Dr Bennett's Newsletter - October 2018

A Message from Dr. Bennett

It has been another great month full of hard-work and student success!  As you read through the reports and accomplishments listed below, I hope you feel uplifted and proud.  Thank you for all you do, day in and day out, on behalf of our students.  Your enthusiasm and dedication make Clovis Community College a truly wonderful place for all of us. 

Successful events last month included the annual Scholarship Ceremony and the President’s Breakfast.  Upcoming events include the Fall Planning Retreat, Rocktoberfest, and Giving Tuesday.  See details below.

State-level Recognition for Our Strong Completion Rates!

Clovis Community College has been named a 2018 Champion for Higher Education for our exemplary work in awarding Associate Degrees for Transfer by the Campaign for College Opportunity organization. In her letter, President Michele Siqueiros stated,

“Clovis Community College is a leading example of strong implementation of the associate degree for transfer pathway for students and a model for other college in California to emulate.”

They will publicly announce all the community colleges and CSU honorees in early October and there will be an award ceremony in Sacramento in December.

So, congratulations to EVERYONE for your hard work to support students and to help them achieve their transfer goals. As I receive more details about the award, I will share them with you. In the meantime, feel free to pat yourselves on the back and enjoy this great honor!!

Clovis Community College Accomplishments

There are so many things for us to be proud of… here are just a few:

• 2018 Champion for Higher Education
• #1 in completion rates for the Central Valley region
• #1 in completion rates compared to similarly sized California Community Colleges
• CCC students complete transfer-level math and English, within their first year, at a rate more than twice the statewide average for community colleges
• CCC selected to participate in the state chancellor’s Online Education Initiative, which will allow us to showcase our high online course success rates
• Two Career Technical Education (CTE) programs were recognized by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office as Strong Workforce Stars for their success in helping students increase their earning power and social mobility
  • Administration of Justice, +527% increase in earnings
  • Business Management, +59% increase in earnings
• CCC Small Business Development Center (SBDC) led the SBDCs statewide in “new business start-ups” (see details below)
• Over 100 scholarships given during the Fall 2018 Scholarship Ceremony
• Over 300 students participating in the Leon S. Peters Honors Program
• Women’s Soccer is ranked in the top 20 in the nation

Inaugural President’s Breakfast was a Great Success!

We hosted our Inaugural President’s Breakfast on September 19. It was an honor to tell the community about our college and all the amazing things we’ve accomplished! Over 300 people attended our event, including the mayors of both Clovis and Fresno, four college presidents, three K-12 Superintendents, business and community leaders, health care administrators, and many other community members. I was so proud of Damon Rapada, our Associated Student Government President, for his fine speech about what Clovis means to him. Professor Anna Martinez was outstanding as she shared a wonderful Clovis fairy tale…that was actually a collage of true stories from everyday interactions between faculty, staff, and students. Perhaps one of the most impactful moments of the breakfast came from a video of the student themselves. I encourage you to watch the video to see the impact you have on our students. I want to thank everyone who worked so hard to make the breakfast a success, with a special acknowledgement to Stephanie Babb and Emilie Gerety for their major role in organizing the breakfast and Rico Guerrero for his role in enlisting so many great Sponsors.

Giving Tuesday

Last year, we held our first Giving Tuesday scholarship fundraiser event and set a goal to raise $5,000 to match the gift from Gus and Greti Bonner, SCCCD Foundation members and Clovis Community College supporters. Thanks to your efforts, we matched that and raised over $80,000!

This year, Gus and Greti Bonner have again offered $5,000 to match our fundraising efforts. In addition, Gina Cuttone, our SCCCD Foundation President, has also offered $5,000 to match our fundraising efforts. So, we are starting with $10,000! This year we are setting our goal at $25,000. The Giving Tuesday event will be held on November 27. I invite you to make a difference in a student’s life. Every contribution counts. Details regarding how to donate will follow via email soon. Thank you!

Scholarship Award Ceremony

The 2018 Scholarship Award Ceremony was a huge success! The Forum was full of family, friends, and donors who came to watch 86 grateful students receive 103 scholarships with a total value of $66,445. Donors and recipients had an opportunity to meet at the reception following the ceremony. I would like to thank Gurdeep Hebert, Rebecca Kinlow, and their team for all their hard work on our 2018 Scholarship Award Ceremony.

CCC students having fun at the Inaugural President’s Breakfast

Update on our new Small Business Development Center

Our new Small Business Development Center (which serves the four-county area) leads our region in the number of new business starts – with 20 new businesses created in our first few months. New start-ups in the other regions ranged from 1-7 new businesses during the same time period. This is a great start for our new SBDC. Congratulations to Robbie Kunkel and thank you for your hard work to get this program up and running.

We are in the process of hiring a Director for the SBDC, hiring small business consultants, securing meeting locations throughout the region, holding training workshops, and developing marketing materials. Stay tuned for details as we continue to build this valuable program.

Featured Department: Administrative & Business Services

L-R: Penny Cristan, Lorrie Hopper, Kim Duong, Cathy Ostos

The Administrative & Business Services department is a hard working team who have a wide variety of responsibilities. Business Services helps students with issues relating to their financial accounts, process Financial Aid payments, and handle student payroll duties. They also provide support for grants by meeting with departments, monitoring budgets, and providing status reports. Administrative Services works with both internal and external partners to coordinate facility needs. They are responsible for overseeing the student hiring process and coordinate the shuttle vans to both Herndon and River Park. Please be sure to thank them for all of the “behind-the-scenes” work they do to support our students.

Curriculum Update

The Curriculum Committee approved the following curriculum between January 1 and September 30, 2018:

Associate Degrees

• Civil Engineering
• Computer or Software Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Mechanical, Aerospace, or Manufacturing
• Engineering

Associate Degrees for Transfer

• Anthropology
• Geography

Certificates of Achievement

• CSU – General Ed Breadth
• Civil Engineering
• Computer or Software Engineering
• Cyber Security
• Electrical Engineering
• Food Safety & Quality Technician
• Mechanical, Aerospace, or Manufacturing Engineering
• Mechatronics/Industrial Automation
• Rehabilitation Aide