scaling the Solar System. Astro lectures, projects, and space movies will help students gain a deeper understanding of astronomy.
Lasheana Dilian Husni, Chel Myint, Florence Thwe, and Jerry Hnin of the Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) Honor Society highlighted several events from the Fall 2022 semester with the most prominent being the PTK Induction Ceremony, the NV/CA Fall Leadership Conference, a Navigating College Workshop, the Samaritan Toy Drive, and their Speech Contest. In addition to this wide range of activities, a PTK Orientation will soon take place on February 21, 2023, from 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Julia Rogers of the Science and Research Club gave an overview of one of the events they hosted last year which was a guest speaker presentation by Dr. Jing Folsom. Several events for the spring semester were also announced as the club is planning to host an Internship Application Workshop on March 3, 2023, and research exploration workshops in the near future.
Chenran Kang and Mowen Tan of the Skyline Cube Association shared their Fall 2022 highlights as several members learned how to solve a Rubik’s cube, held various cubing competitions, and developed a program to solve a Rubik’s cube. Steps the club wishes to take this semester include hosting competitions across multiple games – like Rubik’s cube, chess, sudoku, and Klotski – as well as teaching members how to cube blindfolded.
Amanda Ratti and Rick Hough of the Skyline Sustainable Cooking and Real Food (SCARF) club shared their Fall 2022 highlights and talked about their delicious vegan chili. SCARF’s cooking events promote healthy, sustainable, and affordable foods.
Florence Thwe of Women in Science and Engineering Represent! (WiSER!) provided some achievements from Fall 2022 such as tabling for the Skylloween event and the LED light workshop in partnership with Kiwanis. This spring semester, WiSER will be hosting a workshop at the Expanding Your Horizons (EYH) conference, volunteering for the STEM Frenzy Festival, and a Fab Lab workshop.
Many of the presenters emphasized that prospective members didn’t need prior experience to join. For those thinking about joining or contacting these clubs, consult the presentation slides shared during the event! And for more information on events from MESA, follow us on Instagram @skyline_mesa.
Please save the date for our annual celebration of March 4th taking place on Friday, March 3rdand start planning activities for the day!
No, we do not get the day off! This is a professional development day to give each of us a chance to pause and focus on our own personal and professional growth – and consider how we are moving forward and “marching forth”!
The day will begin with a recorded address from our President in the morning. The remainder of the day can be designed by you, your supervisor, or your entire unit. It can include job shadowing, team building activities, conversations, check-ins, or other professional development activities within your unit. We want us all to share our aspirations, career goals, and discuss what we are doing to make those dreams real. We spend so much time in service of others and this is our opportunity to take a day to be selfish – focus on you and your future!
This year, we will have t-shirts available for everyone in the college. Pick up your March 4th t-shirt on Friday, March 3, 2023, in the Marketing suite, Building 4, Room 4-329. Happy March 4th!
Featuring exceptional large format photographic portraits by photographer Sam Comen and personal stories of 29 new U.S. citizens, The Newest Americans exhibition encourages us to consider the U.S. immigration process through the eyes of new citizens representing more than 20 origin countries. Interviews and photography were conducted in the moments immediately prior to and following their naturalization ceremonies in February and March of 2017.
The exhibition encourages all of us to actively engage by bringing our own reflections on their citizenship. You can learn more about the photographs and narratives presented both in English and Spanish. This exhibition will remain on view at Skyline College Library (Building 5, 2nd floor) through March 31, 2023. The Library is open Monday through Friday.
Skyline College Library is pleased to be able to host this exhibition through a President’s Innovation Fund (PIF) award. It also forms part of the College’s Critical Global Citizenship Education Project. Please contact Pia Walawalkar, Equity and Outreach Librarian, with any questions walawalkars@smccd.edu
Join us for the Mic DROP! Poetry SLAM!!! event on Monday, 2/27/2023, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. which is open to staff, students, and greater community. Want to perform your poem? Please register with your Google account and upload your written or video poetry. The last day for submissions is Thursday, February 23rd. Encourage your colleagues, students, and community to join the fun. Light refreshments will be provided.
Contact Sherri Wyatt at wyatts@smccd.edu if you have further questions. This event is made possible by the PIF grant for Library Outreach Programs.
In celebration of Black History Month, the library will hold the following displays until February 28, 2023:
Green Book graphic display
Learn about the Green Book directory used by the Black community between 1936 and 1966 as a guide for safer traveling, which inspired the movie Green Book.
all about love book display, featuring works from bell hooks and fellow Black authors.
Located in the foyer, all about love book display is inspired by bell hooks from “Love as the Practice of Freedom”, “… without an ethic of love shaping the directions of your political vision and our radical aspirations, we are often seduced, in one way or the other, into continued allegiance to systems of domination – imperialism, sexism, racism, classism.”
Black Resistance book display
Inside the library, we honor Black authors’ contributions to the literary form. Books and eBooks are displayed in different locations throughout the library for the public to check out. Each selected text explores themes of black resistance throughout a variety of genres.
Skyline College is proud to celebrate and honor Black History Month, a time dedicated to civilization and humanity.
This month began with a kickoff during College Hour on February 1 hosted by the Associated Students of Skyline College (ASSC) and the Black Student Union (BSU), which included such activities as themed trivia questions allowing participants were able to win prizes that included “Black Lives Matter” tote bags and the books Freedom is a Constant Struggle by Angela Y. Davis and Black Girls Rock by Beverly Bond. As part of their fundraiser for the African American Scholar Society Scholarship, the BSU also showcased and sold Black History Month apparel. Following College Hour, Brothers Achieving Milestones (BAM) hosted an open house to welcome new and potential members into the space and share more about the program and its goals.
The second week commenced with a presentation by psychology professor Dr. Tony Jackson on “Dealing with Racial Stress,” which included a background on Black racial trauma, information on the negative effects of stress, and deep breathing exercises to help counteract stress accumulation in our bodies. Watch the presentation here!
On February 7, 2023, New Orleans-style brass band MJ’s Brass Boppers invigorated the campus atmosphere with exhilarating live music on the Quad, awakening spirits and eliciting a shared joy once lost to the pandemic, even if only for an afternoon. Children from the CDLC expressed this joy unabashedly with dance, an example that adults foremost of whom was Skyline College President Melissa Moreno soon followed. The Fireside Dining Room bustled with a vendor fair featuring treats like mochi donuts, homemade banana pudding and more.
As a nod to Black film and entertainment, ASSC & BSU has also scheduled a series of movie screenings throughout the month for the campus to enjoy. On February 2 and 9, The Woman King and Black Panther were shown. Please join us in the Intercultural Center on Thursdays at 3pm for the remaining films Blank Panther II: Wakanda Forever and an old school classic, The Wiz.
Upcoming events include a poetry slam by the Learning Commons, a walkthrough exhibit with BCE (Barb, Cosmo & Esthi), an entrepreneur spotlight and more. Check out the calendar here and the Black History Month Website here.
We’re so excited to announce the scholarship fundraiser has crossed the $1,000 milestone thanks to generous donations from the campus community! We thank the college community for their support in attending these events as well as the amazing work by the various programs on campus to provide culture, knowledge, and healing events to Skyline College.
How may we assist you in landing your dream job? The Career Readiness & Job Placement team is excited to share the following job opportunities with you. Check them out—
How may we assist you in landing your dream job? Whether you’re interested in short- or long-term career planning, the Career Readiness & Job Placement team offers a variety of services and career readiness experiences to assist you with your specific career needs. If you want to work with a Job Placement Coordinator, please fill out this brief welcome form and someone will contact you soon to schedule an appointment!
Expand your network in ways that will lead to your dream job. The Career Readiness & Job Placement team is excited to share the following paid internship opportunities with you. Check them out—
How may we assist you in landing your dream job? Whether you’re interested in short- or long-term career planning, the Career Readiness & Job Placement team offers a variety of services and career readiness experiences to assist you with your specific career needs. If you want to work with a Job Placement Coordinator, please fill out this brief welcome form and someone will contact you soon to schedule an appointment!
On February 4, 2023, SOUNDSCAPE Vocal Jazz Ensemble led by Music Professor Michelle Hawkins, performed at the Columbia College Jazz Festival.
The festival is hosted by Columbia College of Sonora, CA and features high school and college groups from around California.
Skyline College’s SOUNDSCAPE Vocal Jazz Ensemble performed a set and participated in a 30-minute workshop with award-winning master educator Curtis Gaesser. Curtis has over 40 years of teaching experience and his groups have consistently won awards for the past 20 years.
Mr. Gaesser offered wonderful feedback for the group, and specifically expressed how impressed he was with the ensemble’s “commitment to the music, joyful and inviting stage presence, and polished diction.” He even said one of their phrases was, “perfect.”
Our Vocal Jazz Ensemble students enjoyed a wonderful and educational festival experience. SOUNDSCAPE student member Elian Fontanilla shared this about the event, “The talent and love for the music was clear, and you could feel that this community of jazz singers was leaving a lasting impression on each other. SOUNDSCAPE was able to come home with colorful new ideas that are sure to make our future performances even richer.”
The Columbia Jazz Festival is part of the Columbia Jazz Artists Series. In addition to the high school and college groups, festival attendees also enjoyed performances from such renowned professional musicians as:
Vocalist Kenny Washington who has thrilled San Francisco audiences with his soulful interpretations, seemingly limitless range, and rapid-fire scatting ever since making his home in the Bay Area. Washington has also appeared at Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsalis and The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
Paul Contos, performing on saxes and flutes, is a master at combining technical wizardry and musical fluidity.
Bass Player Clint Day, former director of vocal jazz at UC Berkeley, current teacher of jazz piano and jazz history, and founding member of the Mic Gillette Band.
Trombonist Jamie Dubberly who has toured four continents, and over 20 countries. He performed on national and international tours of several Broadway productions, and formed his own band, “Orquesta Dharma”.
Mike Rocha, a three-time Grammy-nominated and globally acclaimed trumpeter and composer, has had a robust recording and performance career in Los Angeles including feature films and TV shows. Mike has played and recorded with notable artists such as Christina Aguilera, Bob Dylan, Gwen Stefani, Panic at the Disco, Lorde, and more . . .
In prior years Soundscape performed at festivals and competitions in such diverse locations as Cuesta College, University of Nevada at Reno, Cabrillo College, and the Apollo Theater and Carnegie Hall in New York City. To see Soundscape Vocal Jazz Ensemble in person plan to attend the Vocal Ensembles Spring Concert at Skyline College on April 30, 2023 –SAVE THE DATE!
Article by Chris Burwell-Woo | Photos by Professor, Michelle Hawkins
Please join us Friday, February 17th as we honor our sophomores who will be playing their final regular-season home game. Many of these players started with us during the pandemic and have persevered to get to this point. Both programs are in position to qualify for the state tournament and would really appreciate the support of the campus community.
The women’s game starts at 5pm, followed by the men’s game at 7pm. Both teams will be honoring their players throughout the night.
