President Schilling’s Board Report for December 11, 2018

The following is a report to members of the North Orange County Community College District Board of Trustees.

Presented by Cypress College President JoAnna Schilling, Ph.D.

on December 11, 2018

Enrollment: Because this past week was finals week, our enrollment has been slow. We are actively sending out reminders to students who have missed their enrollment dates, as well as beginning our Interact marketing campaign this week. Students are being called, and our social media campaign has started. We also sent a reminder to all students on Friday, December 7, reminding them of their upcoming enrollment dates and to enroll for the spring semester. We anticipate a bump in our enrollment starting on Monday, December 10.

Campus News

President’s Holiday Reception: Thank you to those who attended our Holiday Reception on December 5. It was a wonderful time to reconnect, visit with colleagues, and enjoy the holidays. Thanks to faculty member Gary Gopar, and his student musicians who entertained us throughout lunch with their holiday tunes. Kudos to the brave souls who volunteered to sing their favorite Christmas carol for a chance to win a raffle basket. And thanks to Schools First who provided the funding for our lunch. We also appreciate everyone who brought donations to our food bank and were entered in a raffle for prizes. Thanks to Dr. Marshall, and Vice Chancellors Williams, Ramos, and Li-Bugg for joining us!

Save the Dates: We are happy to announce that the groundbreaking ceremony for our new SEM Building will be held on Friday, February 8 from 10 – 11:15. Please mark your calendar for this important kickoff to Measure J. In addition, our second building project, the VRC, will hold its groundbreaking on March 15. The program will be held from 9:30-10:30 a.m. and then our annual Veterans 5K run will begin at 11 a.m. Please join us for all or part of the day!

Triple Threats! Our talented triple threat students (dance, music and acting) performed their student-developed choreography, acting monologues and scenes, and musical theater songs on December 3 and 5, respectively. What talented students we have. Thank you to our performing arts faculty for making this opportunity possible and for coaching our students to be their best.

On December 1 & 2, 2018, the Cypress College Speech & Debate Team took 18 students to the Pacific Southwest Collegiate Forensics Association’s Fall Championship Tournament held at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA.  This year 39 universities and community colleges attended both near and far, including; the University of Utah, Northern Arizona University, Kansas City Community College, Cerritos College, Concordia University at Irvine, and Palomar College. 7 students placed 3rd place or higher and 3 students took 1st place in their respective competitions. Congratulations to our outstanding students and to instructors Josh House and Jennifer Page for their exemplary mentoring and coaching of these students.

State Playoffs: Our Women’s Volleyball team made it to the state playoffs by defeating LBCC in an historic match. Down 2-1 and a point away from losing the 3rd set, our Chargers came all the way back to win the 2nd set and then the third set, to take the match. They made it to the final four before being eliminated 3-1 by Gavilan College, after winning the first set and leading the second. Our Lady Chargers had an outstanding season under Coach Karen Welliver, and we are #CYProud of their efforts.

We are also proud to announce our All-Orange Empire Conference (OEC) winners. These outstanding student athletes achieved outstanding seasons in their sports, as well as in the classroom. Congratulations to: Women’s Soccer All-OEC 1st Team, Morgan Patea, and Audree Campos; All-OEC 2nd Team, Taleah Carter, and Jordan Barber. Men’s Soccer All-OEC 1st Team, Alex Ochoa; All-OEC 2nd Team, Connor Fitzgerald, and Lorenzo LaViolette. Women’s Volleyball All-State/All-OEC 1st Team, Kayla Owens, All-OEC 1st Team, Jane Woodward; All-OEC 2nd Team, Ashley Corona and Marina Pilkington. We are proud of these student/athletes!

We held our fall Vocal Chorale and Jazz Concert on December 7 at 7 p.m. in the Music Concert Hall. Our students, under the tutelage of music faculty, Terra Hurdle, performed timeless jazz and holiday favorites and did a wonderful job of showing what the Cypress music program is all about!

This year, our annual holiday card was designed by one of our graphic arts students. We sponsored a contest for students and received 24 applications. Picking a winning design to represent the college was a difficult decision, but we chose three designs that stood out as representing the holiday season, and Cypress College. Our winning design was by Nhi Ngyuen and our two runner-ups were Ruben Bangi, and Marbie White. The winning designer was announced on Monday night in instructor Daniel Gross’ class by Dr. Schilling and Marc Posner and we awarded a $250 check to Ms. Nguyen. The two finalists also received recognition and a $100 check – all provided by our Foundation. Congratulations to all!

Nursing Pinning: Please join us for our fall nursing pinning ceremony on Monday, December 10 at 6 p.m. Our graduating nursing students will be celebrated, and acknowledged for successfully completing their Associates in Nursing Degree. It is always a wonderful night of celebration and accomplishment for our students and their families!

Please join us for our annual EOPS Adopt a Family holiday party will be held on December 12 from 3:30 – 5 p.m. in the Theater Lobby. Every year the campus community adopts families involved in our EOPS/CARE programs, to provide a joyous Christmas celebration. We thank the campus community for their generosity to these students and their children.

Community Events

Cypress Chamber Holiday Extravaganza: Cypress College has purchased a table of eight in support of our Cypress Chamber. This event will be held on December 13 at the Old Ranch Country Club at 6 p.m.  We have one seat available at our table, so please let us know if you would like to join us.

Americana Citizens of the Year: Dr. Schilling and Gail Taylor will be visiting all our city councils in the next month to announce the Americana Citizens of the Year.

Hunger Task Force meeting: The latest task force meeting occurred on Thursday, December 6. Discussed was our presentation during the Legislative session in January and a focus on what we can achieve together to assist the students silently suffering from housing and food insecurity. Dr. Schilling will be sharing more about this at the OC legislative meeting on December 13, and Dr. Schulz, Provost Purtell, and Dr. Schilling will be meeting next week with Pathways of Hope to discuss other initiatives we can look into to provide support for our students. Stay tuned!

Guided Pathways Technology Task Force: Dr. Schilling is also participating on another statewide task force, exploring the use of technology and data that can support and assist all California Community Colleges identify solutions for Guided Pathways. Because Cypress is one of three colleges serving as a pilot for the new program mapper, as well as taking the lead on the K12 crosswalk in Orange County, we were invited to participate on this new task force. This group convened on November 29 to hear more from the various partners on this project, the Chancellor’s Office, and to consider ways we can better serve our students. Participants included Cabrillo, Cypress, and Bakersfield Colleges, the Chancellors Office, CSU, Career Ladders, K12 Crosswalk, Concentric Sky and CCGI – all innovators looking to help create pathways between our respective educational systems. I am honored to serve in this capacity and hope to have information to share that will benefit our District’s work on Guided Pathways.

That’s the Board Report from Cypress College. Buen Cypress and Happy Holidays to all!

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