For the past three years, Bakersfield College has been participating in “Project Atlantis,” an International Exchange Program for students in humanities careers. This year, Bakersfield College has three students from Spain and one student from Italy currently attending classes, and sent two of our students to Spain and one to Italy. All the students who have participated have been academically successful and have gained a new cultural understanding.
The International Exchange Program is a dynamic program enabling eight students to have an international experience. All students who participate in the exchange program receive the international exchange certificate. The exchange program is a one year commitment. One semester will be spent in either Italy or Spain taking a full load of classes at the University in the language of the country.
For students who remain here the entire year, they will take all the international exchange certificate courses, and be responsible to tutor and provide support to foreign exchange students the entire semester. This program is an exceptional opportunity and we hope all our child development, education, and liberal studies students will consider applying.
Thank you Bernadette Towns for your hard work on this project.
Tag Archives: students
Project Atlantis Opens International Doors for BC Students
For the past three years, Bakersfield College has been participating in “Project Atlantis,” an International Exchange Program for students in humanities careers. This year, Bakersfield College has three students from Spain and one student from Italy currently attending classes, and sent two of our students to Spain and one to Italy. All the students who have participated have been academically successful and have gained a new cultural understanding.
The International Exchange Program is a dynamic program enabling eight students to have an international experience. All students who participate in the exchange program receive the international exchange certificate. The exchange program is a one year commitment. One semester will be spent in either Italy or Spain taking a full load of classes at the University in the language of the country.
For students who remain here the entire year, they will take all the international exchange certificate courses, and be responsible to tutor and provide support to foreign exchange students the entire semester. This program is an exceptional opportunity and we hope all our child development, education, and liberal studies students will consider applying.
Thank you Bernadette Towns for your hard work on this project.
BC talks about our First Generation students
The Bakersfield College team at the First Generation movie showing in Delano! Steve Watkin, Liz Peisner, Terri Goldstein, Janet Fulks
Last week, Bakersfield College held special showings of the movie “First Generation,” which highlights the plight of California’s first generation college-going students. Three showings at the Panorama Campus were filled, and a fourth at the Delano Campus was widely attended!
Exposure to this type of information and learning is essential as we work to understand our students, their backgrounds, and their goals. Despite our best efforts to provide the highest-quality learning experience possible, so many external factors impact the potential success of our students. By better understanding the plight of the first-generation student, Bakersfield College can adjust its service capabilities and educational plans, and better serve this special population’s needs.
Janet Fulks, biology faculty member made the movie a reality at Bakersfield College. She brought together a team from across campus to encourage current and future students and their families, and Bakersfield College staff, too!
After the Delano presentation of “First Generation,” Janet emailed me, and I wanted to share with you what she said.
I want to give a shout out to the incredible First Generation Team who’s names are listed below. We had about 200 people at the Delano movie showing last night thanks to the great work of Rich McCrow. Faculty at Delano were commenting that “I am that student in the film, but I finally made it through and am a faculty member now.” Students were commenting on specific steps they are going to take to complete college, see counselors, complete my education plan, look into financial aid etc.
We will have reached over 500 people with this film after the last showing today. Thanks to everyone for your great support!
First Generation Committee:Vickie Coffee, Terri Goldstein, Tina Tuttle, Janet Fulks, Kristin Rabe, Tarina Perry, Amber Chiang, Richard McCrow, Alice Desilagua (HS counselors), JoAnn Acosta, Primavera Arvizu, Kim Van Horne, Heidi Forsythe, John Gerhold, Steve Watkin, Janet Thomas, Liz Rozell, Mary Webb, Liz Peisner, Shannon Musser, Heidi Gilliard.
Pat Smith, who is a criminal justice instructor here at Bakersfield College, messaged Janet about the movie and how she related to the movie premise:
I am taking my class to today’s 1 pm showing…I hope we all fit. I am looking forward to it because I am that student also and I am now faculty! My parents were Spanish speaking and never went to college so they could not share with me what college would be like. They knew to encourage me to go however and believed in education. What got me through was my cousin…she was a BC professor here and she helped me tremendously by telling me what college was like and what classes to take. I am forever grateful that she encouraged me to pursue a college degree.
Thank you all for the support and encouragement. This is what Renegade pride is all about – understanding the challenges and meeting the needs of students!
Learning in Community: Meeting the Needs of our Students with Disabilities. Nov 15, 2013
Terri Goldstein. Director, DSPS
On Friday, November 15th many faculty, staff and administrators attended a workshop on instructional technology issues and accessibility for students with disabilities presented by Gaeir Dietrich, the Director of the CCCCO’s High Tech Center Training Unit. To complement the training, the DSPS faculty and staff also put together a terrific display of technology typically used by students with a variety of disabilities.
Gaeir Dietrich taught us many interesting things—most importantly that “campus accessibility is a campus-wide responsibility” and that “digital does not necessarily mean accessible.” “It’s a matter of equal rights, campus diversity, and better pedagogy by acknowledging learning differences that benefits all students.”
While other laws do apply, Gaeir primarily focused on two sections of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act (as amended): Section 504 which relates to accommodations for people with disabilities, and Section 508 which refers to access to Electronic and Information Technology. Because we accept federal funding at BC these laws apply to us. Section 508 is a campus-wide responsibility; while section 504 is primarily a DSPS responsibility. Section 504 begins where section 508 ends. In short, the campus is responsible for purchasing and implementing accessible technology (including hardware, software, websites, videos, and classroom management systems), and if that still doesn’t meet the needs of a particular student, then DSPS will accommodate for that person. “But some programs cannot be accommodated, such as ALEKS, and therefore cannot be required of all students to use,” Gaeir said.
The incredible DSPS staff
When it comes to videos, we should always first check to see if they are captioned. According to Gaeir videos need to be captioned before the first showing in class regardless of whether or not that class contains someone who needs it. “Research shows that many more students can benefit from captions than just students who are deaf or hard of hearing… English language learners, and students with attention or learning disabilities can also benefit from captions.” If the video you want is not captioned, then the department must get it captioned. The cost for getting it transcribed and captioned costs about $3.50 per minute, so we are better off finding materials already captioned.
“Academic freedom is not the issue” said Gaeir, “that’s what goes into the container. But the container must be accessible. What you put on the page is your business… so is making sure that page is an accessible document.” To make accessible PDFs is not as daunting as one might think. Gaeir recommends starting out in MS Word and using the styles settings for headers, body text, etc. Also, add ‘alt tags’ to photos so someone who can’t see them will know the content. Then, save the page as a PDF. It can really be that simple!
Accessibility needs to be part of our planning process. If we all do our part, then not only will it cost less to accommodate individual students but also we create greater access for all BC students, faculty and staff. To contact DSPS call 661-395-4334 or email director Terri Goldstein.
You can also view this informative presentation online. Tom Moran, Bakersfield College’s faculty-photographer-extraordinaire, also has a gallery of images for the day online!
Our students: SGA’s Go and Grow
Your Student Government Association took the term “Servant Leadership” to a whole new level at the Go and Grow Resource Fair. Departments were encouraged to set up display tables to showcase the courses of study offered within their various disciplines.
Additionally, areas such as Admissions and Records, Job Placement, and the President’s Office shared resources available to students ranging from a calendar of Centennial events to how to prepare for a job interview.
The level of detail that SGA executed was impressive; from student planners to student escorts, from cotton candy to course offerings, students walked away with resources to assist them toward graduation, transfer, and employment. Escorts encouraged the attendees to visit as many tables as time permitted; door prizes were offered for their perseverance.
Congratulations to SGA on a smashing success!
My First Commencement – Bakersfield College’s 99th!
Sonya Christian at BC’s 99th Commencement
May 10, 2013 was BC’s 99th commencement. My first as president.
Faculty, staff, and administration marched into Memorial Stadium, ready and excited to celebrate the hard work and determination of every single Bakersfield College student. Those who have never been to a Bakersfield College commencement had little idea what these dedicated professionals had planned for the night – but the accoutrements were tucked neatly under their gowns: bubbles, horns, noisemakers, and more!
Following the faculty and staff, the music, provided live by members of the Bakersfield College band and orchestra, switched to “Pomp and Circumstance,” which is the traditional commencement march for colleges and universities. Students came streaming into Memorial Stadium to the shouts and cheers of family and friends, before taking their seats and staring up into the crowd in awe and wonder.
After some opening preliminaries, including the presentation of the American and California flags by a huge contingent of Boy Scouts, we heard from our resident anthem singer, Dr. John Gerhold, who sang a rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” which brought tears to my eyes.
The night’s honored speakers followed Dr. Gerhold, which included Kern Community College District Board of Trustees member Pauline Larwood, Kern Community College District Associate Vice Chancellor Dr. Michele Bresso, Vice President of the Academic Senate Michael Korcok, and Bakersfield College Student Government Association President and member of the class of 2013 Danitza Romo.
As I spent the next hour or so congratulating each and every student and presenting them their diplomas, I am reminded of the transformative power of education. Each student had their own hopes, their own dreams, and on commencement night, I was part of it.
Faculty and staff form a tunnel to celebrate the class of 2013!
Remember those hidden treasures our faculty and staff snuck in? They came out and were enthusiastically used as students started receiving their diplomas. Each student walks a route from their chair, to the announcement area, to me, then through the cadre of faculty and staff who are ready to give high-fives, hugs, and make as much noise as possible for their students. The celebratory atmosphere was very, very energizing.
We kept it up until every last diploma was presented. As we finished the night, the faculty and staff created a tunnel to the edge of the stadium, and every graduate walked through the rows of celebratory cheers and hugs.
We attempted a new routine in handing out diplomas with two lines rather than one and shortened the duration of the event by 30 minutes which was very well received by all.
Check out Tom Moran’s commencement collection which is at http://tinyurl.com/ca3s9lc
