Casas discussed the planned presentations. The focus was on some of SJCC’s programs and services, and this year’s presentations had a “Building Community” theme.  The presenters had the opportunity to tell the board about their programs and what they are doing to improve them.

“I think these (presentations) are the best moments that we have at board meetings,” trustee Maria Fuente said. “It’s when you’re highlighting all those special gifts that you have as an institution.”

The presentations showcased:

External partnerships, which were featured in a video that was produced by former journalism student Jared Duba. The video featured positive comments about SJCC from:

• Community Organizations
• Neighborhood Association
• Retirees
• Workforce Institute

Mary Conroy, early childhood education instructor, and Doriann Tran, international counselor, presented the Global Studies and the International Program.

The College Mission Statement was quoted:

“The mission of San Jose City College is to effect social justice by providing open and equitable access to quality education and programs that both challenge and prepare individuals for successful careers and active participation in a diverse, global society.”

• Conroy is attempting to institute a degree program for global studies.
• Tran discussed the International Program, which has 19 countries represented, and as of spring 2012, there are 52 students enrolled.
• Two international students spoke about the program and their experience at San Jose City College.

Jim Potterton, psychology instructor, made a presentation for the Mental Health Services Advisory Committee.

• Reasons students are dropping classes: stress, sleeping difficulties, anxiety, depression and alcohol/drug use.
• Potterton, who wants to enhance campus awareness of stigmatization, explained that many students drop their classes because of mental distresses.

Joy Hines | TIMES STAFF

Nicholas Akinkouye

Nicholas Akinkuoye, Vice President of Academic Affairs, did not get his contract with San Jose City College renewed for the 2012-2013 school year.

President Barbara Kavalier, who made the decision not to renew Akinkuoye’s contract, refused to comment on why Akinkuoye’s contract was not renewed because she is unable to discuss “personnel issues.”

“To my knowledge,” said Charles Heimler, president of the Academic Senate, “he (Akinkuoye) was the only administrator who was not asked to come back.”

Many faculty members, including Heimler and Leslie Rice, English/ESL instructor, said that the frequent change in administration is not good for the school and the students.

Heimler said there is a lack of continuity with the administrators at SJCC, and it is hard to adjust to working with new people.

“The VP of Academic affairs is not an easy job,” Rice said. “The first year is a year of learning, and new administrators have to learn about all the different divisions and academic programs that are happening here at our school.”

The non-renewal of Akinkuoye’s contract came as a surprise to him.

“And this (decision was made) after a very positive comprehensive 360 degree evaluation from my constituents,” Akinkuoye said. “The non-renewal was based solely upon the personal opinion of the president. The decision and recommendation are under review (by the board of trustees).”

President Kavalier did not respond to emails regarding what is the future for Akinkuoye’s position, so his replacement remains unknown.

San Jose State University is one of the schools that will not be accepting spring transfers.

Community college students who complete their associate degree for transfer will be eligible to transfer to the California State Universities of Channel Islands, Chico, East Bay, Fullerton, Humboldt, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Francisco and Sonoma.

The priority application filing period for spring 2013 will be Aug. 1 through Aug. 31, academic advising specialist Carol Vasquez wrote in an email.

California State University, East Bay enrollment counselor Jean Paul Nguyen will be at San Jose City College in the Student Center on May 14 and June 18 to answer any questions for students.

East Bay favors students that are seeking science, engineering and math majors, but is open to accepting any major, Nguyen said.

“We encourage students to apply as soon as possible, so we have time to evaluate their transcripts,” Nguyen said.

Filing periods for East Bay will begin on June 1 and extend through October.  The winter quarter will begin on Jan. 7.

According to the Calstate website, if Gov. Brown’s tax initiative is not passed by the voters in November, CSU’s will face more budget cuts.

Approximately $200 million of state support for the CSU’s will be cut. Enrollment for 2013-2014 will be cut by 20,000 to 25,000 students.

“We are not able to increase our enrollment, but we are able to maintain our enrollment.  Before budget cuts, our student enrollment goal was 17,000.  Now it is 14,000 students,” Nguyen said. “We maintain our number of students so classes do not get cut.”

Steve Hill | TIMES STAFF

City College of San Francisco English teacher and President of AFT 2121 Alisa Messer gives a shout out to members of the Federation of Teachers at the One-Mile March for Fairness downtown San Jose Friday, April 13. The march was organized by the California Teachers Union to bring attention to budget cuts that affect education as well as proposed cuts to pensions and salaries of city of San Jose employees.

“We hope to bring more attention in the idea that we have to invest into education, we have to bring education into the reach of the masses,” said David Yancey, SJCC history instructor. “In California, we are slowly moving students into obscurity.”

The mile-long march to city hall was enthusiastic, and shouts of encouragement could be heard throughout downtown, including, “When teachers and students are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”

“The goal of this march was to tell (San Jose Mayor) Chuck Reed that workers’ pensions should not be attacked and not be compromised,” said Barbara Hanfling, Executive Director of the Faculty Association. “I always believe that when people’s voices are heard, the people up there (City Hall) hear them.”

After the march, there was a rally in the plaza with speakers from unions and school districts. Teachers and students from not only colleges, but elementary schools, junior highs and high schools gathered to listen.

“The key message that we were trying to get across was that education is not a privilege, but a right,” said Neil Silverman, a teacher at Independence High School. “Education should be fully funded by tax dollars.”

Unions came to support the teachers and students. The unions included The United Food and Commercial Workers, which according to its website, consists of 1.3 million members standing together to improve the lives and livelihoods of workers, families and communities.

One topic during the speeches was about the petition going around colleges to raise the minimum wage in San Jose to $10 an hour from $8 and with many college students having to now pay more for units, this goes right along with the budget cut crisis.

“They’re asking you to live on $8 an hour and pay $46 per unit for classes,” said Khalid White, Black History instructor. “That’s six hours of working for a minimum wage job for only one unit, not even a full class. It doesn’t make sense.”

Students stood by teachers and union workers and voiced their opinions on the unfairness of the budget cuts.

“I want the rich to be taxed and have at least part of that money put into education so it can be better in California,” said Evergreen student Yasmin Garcia, 20, criminal justice and sociology major. “I want to have my voice heard, and I want to make a change.”

“I’m really passionate, and I’m really proud of myself and happy that I’m a part of this,” said Evergreen student Maria Pina-Carrasco, 29, business administration major. “It’s making me learn more about what I can do for my community versus when I use to limit myself.”

In the end, no matter what race, gender, sexual orientation or social status, everyone came together to fight for their rights.

“One rally won’t change the conditions in San Jose and is certainly not going to bring more funding to higher education or K-12 education,” said Joshua Pechthalt, president of the California Federation of Teachers. “It’s part of building the kind of
movement that we need to build in order to make spending for our community a priority.”

SJCC students and teachers set up booths outside the Student Center and inside the gym to introduce their programs to the little guests.

Jennifer Neil, director of Student Life, said this year, besides other academic departments, there are more presentations by Valley Transit Authority, San Jose Water Company, the county federal bank and San Jose library, joining the kindergarten day.

The kids were introduced to the Emergency Medical Services group and police officers and talked about their dreams of being a policeman or paramedic.

SJCC’s sports teams also spent time playing games with those little athletes on the fields.

“I see this as an opportunity for those kids to look at different careers and what they want to do in their life at a very young age. You can create a fantasy seed that will grow into a big beautiful tree,” said Rich Saito, San Jose police officer.

The day provided fun for the parents as well. Anamilet Pelarosa, mother of one of the students said, “My son is so excited. I’ve never seen him be this happy.”

“State support for California State Universities has plummeted. We are talking about a $750 million cut in one year with the potential for $250 more in trigger cuts later this year,” said SJSU media relations director Pat Lopes Harris.

Harris said new admission guidelines for spring 2013 will affect local high school students and community college transfer students who once relied on local enrollment priority.

All students are now required to state a first- and second-major choices. Students not accepted into their preferred majors may be accepted as undeclared majors instead.

“Where SJSU was able to admit all CSU applicants in the past, now we are only going to admit some in the future,” Harris said.

Harris said the school is moving from a local area guarantee to a local area preference; but the threshold for admission is higher for locals than in the past, and the criteria for acceptance will be harder.

“In the short term, most local students who are attempting to transfer to SJSU will be admitted as it was in the past,” Harris said. “Over the long term, it will be more difficult. Grades and test scores will matter more than ever.For transfers, grade-point average matters more.”

Tuan Ngo, Director/General Counselor of the Career/Transfer Center, said students must be prepared for impaction at state colleges and take a proactive approach to transferring.

“I always recommend students consider several school options and apply to at least three schools to cover all bases,” Ngo said.

Ngo said it is also necessary to meet with a counselor to understand what individual major requirements are at prospective schools in order to increase the chances of being accepted.

“See us (counselors) when you have 15 to 30 units, no later than the second semester you are here, to develop an educational/transfer plan” Ngo said.

Academic Advising Specialist Carol Vasquez said that students have to be strategic and seek out other options.

“Students must find out what other programs there are,” Vasquez said. “We have to look at what other opportunities await them besides SJSU.”

One way the Transfer Center is being proactive on students’ behalf is by introducing them to other campuses.

“We’re doing bus tours to let students see other schools, like Davis, San Francisco State, University of California at Santa Cruz and Berkeley,” Vasquez said. “We are trying to help our students look beyond our backdoor.”

According to the SJSU website, SJSU President Mohammad Qayoumi blamed state officials for the dire climate for freshman college students and transfers.

“This situation is caused by the failure of our elected officials in Sacramento to adequately fund the CSU in general and SJSU in particular,” Qayoumi said. “We Californians have failed to make the hard but important decisions to invest in the future of our youth.”

The next Transfer Center bus tour is Friday, April 27. Contact the Transfer Center in room SC-216 for more information.

Steve Hill | TIMES STAFF

Chinese students from The Second Foreign Language School in Shanghai, China, visited the SJCC campus on March 27

Twenty high school students from China toured the San Jose City College campus on March 27.

The students are from the Second Foreign Language School affiliated with the Shanghai Normal University. Former Interim President Douglas Treadway introduced SJCC to SFLS.

“This is probably the first time for the last few years we have a big visit from outside the U.S.,” said Doriann Tran, international counselor.

The visiting students were led by Tran and volunteer translator Jun Wang, a San Jose State University alumna.  They visited the Reading and Writing Center in the library, Chinese language classes in the General Education Building and other building on the campus.

“It was fascinating,” said Xian Xian Guang, principal of SFLS. “Students got exposed to different classrooms and saw things they have never seen at their school in China.

“The students are part of an international program in SFLS,” said Ada Zhang, director of admission at SFLS. “They learn ESL curriculum to study abroad for further study in America, mainly in California.”

After the tour, the students were greeted in the Student Center by Charles Heimler, English instructor, who gave them two English handbooks as a friendly gesture.

The panel include members of the Associated Students and some current international students. They shared their experiences at SJCC with the Chinese students and discussed what SJCC has to offer them.

“They (SJCC) have an international counseling program; students can drop by and get help anytime,” said Ngan Hong, a 20-year-old nursing student. “We (international students) also have registration priority.”

These visiting students also had opportunities to ask some questions. They mainly asked about the Chinese community at SJCC and the transferring process to universities.

“This is my first time in America. Everything here is new to me,” said Rainy Huang, a 16-year-old SFLS student. “I plan on coming here for school, and I want to study everything.”

Tran said the international program at SJCC has been working on promoting the program to other high schools outside the U.S.

She said she hopes SJCC will have a strong collaboration with SFLS and more visits.  The goal is to have future visits not only from SFLS, but other schools around the world.

“I think it’s a very beautiful environment,” aid Sunny Scofield, a 16-year-old SFSL students. “This is a very good school, and I plan on coming here.”

There was no appearance made by any of the Associated Student members who scheduled a vigil in honor of Trayvon Martin at 11 a.m. on Thursday, March 29.

The AS advertised Wednesday on its Facebook page that there was to be a vigil held Thursday, March 29 for Trayvon Martin.

“If you are a student at SJCC and would like to participate in a vigil tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. for Trayvon Martin, please come to college wearing a hoodie. We will hold the vigil at 11 a.m. outside of student center,” the Facebook post read.

There were about a dozen students lined up in front of the Student Center wearing their hooded sweatshirts in honor of Martin.

They waited for someone from AS to start speaking to the crowd.

At 11:21 a.m., 21 minutes after the vigil was supposed to begin Student Life Director Jennifer Neil told the crowd that the vigil had been canceled and would not be held until after spring break.

“I feel that I just wasted my time,” said Teresa Reveles, 32, child development major.

The crowd of Martin supporters angrily dispersed after Neil made the statement.

“They should not have told us if it was not going to happen,” said Andrew Lincoln, 23, music major. He said he would be willing to come out and support another vigil, if one was planned for the future.

Professor Khalid White, ethnic studies, said he received an email about the vigil at 11 a.m. as well.

“I have no idea what happened with that,” White said. “I am a bit disappointed myself and can not really explain the situation.”

Summer classes are at risk of 40 percent cuts. The decision of summer school reduction was discussed at the Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, March 13 at Evergreen Valley College.

The most recent projection estimates show the district budget shortfall at approximately $4.3 million. This requires the district to propose rebalancing measures that may include cutting down summer classes. 

Chancellor Rita Cepeda said she could have cut the summer classes down to 80 percent in order to meet her goal.

“Summer is the most expensive term to teach. We provide a full array of support services for a reduced amount of students,” Cepeda said. “It costs $2.2 million to offer summer courses.” 

Cepeda recommended reducing classes by 40 percent because the students need summer classes, and this 40 percent will save the district $879,000.

“These decisions are the budget-driven decision, not the student-driven decision,” said David Yancey, instructor and member of the academic senate, who spoke up against the reduction at the meeting.

“I tried to encourage the trustees to look at that aspect to give students broader chances,” Yancey said. “We can always scale down the summer school if the money we get turns out to be worse than we think it is.”

Yancey said 77 percent of students who attend the summer school are SJCC’s continuing students. Once the students know the college does not offer the courses, they will want to go to other colleges. 

There are some schools offering full summer school, such as Foothill, De Anza, West Valley and Mission College.

“We are the only one in our region that has taken a drastic step that quickly,” Yancey said.

English instructor Jessica Breheny shared her concern with the board about the way decisions are being made about the summer schedule without any faculty input.

“I was very concerned about the short notice for a number of reasons,” Breheny said. “My email and comments to the Board of Trustees outline some of the ways this violates the policies and practices of the college, state law and the accrediting agency’s recommendations.”

Other members of the faculty are concerned about whether the cuts are worth the financial gains in the long term.

“We seem to be so shortsighted of the impact, so if you cancel the summer classes, what’s the effect of that? We save a lot of money, but what about the bigger picture?” said Ronald Levesque, English as a Second Language instructor. 

Students will be affected by the shortage of classes, if they want to follow their graduation plan or make up any class that they did not pass during the spring semester. 

“Class reductions would be really bad for students who plan to transfer out fast,” said Christopher Ducusin, 21, computer engineering major.

Ducusin took Chemistry and Oral Communication in the summers of 2010 and 2011. He said taking these classes during the summer definitely helped him move ahead with his education plan. 

“Students really need those classes. They need them to develop their literacy skills like reading and writing,” said Umu Smythe, 21, nursing major. “Instead of canceling them, they should bring them back for students who need it.”

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