5 Things to Know Weekly Update
Dear Colleagues:
We are three weeks out from the start of the spring semester, and true to historical trends, students have been registering in greater numbers over the past week. That increase should continue until the first day, which is February 2 this year. In the meantime, winter session is quite healthy and moving along, and we are getting ourselves organized so that everything goes smoothly in February. Wishing all of us an easy and productive spring!
Meridith
Managers will be at the Coastline Garden Grove campus on Wednesday, January 14, for our winter retreat, so you won’t see us that day. Since we are so close, Public Safety will be able to contact anyone and have them return in the event of an emergency – or more likely, handle the emergency themselves. I am confident that the campus will be fine!
Speaking of Public Safety, please recall that anyone who sees a vehicle or person who seems to be from immigration enforcement should CALL Public Safety (or my office) immediately. It is a California law now that the College must inform the campus about any immigration activities. Some of you sent emails last week about a concern (that turned out NOT to be immigration related) – thank you, and please call in the future so that we can investigate more quickly.
Over the break, I had an opportunity to speak with Dr. Carla Hernandez DeCuir from Excelencia in Education, and we will be moving forward with our affiliation with that group, which is dedicated to successful outcomes for Hispanic students. With our HSI grant ending this year as well as our continuing need to address the gaps in outcomes for Hispanic students, I am excited to get some additional assistance and professional development from this group. Dean Gisela Verduzco will lead our liaison team and we will keep everyone informed as the partnership progresses.
Governor Newsom released his preliminary 2026-2027 budget last week and it looks fairly good for the community colleges, with COLA, additional funding for growth and continuation of some funding for special programs. However, remember that the state budget is not finalized until July 2026, so there can be both positive and negative changes. Here is the analysis from our system:
The VPs and I are all here this week, preparing for the accreditation visit on February 24, the start of our new cafeteria (to be named The Corral – get it?), and most important, spring semester. Take time to enjoy the sunshine this week – you never know when the next atmospheric river will arrive.
