I hope this update finds everyone in good spirits as we head into the new week. Below is a brief recap of my Campus and Community Engagement activities from the previous week.

Campus Engagement

• Attended the on-campus Service Learning Fair where attendees had the opportunity to learn about the many amazing volunteer and service job opportunities. More than 15+ non-profit organizations shared Service Learning information with our Palomar College community. A note of appreciation for Service Learning Coordinators, Dr. Angela Kong and Gina Wilson, for making this opportunity possible for our campus community.
• Attended the Educational & Facilities Vision Plan Coordinators meeting where we continue to discuss our long-term development plans for our 2035 curriculum and facilities plan.
• Attended the Rancho Penasquitos Adobe Bicentennial Celebration, which featured a fabulous presentation that showcased archaeological findings from the adobe uncovered by our students and professors. Palomar’s archaeology program has offered an excavation class at this very site for the past 13 years. As always, I am proud of the work done in this department and of the award-winning research our students are conducting in the field. Thank you, Elizabeth (Betsy) Pain and James Eighmey, for always representing Palomar college in the most positive way. Also, thank you to VPI Tina Recalde who made the effort to attend the Saturday event and support our program.

Community Engagement

• Attended a team training workshop led and organized by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). I am excited that I will be serving as a vice-chair for an upcoming accreditation visit. At this workshop, I learned a great deal about the preparation process for the accreditation visiting team. This information is extremely beneficial for how to support our own pre-accreditation process. As you know, an institution’s accreditation status is paramount because it enables the college to qualify for federal grants and contracts, distribute federal financial aid to students, and for students’ credits to be accepted by other institutions.
• Attended the San Diego and Imperial Counties Community College Association’s (SDICCCA) Annual Trustee Dinner and Fundraiser. Thank you to Trustee Roberto Rodriguez, Trustee Judy Patacsil, Trustee Michelle Rains, VPI Tina Recalde, PIO Julie Lanthier Bandy, and EA Kelly Miller for representing Palomar College.
• Attended, along with several other Community College Presidents in the region, the San Diego Chinese Women’s Association (SDCWA) Scholarship Fundraising dinner. I look forward to continuing to foster these types of relationships in the community to support, and benefit, our own Asian Pacific Islander campus community.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Updates and News

• Spend Valentine’s Day with the DRC! Grab a donut, drink some coffee, and mingle with the Access & Inclusion Committee and DRC students and staff. The event will be from 8:00 am to 10:00 am, Tuesday, February 14^th (outside of the DRC Building).
• Our Black History Month Workshops, that span the entire month of February, have started! I encourage you to please support these efforts, and all workshops are available for professional development credit. For more information visit the PBFSA website here.

Educational & Facilities Vision Plan 2035

• The Educational and Facilities Planning Task Force will meet this Thursday at the Fallbrook Education Center. The Task Force is scheduled to review the Education Vision Plan’s draft goals and objectives and to tour the Fallbrook Education Center.  As always you can follow the work of the Task Force by visiting our webpage here

Upcoming Items of Interest

• As noted last week, our former Governing Board President, Christian Garcia (trustee area 2) was appointed to the Escondido City Council and as a result the Governing Board will need to decide to either fill the vacancy with a provisional appointment or through a special election. Plans on how we will move forward will be discussed at this upcoming Regular Governing Board meeting (Tuesday, February 14^th). I will be sure to report next week on what was decided.
• An Emergency Lockdown Drill is scheduled for Wednesday, February 15^th.  The drill will occur once in the morning and once in the evening. Please read the training document and be prepared to participate in the mandatory drill. In advance of the drill, all supervisors should review the information with employees. Faculty who are providing onsite instruction on Wednesdays are asked to review and prepare students for the drill. For any questions, please contact the Environmental Health and Safety Department.

Comets of the Week

The Comets of the Week are members of the fantastic athletic academic support trio consisting of Melissa Allen, Amber Slivick, and Gina Medina. We appreciate the countless hours they spend helping our student-athletes achieve and maintain stellar academic standing. They were specifically selected because this year Palomar College has 42 Academic All-State Nominees (with 3 multi-sport athletes qualifying in both of their sports). For student-athletes to be nominated they are required to earn a 3.5+ GPA in 24+ units starting in their first season of competition. I thank these 3 outstanding employees (and the professors and coaches) who worked to ensure this type of success. Your care for your students is evident in these incredible results!

Have a great upcoming week. Go Comets!

 

For pictures of the various events, follow:
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