San Jose City College’s fiscal picture looks bright. Revenue projections from property taxes jumped from $1.7 million to more than $3 million, money that can be spent on student support programs.
All students at SJCC should have the necessary support — inside and outside the classroom.
This all encompassing support would allow students to fully discover, explore and realize their career, academic and personal potential.
The following are just a few programs we could begin or expand upon that would go a long way to help with those concerns and needs.
Getting to-and-fro
Many students have issues with transportation. Without an Eco Pass program in place, it is quite challenging for homeless or less affluent students without a vehicle to commute to class.
Those $4 per day to get to and from school, may not seem daunting as a number, but when you don’t have it, it is a giant hurdle to jump over.
The district needs to move on the Eco Pass sooner rather than later, and any money needed to facilitate that with expedience could come from this excess budget.
Developing a partnership on campus with a company like lyft.com, or a carpooling initiative, would go a long way to help students get to and from campus.
Learning and Earning
More opportunities for student employment on campus and in the community.
Every dollar SJCC allocates to the Federal Work-Study Program is matched by funds from the Department of Education. This means if a student earned $200 working part-time at the school, it would only cost SJCC $100.
This seems like a very wise investment and there is no such thing as too many dollars to spend in this area.
We should be maximizing our Federal Work-Study Program or fighting to bring more opportunities for students to learn while earning to our campus.
Have a little help from my friends
A peer mentoring program would be a great addition to our campus.
Not only would it be a great way to create some of the aforementioned work-study jobs, but it would also help build a sense of real community on campus.
If students were matched with individuals who were able to share their experiences, imagine how much easier learning the ropes of this particular institution would be.
No administrator or faculty member can relate to the actual day-to-day challenges of SJCC’s administrative culture and systems like a peer can. This would be a great program to start and fund for the betterment of the entire college.
Student Ambassadors
We should be more tied to our local community and more dedicated to recruiting talented individuals to our campus from area high schools.
Having a student ambassador program could go a long way providing yet another employment opportunity for our students while building a sense of community, both on and off our campus.
These ambassadors could earn and learn, while doing things in the community like after-school and high school tutoring programs.
We could mobilize a program like this for positive changes off campus as well, where SJCC would be seen as an institution that fosters great students and makes a real difference in the everyday lives of the surrounding community.
Shelter from the storm
When an emergency happens or when a student suddenly has housing issues, we can do more than just provide a list of community resources.
We should develop a program to put students in temporary housing situations during times of crisis, keeping them from being homeless.
We should have a place where students in that type of situation can go and find not only referrals to other resources, but also a helping hand from the campus to get through their temporary housing struggles.
If the vision of San Jose City College is really “Inspiring Success … One Student at a Time,” then we could do better in developing practices and programs, as an institution, that actually reach students and help them with all facets of success.
It is our sincere hope that these things be made a priority for the decision makers of our district.
We need to go beyond the slogans and vision statements and push to realize that vision.
