CHANCELLOR’S C-DIRECTAugust 18, 2016

Dear Colleagues:

The new academic year is here and thousands of students are excited to soon be with us and to join some of you in the classroom. We have started to make significant efforts to improve our outreach and enrollment management plans. I am happy with the work Tamika Brown, pictured, is doing, along with our College recruiters. There remains a lot more to do, particularly in with regard to implementing automated systems as a means to communicate with students. We also need to do more collaborative work to retain more of the students

who come to us—all of us need to work together to inspire our students to stay in college and to ensure that our students are receiving the services that they need to get an education.

We, of course, know that some of our Colleges have limited hours for student services, but we are working to meet our students’ needs. A major challenge is to better coordinate all Student Services personnel, so that students receive reliable information from all of us. This is a major task that will take time to develop we continue to more clearly delineate functions between District personnel and the Colleges’ operations.

A good indication of the urgency being placed on this issue is the fact that a meeting is being held on August 26th for the recruiters and Enrollment Management folks to discuss plans for increasing enrollment for this fall and to take the necessary steps to increase enrollment for Spring, Summer and Fall 2017.

PCCD’s proactive stance on Enrollment Management will also help in ensuring that students are ready to be in class when classes start and not two weeks later.

This is a communication I sent to the Presidents and the Vice Presidents of Instruction:

Dear Colleagues, This is the season when students attempt to get into classes late after a couple of sessions have taken place. I have received a few requests from instructors asking that faculty authorize any late add past the first-class session or two.

Please review your policies and communicate with faculty and staff who are helping students to get into classes in order to make sure that the students have an opportunity to succeed by having the faculty help them. For some of our students, it may be that they are early for the next semester if they show up too late for this one. So, figure out a way to make sure that faculty are supported with late entries. The students are depending on us to give them guidance. Thank you!

Flex Day

As you know, District Flex Day was held yesterday at Laney College. If you missed the morning session speakers, which included my address, you can find the complete text of my address, my PowerPoint and videos of the morning session at the below link. Thank you to everyone who made Flex Day possible!

Flex Day link: http://web.peralta.edu/chancellor/chancellors-flex-day-address/

Hack the Hood Orientation

We initiated a partnership with Hack the Hood over the past few months. This partnership is bearing fruit, as we were invited to provide direct appeal and support for the students to enroll at our Colleges. Rachel Mercy Simpson (Media Arts-BCC) and Courtney Brown (Cyber Security-Merritt) were on hand to encourage the students to strongly consider a community college route, and to attend one of our four Colleges. The Hack the Hood students learn web development and other skills to help them work and study at the same time.

New Administrator Orientation

Despite a late start and difficulties in communication, the Leadership Academy class has taken it upon itself to improve employees’ experiences during their sojourn at Peralta

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and held its first “Onboarding” and orientation for new administrators. This group —comprised of Lilia Chavez, Maria Spencer, Andre Singleton, Chioma Ndubuisi, Sui Song, Chanelle Whittaker, Chriss Foster, Keiko James and Jennifer Seibert — developed, delivered, evaluated and is now, already, revamping the process. They have focused on ensuring that employees’ experience at Peralta is unique and includes the recognition of employees on Flex Days, as we did yesterday, and ongoing training for employees. I must say that this Leadership Development Program has far exceeded my expectations. The Program they held last week was very well received.

New Employee Orientation

Earlier this week, on August 16, another group from the Leadership Academy provided an orientation for new employees, particularly faculty and classified staff. The Program was a full day of orientation. This event is worth celebrating, as the Academy has now produced two different orientations where none existed before. I challenged them to come up with activities that would transform Peralta, and the Academy participants took my call to heart.

Here are the colleagues who worked on it: Antoine MehouelleyBrenda J. Lewis, Fong Tran, Liliana Rojas, Dave Nguyen, Karen Croley, Joseph Koroma, Chan Eng, Charles Neal and Sharon Millman. Our gratitude to them!

Community Town Hall at Youth UpRising

Trustee Brown partnered with OUSD Board member James Harris to host a Community Town Hall meeting featuring our Chancellor. The Youth UpRising organization helped to gather students and community members to participate. The Town Hall was well attended, with a large number of Peralta employees joining us. We shared information about our Colleges and the District; it was a very good event. Some of the notable staff

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and faculty who attended were Dave Nguyen from Financial Aid, Louis Quindlen from Laney faculty, Presidents Burns and Stanley, Assistant VC Tamika Brown, Trustee Bill Riley, Nursing Director Dawn Williams and, from Public Information, Faiza Ali and Jeff Heyman, who helped arrange the event with LaNiece Jones. Thanks to all who participated. Such support can only enhance our presence in the community.

Visit to Roots Community Health Center

Prior to the Youth UpRising event, I had one of the most memorable visits in a while. Roots Community Health Center, led by Noha Aboelata, M.D., and Aquil Naji, serves a lot of people in the community through a re-entry program for formerly incarcerated individuals, and others who have fallen on hard times. We are planning follow-up meetings, as this organization has sought partnerships with us before, but has not been very successful. Furthermore, they are sending clients and potential employees to City College of San Francisco to be educated in areas where we ought to be training people.Strong coordination between Roots and PCCD around the population we serve in common would be excellent.

Vice Chancellor Ron Little and Capital Project Director Laura McCarty

Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration and Laura McCarty, our new Capital Project Director, met with me last week to review the status of our Capital Projects and related expenditures. We reviewed the overall projects. Ms. McCarty promised that all projects will be completed by 2020. The updates and schedules for projects will be shared with each College and a workshop will be held for the Board to go over the revised schedule in November, following the campus vetting. Additionally, Ms. McCarty

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developed a recalibration of our spending plan and critical priorities. Funding for Smart Classrooms and necessary program needs will be prioritized.

Chinese Students from Ningbo College

A group of 12 students from Ningbo College, one of our partner institutions, is spending three weeks in Oakland for summer enrichment provided by our faculty. This is the first part of a productive relationship with Ningbo College.

Maintenance & Operations: 30 Day Project Update III

LANEY COLLEGE

LibraryAll on going refurbishment jobs including interior painting, window cleaning, floor waxing, carpet deep cleaning & shampooing at the library are now complete. The only outstanding work is the replacement of the carpet on the grand staircase with durable rubberized anti-skid material. The material has been ordered, and the order lead-time is about 3 weeks –tentative installation date is the first week in September 2016.

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Chemistry/Biology LabsAll on-going repairs slated for the various labs have been completed –repairs include sink drains and faucets, particularly in A-235, in addition to general cleaning of sinks, countertops, cabinets and flooring. The only outstanding work item is the installation of counterweights on chemistry fume hoods’ glass enclosures –that work is expected to begin this week and to be completed before the opening of classes.

CosmetologyProposed repairs in cosmetology labs include electrical upgrades/repairs, plumbing repairs, equipment upgrades/repairs, general painting and a host of other minor work items. In-house staff completed all plumbing-related work orders last week while outside vendors completed the majority of upgrades/repair requests. Painting of all the spaces was completed last week. New electrical wiring was done to increase electric current to the various outlets. Also, additional electrical outlets were added in two lab areas. Orders have been placed for new countertop-mounted retractable mirrors, and will be installed by an outside contractor upon arrival, as this was a special order coming out from Los Angeles. Meanwhile, more of the broken retractable mirrors are now operational, including the hair dryers.

Quad, Breezeways & Access PathwaysPower washing in the various access points and arteries are still on-going and will be completed prior to the start of fall semester. Additionally, window washing in the quad area is on-going and will be completed by August 21st.

Child Care CenterPressure washing of outdoor pavement including sidewalks has been completed. Further, deep cleaning of carpet, tiles and waxing of other flooring have been completed. Tree pruning in the grounds as part of District-wide efforts is currently underway and will be completed shortly. The Contract for the installation of artificial turf in the infant play area at Laney CDC has been awarded and work will be completed this week.

Student CenterA decision was made to switch from waterless urinals to equally eco-friendly ¼ pint water-fed urinals because of unabated maintenance-related issues with the former. The new urinals will be functional during the forthcoming College flex day ceremonies on August 17th.

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Theater Flooring & CounterweightsConstruction is now complete and the majority of deficiencies in the punch-list have been rectified. We are happy to report that the Theater is in great shape to host the District-wide Flex Day activities following the completion of maintenance checks on climate control, audio-visual and restrooms done by our in-house crew of Facilities’ engineers.

RestroomsAll designated restrooms undergoing renovation (toilet, mirrors, sinks, painting, dispensers, and graffiti removal) have been completed and are now fully functional.

CafeteriaThe Cafeteria modernization and renovation project is still ongoing, and is progressing at top speed. The project is expected to be completed prior to the opening of classes in the fall. The work entails the replacement of existing ceiling, flooring, plumbing improvement, air balancing, fire suppression and equipment upgrades.

Welding DepartmentThe restoration of the welding-arm loop (by an outside Contractor) for safe use has begun and an update on a completion date will be known by next week.

Broken Glass WindowsAll broken glass windows in the quad area have been replaced; work was completed last week by ACR Glazing. Also, the cleaning of unaffected glass apertures in the quad area is currently underway and it’s expected to be completed prior to start of fall semester.

Temporary Parking for Laney Students and FacultyIn an effort to temporary alleviate the parking needs for students and faculty at Laney College, especially at the beginning of the Fall Semester, the Administration has taken the following measures. Beginning August 22 through September 12th, the parking lot at DAC main (Chancellor Offices) will be designated as flow-over parking lot specifically for Laney College Students and Faculty. This arrangement is intended to ease parking congestion during the first few weeks of classes and student registration. This parking privilege is only extended to cars with appropriate Peralta parking decals and/or temporary parking permits – cars without will be ticketed by the Sheriff. All District

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(current users) of the DAC main parking lot, except the Sheriff, will be required to park in the Department of General Services (DGS)/ IT parking lot for the duration of the temporary parking arrangement.

Laney Parking Lot A ExtensionEffective the week of August 22nd, 85 additional permanent parking stalls will be available in the new parking lot extension on the other side of I-880 freeway –access will be from 4th and Oak Streets. A new gate and additional fence will be installed the next few weeks to further secure the lot. In addition, campus safety aides and the Sheriff will provide regular patrols in the new lot.

MERRITT COLLEGE

Parking LotsStriping of stalls, curbs, directional signage in all parking lots (including the horticulture lot) is now completed. A new vendor is been engaged to paint all cross walks, speed bumps and curbs in the entire campus, including special areas such as the compactor zone in Building A and the loading docks in building P – that work is expected to be done prior to August 21st.

Pressure WashThe pressure washing of all walkways, breezeways and sidewalks in the entire campus and the courtyard of building A was completed on August 7th.

General CleaningFloors, sinks, countertops, cabinets and equipment in the new Science & Allied Health Building was rescheduled for the week of August 15th and the work is almost complete.

Childcare CenterPressure washing, deep cleaning, and waxing of floors at the Center were completed last week.

Building S Plaques PlacementThe installation of plaques and 100 atomic magnetic clocks in hallways, classrooms and office suites throughout the Building is currently underway; work is being done by in-house staff.

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Weed Abatement and Pruning of TreesWeed abatement throughout the College, including Parking Lot C, areas adjourning the Soccer Fields, and the Child Development areas are 95% done. Pruning of tress and removal of diseased trees are being removed by the arborist. Other trees will be planted in places where trees were removed.

BERKELEY CITY COLLEGE

ElevatorNew flooring for all four (4) passenger elevators was installed earlier in July 2016.

PaintingPainting of the 4th and 5th floors, the Student lounge, and about half a dozen study rooms in the library was completed last week.

Outdoor CleaningLewis & Taylor Building Services is contracted to power wash the entire span of public sidewalk fronting the College –work was completed last week.

Dust RemediationThe Berkeley Center Street Garage is undergoing demolition and the wind is blowing this dust toward the College. The District Administration met with the City of Berkeley Administration to find a solution to this challenge before classes begin. An understanding was reached by both parties that following steps be taken to mitigate against this situation:

All the vents and air-ducts will be cleaned before classes begin. City will clean all the window glass that are impacted The City has already deployed two photoionization machines on the 1st and 5th

floors to monitor the dust particles in the building. Special thanks to the leadership of the City’s Interim Manager – Gil Dong-- for taking proactive measures.

The demolition of the garage will conclude by Friday August 19, 2016.

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COLLEGE OF ALAMEDA

COA AviationElectrical and plumbing work, including the replacement of exterior lighting fixtures and plumbing fixtures, is currently underway and should be completed within the week.

General CleaningConsolidated Cleaning Services, Inc. has been engaged for general cleaning in all the buildings at COA Main. They are scheduled to begin work the week of August 8th.

Elevator Repairs in Building DRepair work to fix this elevator was contracted out to KONE Elevator Company. The repair technicians will at the College on Wednesday, August 17, 2016 to determine the repair methodology that will work for this unit. The overarching goal is to fix it before classes begin next Monday 22, 2016.

DISTRICT ADMINISTRATIVE CENTER (DAC)

A&R BuildingA Contract for renovation of both men & women restroom has been awarded to N.S. Construction. The renovation work is expected to start within a week –Facilities’ staff will coordinate with A&R to workout construction logistics in order to minimize impacts and to establish alternative restrooms during modernization.

DAC MainA Contract for the renovation of the women’s restroom in the Academic Affairs/Finance Offices has been awarded to N.S Construction; work will commence upon delivery of the flooring material currently on order by the contractor.

DGS WarehouseA Contract has been awarded for the renovation of the men’s restroom in the warehouse area. The work entails the installation of bathroom stalls to separate toilet and shower activities from the urinal in order to improve space utilization –three (3) activities are anticipated to happen simultaneously upon completion. In addition, the toilet will be upgraded to a low-flow hands-free model; also, flooring and LED lighting upgrades will also be implemented as part of the renovation.

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District-wide LandscapingElite Tree Services is almost done with tree pruning in all three (3) large acreage campuses and the DAC; work at Merritt College started on August 6th and continued for a few days and the work moved to Laney and is projected to end at COA prior to August 21st. In tandem is weed abatement work by an in-house grounds keeping crew that is scheduled for completion prior to August 21st.

Temporary ParkingSEE LANEY COLLEGE

Jowel C. Laguerre, Ph.D.Chancellor

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.- Jim Elliot

Hard days are the best, because that's when champions are made.- Gabby Douglas, Olympic gold medalist

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