Marketing and Public Information

October 21, 2005

Death of a Skyline College student: Last Sunday night Jihan Abel-Gawad, a member of Skyline’s women’s soccer team, was killed. She was also a student at CSM. A memorial service is planned for this Sunday. Details will be provided later today.

Emergency preparedness drill complete: We have now completed a very rich two days of training and a full scale drill in which we set up an "Emergency Operations Center" and handled a complex series of simulated events as if a major earthquake had occurred. The drill allowed us to test-fly our emergency preparedness plan, and to assess where we can improve it. The next steps will be for us to review how the exercise went, with all participants filling out an evaluation of it. The consultant who assisted us with this work will be providing us with a report and recommendations. As I mentioned earlier, there will be training for Building Captains and Floor Monitors later this term. Thanks to everyone who participated in this exercise. It was fascinating and very demanding and everyone gave their all to make it a productive drill that will help us enormously in our preparations to deal with any genuine emergencies.

Two new partnerships with Mills College to serve students:

• Cross-registration now an option for students: Skyline College’s Transfer Center has recently entered into partnership with Mills College to establish a "Cross Registration Program". The program provides Skyline students who meet established eligibility criteria the opportunity to enroll concurrently in a Mills College course at no cost. Mills students participating in the program may enroll in a Skyline course at no cost. The program will provide Skyline students interested in transferring to Mills the opportunity to experience the four year university environment, take advantage of library and other academic support services, and interact with Mills College professors, staff and students. This exciting opportunity will assist Skyline students in making a successful transfer to Mills College. Thanks to Transfer Center Director, Linda Rosa Corazon and Honors Transfer Program Counselor Joyce Lee for their work in developing this agreement with Mills College.

• Honors Transfer Agreement: The Skyline College Honors Transfer Program has forged a new alliance with Mills College. The Honors Agreement between Skyline College and Mills College establishes priority admission for female Honors Transfer Program (HTP) graduates who have also completed the transfer admission requirements of Mills College. As part of the agreement, a guaranteed annual scholarship ranging from $10,000-$12,500 is available to certified HTP students with a GPA of 3.5 or better. This agreement offers an exciting opportunity to our motivated students to make a smooth transition from Skyline College to Mills College for completion of their bachelor’s degrees. Thanks to Honors Program Coordinator Connie Beringer and Honors Counselor Joyce Lee for their work in reaching this agreement with Mills College.

Skyline College CITD concludes seven-part Seminar Series in the Bay Area: Skyline College’s Center for International Trade Development (CITD) recently concluded a successful seven-part seminar series on international trade. The Seminar Series, a part of the on-going Creating Export Opportunities (CEO) program, jointly developed by Skyline College CITD and the US Department of Commerce, addresses the international trade challenges facing mid-level managers, as well as those who are new to international trade entrepreneurs. The Seminar was supported by various public and private sector organizations in the Bay Area, including FEDEX, Renaissance Women Entrepreneur Center, SF Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, City and County of San Francisco, and the Office of Small Business. Presenters were drawn from the rich pool of trade experts in the Bay Area, as well as Richard Soyombo, Director, Skyline College CITD.

Draft College Council agenda for October 26: Last month I began including the College Council agenda in Skyline Shines as part of our efforts to improve college wide communication and then a subsequent brief update on the status of some items that I think might be of particular interest. In each case in which an issue is still under consideration, it will be taken up by each of the constituent groups and then brought back to the Council (i.e. the Academic Senate Governing Council, the Classified Council and the Associated Students Governing Council). Here is the draft agenda for the College Council meeting next Wednesday: