This week was the AI Futures Summit in Santa Clara. This year’s theme was Educational Innovation in the Digital Era.
One highlight of the summit was that the Chancellor’s Office AI Fellows Program hosted its first retreat for the inaugural cohort. This group includes 13 AI Fellows that will develop frameworks, guidelines, and resources that support the responsible adoption of AI technologies across all 116 colleges.
Good morning California.
It is September 13, 2025.
A good day to be a Community College Champion
From California Community Colleges.
Our Time is Now!
Butte College Breaks Ground on Chico Center Expansion
Butte College officially broke ground on its Chico Center Expansion Project, a $27.2 million investment that will add nearly 24,000 square feet of new facilities to serve students in Chico and the surrounding communities.
Norco College Sees Success with Disposable Glove Recycling Pilot Study
Last spring, Norco College’s Sustainability and Climate Action Committee launched an initiative to redirect disposable glove waste away from landfills and into recycling centers. The project salvaged nearly six pounds of gloves, masks, and hairnets from the Coral in just one month.
Yuba College Manufacturing Team Wins National Championship
in Project MFG’s Clash of Trades
Yuba College’s Advanced Manufacturing program is celebrating a national victory after three of its students claimed first place in Project MFG’s Clash of Trades, a televised competition that challenges the best and brightest in advanced manufacturing, computer numerical control (CNC) machining and additive technologies. Competing June 10 to 12 at Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville, Illinois, students Phoenix Farrell, 19, Adam Davis, 21, and Wyatt Curry, 21, represented Yuba College in the final round against Central Alabama Community College, Everett Community College and Autry Technology Center. The trio walked away as national champions and with $100,000 in prize money. Half will go to support the college’s manufacturing program, while the other half was split among the three students.
In Case You Missed It
California Community Colleges & Google Launch Nation’s
Largest Higher Education Systemwide AI Partnership
Google today unveiled a major collaboration with the California Community Colleges that will provide more than 2 million students and faculty across the state’s 116 community colleges with free access to AI training, Google Career Certificates, and some of Google’s cutting-edge AI tools including Gemini for Education and NotebookLM. The announcement came during the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office Futures Summit 2025, an event designed to drive digital transformation and innovation across the California Community Colleges. The system will also be one of the first members of Google’s AI for Education Accelerator, an initiative specifically designed to help prepare students for the jobs of today and tomorrow. This announcement with Google represents a significant expansion and investment in workforce development within higher education, positioning California’s community college students at the forefront of the AI-driven economy.
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California Community Colleges Launches Nation’s
Most Ambitious AI Integration Initiative
This week at the Futures Summit 2025, the California Community Colleges – the largest and most diverse higher education system in the country – will officially announce the launch of its Chancellor’s Office AI Fellows program, a bold new initiative aligned with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s statewide AI agenda and designed to make California the national leader in equitable AI education and workforce development.
The inaugural cohort of 13 AI Fellows will develop frameworks, guidelines, and resources that support the responsible adoption of AI technologies across all 116 colleges, which serve 2.1 million students and employ 88,000 professionals. Fellows will specialize in critical focus areas including AI assessment and learning analytics, AI infrastructure, AI professional development, AI research and innovation, AI student support services, AI in teaching and learning, and AI workforce development.
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California faces a nursing shortage. Community colleges can help
The road to becoming a nurse in California has been paved with roadblocks, sharp turns and bottlenecks. Where that education is offered has a lot to do with it.
As someone who has lived every long mile and continued to drive forward, I believe the solution lies in expanding the ability for California’s community colleges to offer bachelor of science degrees in nursing.
Community colleges are where many nurses start. They should be where we have the chance to finish as we shift into our careers.
Fun Photos & Spotted on Social Media
From Evergreen Valley College:
Many of our original and early faculty (or their families) from our opening in 1975… Walter Soellner, Linda Roy, Ron Fisher, Sami Ibrahim, Evonne Davenport, Karen Strelitz (wife of our first president, Gerald Strelitz), Rose Higashi and Susan Morgado (daughter of Gene Morgado, our original auto faculty)
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From College of San Mateo:
What an incredible Transfer Day at CSM!
Nearly 60 colleges, universities, and private schools from across California and beyond visited campus, providing students with the opportunity to meet representatives, ask questions, and learn about some of their dream schools.
A huge thank-you to our Transfer Services team for organizing this packed event and to our amazing student leaders for helping spread the word and guiding students to the fair.
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From Diablo Valley College:
Thank you to everyone who joined us for the 9/11 Tribute Run at DVC Pleasant Hill yesterday! Our amazing DVC student veterans and supporters ran together across campus to honor the lives lost and the heroes who rose in service after September 11, 2001. 
A special thank you to our DVC student veterans for leading this meaningful tribute and reminding us of the values of unity, resilience, and service.
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From Victor Valley College:
Earlier this month, Victor Valley College’s Workforce Development celebrated the Industrial Maintenance Mechanic (IMM) Apprenticeship Graduation Ceremony at the High Desert Training Center!
We proudly honored 10 outstanding employees from employer partners, including Mitsubishi Cement Corporation, Rio Tinto, CEMEX, Church & Dwight, and Exquadrum. These graduates completed their year-long Related Supplemental Instruction (RSI) and are now returning to their organizations with advanced technical skills.
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From Saddleback College:
This summer, the voices of Saddleback were heard around the world. Our Chamber Singers and Emeritus Chorale came together for Saddleback College Choir’s first international tour. From ages 18 to 90, singers shared the stage across four countries, proving that music truly connects generations and cultures.
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From Allan Hancock College:
Cadets in our fire academy climbed the six-story tower at the AHC Public Safety Training Complex in Lompoc to memorialize the first responders killed in the September 11th attacks. They made the trip up the tower 19 times, the equivalent of the World Trade Center’s 110 stories.
And From the Home of the Renegades
Transfer Pathways Hosts Transfer Day for Fall 2025
On Monday, September 8, Bakersfield College’s Transfer Pathways department hosted Transfer Day for the Fall 2025 semester. This exciting event brings several colleges and universities to the Panorama Campus, giving students an incredible opportunity to learn more about their academic options once they have completed their time at BC.
More than 50 colleges and universities participated in the event, and representatives were eager to provide students with details about admissions, campus environments, degree options, campus housing, and more. The event drew several hundred student participants over the course of the day, and each attendee walked away with valuable information, and swag, from a variety of local, private, and national institutions.
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Remember – our greatest challenges enable us to do our greatest work.
That’s all for today.
See you next Saturday!
With much hope and joy,
Your Chancellor,
-sonya
#OurTimeisNow
#NuestroTiempoEsAhora
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