This week began with Pi Day. Pi Day (March 14) celebrates the mathematical constant Pi, which is an irrational, transcendent, and never-ending ratio that helps describe circles of all sizes. Here is to hoping you got a slice of pie this week in honor of the day. Speaking of math and science, I have some great news for Palomar. The National Science Foundation has awarded Palomar a special grant. This grant forms a partnership between Southwestern College and Palomar College to provide online drone operation classes to the Pacific Island States (American Samoa Community College, College of Marshall Islands, College of Micronesia, Northern Marianas College, and Palau Community College) as well as to local high school students. Palomar’s main role in the grant is to run summer drone camps (virtual or in-person) for high school students in the local region as well as students in the Pacific Islands. This is an exciting project that will diversify the composition of the drone workforce, as well as ensure diversity, equity, and inclusion in our drone program. Thank you to Dr. Wing Cheung, and Richard Loucks for securing this wonderful opportunity.
Campus Engagement Highlights
On Monday, we had a very special event on campus: Disability & Innovation: A Conversation with Haben Girma. It was an honor to host Haben on our campus, she is both an inspiring speaker and advocate. Haben spoke about the importance of investing in accessibility and inclusivity for disabled people, and how to break down access barriers in education. I learned a lot about how we can make our community more inclusive. I am excited to put the principles she shared with us into action and to consider accessibility in our decision-making. A special thank you to our colleagues in the Disability Resource Center at Palomar and the Student Accessibility Services team at MiraCosta College. I love that a collaboration between our two institutions is what made this event a reality.
On Tuesday, the Governing Board held a special meeting. Our colleagues did an excellent job presenting to the Board. Dean Justin Smiley presented on our Arts, Media and Business Administration Division, Shawna Cohen presented on our district’s compliance officer training, and Adrianne Lee and Jessica Horn prepared an informative presentation on our Veteran’s Resource Center. At this meeting, Tricia Frady was also nominated as Palomar’s Classified Employee of the Year! Tricia is a Business Systems Analyst, and she has done exceptional work in making our websites and online processes simpler and more accessible to students. She has been a part of our team for over twenty years, and we appreciate her dedication, exceptional hard work, and support for the entire institution.
On Wednesday, I met with Director Sherry Titus and the Student Life and Leadership team to plan for our 2022 Commencement Ceremony which we are planning to have in person this year.
On Friday, we had an internal strategies meeting to discuss how to improve enrollment at our Education Centers. Thank you, Dr. Jack Kahn, Tom Medel, Ryan Williams, and Julie Lanthier Bandy for an extremely productive meeting. I am also happy to report that we made significant strides with electronic signage at our Escondido campus over the past few weeks.
This week I also engaged in several hiring interviews. The amount of work that goes into organizing and coordinating all these meetings is extraordinary. I want to take a moment to recognize our dedicated HR recruiting staff. Thank you, Supervisor Monique Dumbrique, Stephanie Ybarra, Celina de la Torre, and Patricia Bravo, for your exceptional work in this area.
I also had the good fortune of meeting with professor Tanessa Sanchez at a local event this week. We had the opportunity to discuss HyFlex teaching at Palomar. HyFlex is a teaching modality that makes class meetings and materials available both online and in-person, allowing the student to choose their preference. Erin Hiro, Barbara Hammons, Molly Faulkner, and Tanessa Sanchez are Palomar’s pioneers of the HyFlex teaching modality. They have successfully implemented, created training, and coached other faculty in this approach that meets the accessibility and equity needs for all students. I love learning about these types of amazing, forward-thinking approaches we are engaging in as an institution.
Speaking of amazing, the Little Shop of Horrors performance was outstanding! This is one of my favorite musicals and seeing it performed so well by our Palomar Performing Arts department was a moment of true Palomar pride. The in-person event was sold out, but there was also a zoom viewing option. I cannot say enough about this incredible event. A special note of appreciation to Director- Kathy Brombacher, Music Director- Ellen Weller, and Co-Director & Choreographer- Valerie Clark.
Community Engagement Highlights
On Tuesday, I attended a webinar hosted by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). The meeting was about the changes in distance education regulations. They discussed ideas on how to address the new distance education regulations including concrete steps to communicate these changes and how to integrate them into policies and professional development.
On Thursday, I had the privilege of providing the keynote address at the EOPS Student Leadership Conference. The theme this year was, “We are EOPS Strong: Rising Through Adversity!” I spoke about my passion and commitment to making higher education more accessible and inclusive. If you’re unfamiliar with EOPS (Extended Opportunity Programs and Services), it is a state-funded program designed to provide counseling, retention, and support services to increase college enrollment for those individuals who have previously not considered college as an option. Our own Palomar EOPS strives to alleviate the educational barriers that preclude many students from college attendance. Then on Friday, I spoke at the EOPS Employee Spring Retreat. I shared my thoughts on adjusting to a new “normal” after COVID and how to engage in self-care as we support our students through these changing times. Thank you, Steven Salter, for the generous invitation to speak and the amazing work you and the EOPS team do to support our Palomar EOPS students.
COVID-19
We hosted our Weekly COVID-19 Return to Campus and Update meeting on Thursday to provide updates and news regarding COVID. To recap, on Wednesday our COVID monitor team held an antigen test distribution event and delivered antigen tests to the sites that requested them. We are currently having vaccine events on campus. Here is a link to our campus’ testing schedule. You can also order free antigen tests from the federal government here. Communications regarding the importance of testing before and after leaving the state/country will be sent out soon. We encourage you to test prior to returning to campus. If you missed the meeting, please watch the recording here. Please note, after Spring Break, the meetings will move from taking place weekly to every other week.
Comet of the Week
The Comet of the Week is Child Development Professor Jenny Fererro. Jenny has been awarded the 2022 Woman of the Year at Palomar College by the Empowered Women’s Alliance. Jenny has contributed outstanding leadership in the college’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Antiracism efforts, and with the Women Empowerment efforts for the region. She is an active member and serves as part of the leadership of the Empowered Women’s Alliance and serves as a regional representative for Palomar College for the San Diego Chapter of the American Association for Women in Community Colleges. Her participation in the pronoun project, campus book clubs, lactation pods, women’s history month celebrations, food drives, pride month, academic senate involvement, and regional and statewide involvement with regards to DEI, Antiracism makes this choice obvious. Congratulations Jenny!
Have a great upcoming week. Go Comets!
For pictures of the various events, follow:
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Instagram: @palomardrstar
