The Access, Relevance, Community (ARC) Transfer Pathways Initiative, funded by a cooperative Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI) grant with San Francisco State University and our sister campuses, College of San Mateo and Cañada College, helps Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and low-income students gain access to higher education. Now, in its third year of the grant, at Skyline College, ARCommunity Skyline peer mentors guide students in transferring and reaching their goals in higher education and outside of the educational environment. For the past two years, ARCommunity has worked primarily alongside the Kababayan Learning Community (KLC) and is now building with the new Pacific Islander student organization, Skyline Fale Marama Club.
Last week, ARCommunity coordinated with the KLC and the Kapatiran Seminar at Westmoor High School for “Discover Kababayan” at Skyline College. Kapatiran Seminar is a dual enrollment, weekly class that allows high school students to explore the Filipinx and Fil-Am community while learning about their cultural heritage. Taught by KLC counselor Jonathan Justo, it is open to all, promoting diversity and inclusivity. Students engage with themes of identity and culture while also developing skills for college success. In past classes, former Kapatiran students and ARCommunity peer mentors have assisted with the seminar, and this year, ARCommunity peer mentors Jenna Tolentino and Cem Quinto have been working with the cohort. Kapatiran Seminar began at Westmoor High School in 2015 and was also at South San Francisco High School for several years. It hopes to expand to Jefferson High School in the future.
On November 13, 2024, this year’s Kapatiran Seminar students came to Skyline College to shadow the current KLC cohort and experience a day as a Skyline College student. The Kapatiran and KLC students, as well as the ARCommunity peer mentors, participated in the English 105 and Counseling 100 classes with Dr. Liza Erpelo and Jonathan Justo, then after lunch, went on a scavenger hunt around Skyline College and took a campus tour to learn more about Promise Scholars, Middle College, and SparkPoint. The day ended with the ARCommunity peer mentors and KLC mentees having had an opportunity to strengthen their relationships and the Kapatiran Seminar students getting excited to return to campus next semester to participate in Rock the School Bells and Pilipino Cultural Night at Skyline College.
Article by: Trinity Velasco-Frias and Jenna Tolentino, with assistance from Dr. Liza Erpelo, ARCommunity Skyline Faculty Director
Photos by: ARCommunity Skyline