Sonya Christian's Blog

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What a great week…. the campus was alive with activity from the BCSGA screening of the Ironed Jawed Angels, to the production of the Pillowman, to Baseball and Softball, to our tiny Cougar Renegades Lighting up the Night with the grand opening of the McFarland High Stadium, to the monitoring and ongoing education about the coronavirus and promoting healthy habits. Another routine week at the Home of the Renegades! This is how we roll…..

Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in California this week to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 novel coronavirus. At BC, we’ve been monitoring the evolving news and remain in close communication with Kern County Public Health.

There are currently no known cases of Coronavirus in our community.

When news first emerged of the coronavirus, I tasked a special advisory team on this matter to keep me informed with daily updates and status reports from Kern County Public Health.  I activated the Incident Command Center on February 27th and started my direct communication to the campus.

In the best efforts to keep our community informed, BCSGA President Samantha Pulido and Academic Senate President, Steven Holmes joined Cindy Collier and me in a video message to the campus this past Monday to share procedures like frequent and correct hand washing techniques.

Various teams around campus have been working around the clock to keep hand sanitizers filled, put out communications and posters to bulletin boards and the website, and keep surfaces and door handles disinfected on a routine schedule.  Thank you Bill Potter and our M&O staff. Thank you Dr. Nicky Damania, Cindy Collier and Shelly Casteneda

Bakersfield College will continue to closely monitor the global and and local development and BC’s COVID-19 Advisory Team will provide regular updates to the campus. I am proud of the efforts and leadership displayed by our community thus far. As educators, we continue to be role models for our students and for our community.  

Iron Jawed Angels

Earlier this week, BC’s Office of Student Life, the Norman Levan Center for the Humanities, and Women’s History and More Committee hosted a screening of the 2004 American historical film Iron Jawed Angels at the Levan Center, in honor of the National Women’s History month. The film portrayed the American women’s suffrage movement, during the 1910s, which defined a historical revolution of women’s right to vote.

American women’s suffrage leaders, Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, dedicated their lives to the women’s suffrage movement and formed the National Women’s Party which was committed to grant women the right to vote. Our BC History faculty, Jennifer Grohol, led the screening of the film and described how the women’s suffrage movement granted women the right to vote with the enactment of the U.S. 19^th Amendment.

Renegades Star in The Pillowman

The Performing Arts Department staged a riveting rendition of the dramatic play “The Pillowman” this week, bringing this dark, dystopian tale to life on the Indoor Theater stage.

 “Pillowman”, created by Irish playright Martin McDonagh, tells the story of a fiction writer being interrogated by police for the murder of three children. The details of the crimes are very similar to several short stories that he wrote, and the audience was at the edge of their seats as the narrative of the play unfolded to reveal the truth.

The cast and crew masterfully rotated the set designs for each scene, and all of the actors did an amazing job. There were two separate casts for “the Pillowman”, and both were fabulous.

Thank you to director Brian J. Sivesind, BC Performing Arts, and all of the cast and crew for bringing this psychological thriller to the stage. If you’re reading this on March 7, you still have a chance to catch three more performances of “The Pillowman” at at 2 p.m. on March 8.

The Inmate Scholars Program Shows Support for Females Achieving Change Together

Females Achieving Change Together (F.A.C.T.) is a gender responsive collaboration that focuses on the unique issues that previously incarcerated women face. On February 27th, The Division of Adult Parole Operations (DAPO) partnered with local community organizations and educational institutions for the first annual resource event. At the event, attendees learned about dressing for success, overcoming life obstacles, maintaining health and sobriety, and gathered information on next steps necessary for successful reintegration.

2020 Panorama Invitational

The Wylie and May Louise Jones Gallery inside the library is acknowledging the creativity of our local high school students as part of BC’s annual Panorama Invitational. You can visit the Jones Gallery Monday through Thursday between 3 and 6 p.m. to check out all of the beautiful artwork, which was curated from 13 high schools throughout Kern County.

The gallery runs until March 12, so be sure to check out all the great art on display. The gallery held an opening reception for the exhibition on January 30, giving the artists, their families, and members of the community the chance to celebrate their work. The pieces in this year’s Panorama Invitational show off the full range of creative expression that these young artists are capable of. For instance, “Chaos Through Angel Tears”, created by a senior from Golden Valley High School, depicts an angel in a state of ponderous melancholy, while “Stressed Patience”, created by a senior from Independence High School, is a visual representation of how time ebbs and flows.

Thank you to Ronnie Wrest, Jeffrey Huston and all of the staff at the Jones Gallery for giving young artists their first opportunity at having work displayed in an exhibition. On March 26, we will be honoring artists at the Home of the Renegades with the opening reception for the Bakersfield College Student Art Exhibition.

Fun photos from the CISOA conf

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UC Merced Trip with STEM Students

A group of 25 STEM students and five STEM faculty took off from Bakersfield on Friday, February 21^th on the Amtrak train to visit UC Merced.  It was a new adventure for many BC students, and some of them had have never been a train before.  The group took CatTracks, the campus shuttle, to and from the train station to UC’s newest campus nestled in the rolling hills outside of Merced, mingling with current UC Merced students and staff.  Once on campus they met with Professor Chistopher Viney, one of the twelve founding faculty of the University and chair of the Material Science and Engineering Department. Professor Viney greeted us and gave the students an overview of material science and engineering at UC Merced.  His department is a refreshing departure from the stereotypical view of the engineering profession, the faculty is 75% female from four different continents.

The students were impressed with the tour of the Chemistry Department which included their nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometery lab and their super computer facility used for computational chemistry.  UC Merced faculty member Prof. Hratchian was excited to tell us that ALL students, undergraduates included, had free access to the super-computer regardless of major. Many students commented on the train ride back that lunch in the The Pavilion (the newest dinning hall) was a great experience.  UC Merced is guided by a long-range vision of sustainable design, and waste reduction. In the cafeteria recycling and composting is a part of the dining experience, and the UC Merced student helped make sure that the compostable food waste and recycling was separated correctly.  BC faculty, Professors Rosenthal, McGarrah, Vaughan, Daniel and Saldivar accompanied the students on the trip.

Writing Center team at UCLA

The Writing Center team spent leap day attending the Southern California Writing Centers Association Tutor Conference on Saturday, February 29, 2020. Writing centers across So. Ca. gathered at the beautiful UCLA campus to hear presentations and a keynote on this year’s theme: “Equity in the Center.” Public and private two- and four-year colleges along with other types of institutions hosted workshops dedicated to addressing embedding an equity framework in writing centers.

The keynote speaker was Dr. Elizabeth Kleinfeld, Director of the Metropolitan University of Denver Writing Center, whom our own Writing Center Lead, Kim Arbolante, had the pleasure of meeting at the North American IWCA conference last October. Dr. Kleinfeld delivered an enlightening presentation on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and participants were invited to “participate in a little anarchy” by pretending our centers burned to the ground and needed to be completely redesigned physically and conceptually with UDL in mind.

On the BC team’s scenic walk back to the van, there were plenty of photo opportunities. Kim was even able to make time for a quick Byrd scooter ride along the way. Look at her go! 

Archives Throwback: Renegade Pantry

Looking back through our archive of Renegade Rip issues on the BC website, we discovered that this year marks the tenth anniversary of the Renegade Pantry, a resource center that provides our students with food, hygiene items and other essentials to support them through their educational journey.

In the February 3, 2010, issue of the Renegade Rip, reporter Brian N. Willhite and photographer David Karnowski covered the opening ceremony that took place on January 28 of that year. Former BC President Greg Chamberlain cut the ribbon for the new facility inside the John Collins Campus Center, and one of the speakers for the event was a BCSGA senator named Shawn Newsom, who is now one of our history professors. His wife Kristi Newsom served as BCSGA President at the time.

Today, you can find the Renegade Pantry inside Levinson Hall, and an expanded pantry is a big part of our plans for the new Campus Center that is slated to open before the end of this year.

Check out an excerpt from the article below:

“The Student Government Association at Bakersfield College has started a new program that hopes to eliminate hunger among the student body. The SGA will be offering a variety of canned goods and other food staples by providing a food bank to assist students in need. The Renegade Pantry officially opened its doors Jan. 28 with multiple news media organizations on hand to witness the ribbon-cutting ceremony and commencement speeches given by SGA senator and assistant to the dean Shawn Newsom and BC president Greg Chamberlain.

Together they expressed their desires and vision for the program and its success. “If we can provide the opportunity for one student to stay in school, then it is all worth it,” said Chamberlain as he spoke about the needs of the student body reaching their educational pursuits. With budgets being cut from community college special-needs programs such as CalWorks and EOPS, SGA board members sought opportunities to better serve BC students in need. The decision to start a student run food bank began over the winter break with hopes to provide relief to students who may be affected by budget cuts or other circumstances hindering their educational goals. “It is our goal that no student will have to choose between books or groceries,” said Newsom.

Renegades in the News: Shelly Castaneda

The magazine “Diversity: Issues in Higher Education” wrote a blurb highlighting Bakersfield College’s appointment of Shelly Castaneda as Executive Director of Public Safety. Shelly worked for the Kern County Sheriff’s office for 28 years and was the second woman in the history of the department to serve as Chief Deputy Sheriff. She is also an award-winning body builder and two-time survivor of breast cancer. I speak for everyone at BC when I say that we’re so proud to have Shelly on our team!

STEM & MESA Students Unite

On Monday, March 2nd, the STEM Pathway and MESA Program hosted Jaimi Paschal, Jenny Ezpeleta, and Melissa Mayfield, CSUB Advisors, to the AERA STEM Center. The advisors provided a brief presentation on STEM opportunities at CSUB.

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Wendale Davis Foundation

On February 28, 2020, Bakersfield College hosted the Wendale Davis foundation’s 12th annual Youth Leadership Conference. 

Since the murder of 16-year-old Wendale in 2006, his father Wesley Davis has worked to prevent Bakersfield’s youth from turning to violent lifestyles.

Over 300 students from the Bakersfield area were on campus Friday to learn about gang prevention and AIDS awareness and heard from Bakersfield Police Officers and current prison inmates. The keynote speaker Andrew “Dance Fever 3-D” Jones, shared his personal story on how he overcame early childhood adversity to become a professional dancer and motivational speaker. 

The purpose of the conference is to give youth skills to get through challenging situations.

Community Voices: Endee Grijalva

Endee Grijalva, the Program Manager for Adult Education, wrote her piece about the Homeless HireUp Project, an exciting new project we’re launching to provide 24 individuals with career preparation and a job within six months. One quote at the end of Endee’s article crystallizes why this initiative, which is in its pilot phase, is so important.

“The ultimate goal of Project HireUp is to shift the conversation on the nationwide homelessness crisis by demonstrating that in order to work towards the eradication of homeless, we must come together as a community to invest in the resources that will ensure the safety, health and overall well-being of all.”

Community Voices: Gian Gayatao

Gian Gayatao is a student senator on the Bakersfield College Student Government Association. He wrote about how BC helped him find and realize his passion for public service.

“BC SGA set me on a path of purpose to help students while working cohesively as a team from very different walks of life. I participated in making a survey for all students at BC to optimize our events on campus, see the issues being presented to us and to understand students on a deeper level. I sit on committees such as Student Health and Wellness and Accreditation and Institutional Quality to provide a student perspective. I have finally hit my stride and found my purpose to better BC.“

Community Voices: Jack Hernandez

Former Levan Center Director Jack Hernandez had this piece share some beautiful ruminations about the nature of solitude in the Californian: 

“To understand solitude is to understand its purpose, which is to be with, discover, and grow our inner self, our soul, as some would say. Solitude is more than being by ourselves, perhaps reading, listening to music, thinking and letting our minds wander. It is planned and structured attention, introspection and reflection at a regular time and place. As we set aside this regular time and place to be alone in solitude, our inner self begins to anticipate it.”

McFarland Athletic Field Ribbon Cutting

Trustee Romeo Agbalog and Abel Guzman attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for McFarland Unified School District’s Petersen Athletic Field Complex. Superintendent Aaron Resendez introduced and thanked Petersen family matriarch, Geneva Petersen, for her family’s generosity and support of the school district.  One of the highlights of the event was the performance by Browning Road STEAM Academy’s cheer squad who were wearing Future Early College Cougar t-shirts. 

This Week at BC

This week at BC, our marketing students Juan and Ramon focus on BC Athletics!

Renegade Athletics

Men’s Basketball Spring 2020 Camp

Renegade Men’s Basketball is offering a spring basketball camp on April 6th-7th from 9am-2pm each day. The camps emphasize the fundamentals of basketball and are co-ed, open to children ages 5-17. The cost will be $60/person. Pre-registration is encouraged through the form linked here. For more information, call Rich Hughes at 395-4553 or email at rihughes@bakersfieldcollege.edu.

Swimming Offers Private Swimming Lessons

Renegade Swimming is now offering private swimming lesson for anyone ages 3 to adult. The price for four, 30 minutes lessons is $80. Available lesson times are Monday-Friday 2:30pm & 7:00pm and on Saturdays between 9am-11am.

Adult lap swim is also available at the below times. It is free for BC faculty, staff and students and a $5 drop-in fee for community members.

• Monday – Thursday evenings 6:00-7:30pm
• Monday/Wednesday Mornings – 9:30-11:00am
• Tuesday/Thursday Mornings – 7:00-8:30am
• Saturdays – 9:00-11:00am

For more information call the BC pool at 661-395-4663 or email Head Swim Coach Matt Moon at matthew.moon@bakersfieldcollege.edu.

BC Golf at the Mission

This last Saturday our Men’s and Women’s Bakersfield College Golf Team’s headed over to provide service at the Kern County Mission. Our athletic department has consistently provided weekly service at the Mission for the past year. On top of school, practice, work and other obligations our student athletes are always finding ways to serve in our community. Way to represent BC!

Next Level Gades!

Renegade Football’s Angel Baez has committed to play with the Kansas Wesleyan University Coyotes this next fall. Angel, who attended East HS, played the last two seasons at BC as a defensive lineman. Congrats, Angel!

Also, Christian Gonzalez and Edgar Gonzalez are both headed taking their soccer talents to the next level. Christian (Ridgeview HS) is headed to Humboldt State and Edgar (Bakersfield HS) is staying in Bakersfield and will be at CSUB. Both were exceptional soccer players for Coach Vayron Martinez the past two years and played huge roles in the team winning the men’s soccer teams first conference championship this last fall. We wish them all the best in their future endeavors.

Valley Strong Credit Union Renegades of the Week

Renegade Athletics is proud to announce this week’s (2/23-2/29) Valley Strong Credit Union Renegades of the Week:

Amaya Williams, Women’s Track and Field – Amaya won the 100 hurdles (16.49) and 400 hurdles (1:09.25) at the Santa Monica College West Coast Classic. She is currently ranked first in SoCal in the 400 hurdles and ranked third in the 100 hurdles.

Cody Hartsfield, Men’s Track and Field – Cody won the discus (42.43m) and placed fourth in the hammer (41.03m) and seventh in the shot put (11.72m) at the Santa Monica College West Coast Classic.

Athletics Photos from this week

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Renegade Athletics updates from this past week:

• Baseball Unable To Overcome LA Mission
• Men’s Golf Hosts WSC #4 at Stockdale Country Club
• Women’s Tennis Rolls Over Porterville, 8-1
• Men’s Swim Takes Third at WSC Invite
• Women’s Swim Takes Fifth at WSC Invite
• Track and Field Competes at Santa Monica College West Coast Classic
• Men’s Tennis Falls to Santa Barbara at Home: http://gogades.com/sports/mten/2019-20/releases/20200225updl61

Athletic events ‘On the Hill’ this coming week

Be sure to put on your Renegade Red and cheer on our student athletes as they compete this coming week. If you can’t make it in person, check GoGades.com to catch the livestream. Events include:

• Tues. 3/10 – Women’s Tennis vs Antelop Valley at 2pm
• Tues. 3/10 – Baseball vs Glendale, 2:30pm
• Tues. 3/10 Softball vs. LA Mission, 2:30pm
• Thu. 3/12 – Women’s Tennis vs Ventura, 2pm
• Sat. 3/14 – Track and Field host the BC Relays at 11am
• Sat. 3/14 – M/W Tennis host Folsom Lake at 9:30am
• Sat. 3/14 Softball vs Reedley, 12pm
• Sat. 3/14 Softball vs. Long Beach, 4pm
• Sat. 3/14 Baseball vs. Glendale, 1pm