February 27, 2008

Around Campus

Tomorrow: "Silicon Valley Reads" Author Event

De Anza College, the Library and the Writing & Reading Center join Silicon Valley Reads in presenting Bo Caldwell, the author of SVR's 2008 selection, the bestselling "The Distant Land of My Father." The story begins in 1930s Shanghai and concludes in post-World War II Los Angeles. Caldwell will read from her book, provide historical background and take questions from the audience; books will be available for sale through the Bookstore. See http://www.deanza.edu/marketing/press/2008/022008svreads.html for more information

When: Thursday, Feb. 28, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
Where: Campus Center A&B

Tomorrow: Counselor and Author to Visit

Thomas Parham, assistant vice chancellor for Counseling & Health Services at UC Irvine and past president of the National Association of Black Psychologists, will address students, faculty and staff. He is the author of "Counseling Persons of African Descent" and "Psychological Storms: The African American Struggle for Identity," as well as coauthor of "The Psychology of Blacks: An African Centered Perspective." The event is sponsored by the Office of Diversity.

When: Thursday, Feb. 28, 2:30-3:15 (workshop for Student Services employees follows)
Where: Fireside Room

Beginning This Week: Student Films at Cinequest

De Anza College once again is the only community college represented in the Student Film Competition at the Cinequest Film Festival to be held from Feb. 27 through March 9 at the Camera 12 Cinemas, San Jose. The contenders also include student filmmakers from UCLA, USC, Stanford and Columbia universities, and more. Dates and times vary; see http://www.deanza.edu/marketing/press/2008/021408cinequest.html for details.

Famed Screenwriting Instructor to Speak

Richard Walter, the internationally known screenwriting instructor and co-chair of the graduate screenwriting program at UCLA, as well as a bestselling author and television personality, will discuss screenwriting, storytelling and the business of it all. According to the Wall Street Journal, Walter is "the prime broker for one of Hollywood's hottest commodities: student writers."

When: Thursday, March 6, 6:15 p.m.
Where: Forum I

Walter's appearance follows an event last week featuring another industry giant, renowned Hollywood producer Gary Goldstein ("Pretty Woman," "The Mothman Prophecies," "Under Siege").

March: Women's History Month

Departments and offices throughout De Anza College are sponsoring a full complement of activities for Women's History Month ranging from film screenings to guest speakers, from a visiting artist to readers' theater. See http://www.deanza.edu/news/whm08.html to download the complete schedule.

A key event is the conference on International Women's Day: Women's Lives Beyond Borders, sponsored by De Anza's Institute of Civic and Community Engagement (ICCE). The day will include issue-based workshops, as well as a panel discussion moderated by De Anza graduate and Cupertino Mayor Dolly Sandoval. Panelists include state Sen. Elaine Alquist and Santa Clara Co. Superior Court Judge Erica Yew, among others.

When: Saturday, March 8, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Campus Center A&B

The Office of the Chancellor and Foothill College extend a special invitation to a Women's History Month panel discussion on "Does Gender Matter: Are Women Politicians Different?" Participants will include former San Jose City Council member Cindy Chavez; Beatnik.com President and CEO and fundraiser Lorraine Hariton; Morgan Family Foundation President and former state Sen. Rebecca Q. "Becky" Morgan; and law professor and Stanford Center on Ethics Director Deborah L. Rhode. The program is copresented by Commonwealth Club/Silicon Valley, which will record the event for possible broadcast.

When: Tuesday, March 11, 1:30-3 p.m.
Where: Foothill Campus Center, Main Dining Room

News Briefs

February: Black History Month

A series of successful Black History Month events culminates Thursday, Feb. 28, with the fourth annual African Ancestry Association Scholarship Luncheon. The association thanks faculty and staff for contributions to the sold-out celebration.

Almost 450 high school students from the region attended De Anza's African Ancestry Student Conference held at the college Feb. 13. The event was developed by Rob Mieso, Office of Outreach & Relations with Schools, with numerous contributions from Admissions & Records and Financial Aid staff as well as faculty and staff collegewide. A total of 700 high schoolers are expected to attend the Latino Student conferences slated for March 13 and 18.

Basic Skills Initiative

Basic Skills Initiative (BSI) campus coordinators Michele LeBleu-Burns and Gregory Anderson and the 10 team leaders (http://www.deanza.edu/dare/bsi/teamleaders.html) are eager to hear from more members of the De Anza community. The BSI is part of part of a concerted effort by California's Community Colleges to improve success rates for students at the developmental level. For more background on the BSI, click here: http://www.deanza.edu/dare/bsi/index.html.

For the next month, the team leaders are writing the Self-Assessment Tool and would like to hear from everyone who contributes to the success of developmental level students. To get involved, see http://www.deanza.edu/dare/bsi/gettinginvolved.html.

Please also take the survey at http://www.deanza.edu/dare/bsi/survey.html. Your feedback is important to the students of De Anza College

Web Training: OmniUpdate

Training and support for OmniUpdate, the new Web content management system, is now under way. If you haven't updated your department or faculty Web site in a while -- or you're interested in creating a new Web site -- now's the time to learn OmniUpdate. Current Web account holders are also encouraged to convert their Web site. Find out how to get started by visiting http://www.deanza.edu/webguide/omniupdate/.

Statewide Conference: Equity=Excellence

The De Anza College Office of Diversity is sponsoring a statewide conference, Equity=Excellence: California Community Colleges in the Vanguard of Change, with the goal of sharing effective educational practices for serving the diverse population of community colleges. The deadline for submitting proposals is March 19; see http://www.deanza.edu/diversity/conference/index.html for details.

When: Thursday and Friday, May 1&2
Where: Santa Clara Hyatt Regency Hotel

Teaching and Learning Conference

More than 100 faculty and staff members attended the third annual De Anza College Teaching & Learning conference, held last Friday. The conference, coordinated by instructor Karen Chow, featured 21 workshops, 45 presenters and 11 Student Services staff providing information at the Student Services fair. The conference was generously co-sponsored by the Office of the President, the offices of Instruction, Student Services and Academic Services, the Academic Senate and the De Anza Bookstore, which provided a range of raffle prizes.

Sports Report

The women's basketball team last week won the conference championship, with Derisa Taleni named to the All State Basketball Team. Coach Arden Kragalott was honored as Conference Coach of the Year. The NorCal playoff game will be held this Friday, Feb. 29 at 7 p.m. at City College San Francisco.

Faculty and Staff News

Congratulations to Staff Members

The following personnel actions have been approved by the board of trustees since the beginning of the calendar year.

New Hires:

Robert Alexander and Cleve Freeman, academic advisers

Floro Bautista and Maura Vidal, custodians

Tammy Ehle, broadcast coordinator

Lucila Hirata, Child Development Center teacher

Andy Huygh, testing technician

Diana Martinez, Environmental Sciences technician

Promotions:

Randy Claros to academic adviser

Diana Contreras to testing technician

Awards:

Professional Growth Awards: Francisca Ramirez Moya; Mary Washington

Service Recognition Award: Leticia Cervantes

Longevity Award: Renato Tuazon

Distinguished Educator Award

Jack Lynch, Fall 2007 True to the tenets of his field, longtime businessman Lynch says he approaches teaching from a customer service orientation, aiming for "student success and retention. Our students are our customers and are the most important people on campus."

Staff Development Leave: Lori Susi