Let’s start with this photo a friend sent me of Monday morning’s sunrise at the Panorama Campus. A beautiful sky for a beautiful college.
Life Is Not Measured By the Number of Breaths We Take,
But By the Moments That Take Our Breath Away
Good morning Bakersfield.
It is Saturday, November 7, 2020, a beautiful day … and a great day to be a Renegade.
Enrollment Begins for Spring
Registration began this week for “Special Populations” and Continuing Students who have completed all enrollment steps. Students can see how to qualify for Early (Priority) Registration on the BC website.
Outreach & Early College
The Outreach & Early College Department had a Disney-themed team call this past week. The team call also turned into an impromptu Dodgers celebration following their World Series Win!
It’s always fun when I’m able to see how our BC teams stay connected and have fun virtually. Thank you for sharing!
Upcoming: David French Visits BC Virtually Next Week
Please join us for the next Distinguished Speaker Series event, sponsored by BCSGA and the Office of Student Life at Bakersfield College.
Senior Editor, Columnist, Bestselling Author
The events are free and open to the public. All events this year are scheduled to be via Zoom on a virtual platform. Closed captioning will be available at each event.
David French will be speaking on the Bakersfield Student Government Association Facebook page at two times:
- November 10th 10:00am- Register Now
- November 10th 2:00pm- Register Now
David French is a senior editor at The Dispatch and a columnist for Time.
A graduate of Harvard Law School and a constitutional lawyer, David most recently worked as a senior writer for National Review and a senior fellow at the National Review Institute. His most recent book — Divided we fall.
David is a former major in the United States Army Reserve. In 2007 he deployed to Iraq with the Third Armored Cavalry Regiment and was awarded the Bronze Star.
Thank you to History Professor Paul Beckworth for his work in putting this event together.
This event is part of Bakersfield College’s Veterans Month activities.
The Effects of Colorism on Latina and Black Youth Panel
This week, Bakersfied College’s Latinas Unidas Student Organization and Latina Leaders of Kern County held their third discussion on race & diversity relations in Kern County.
In the first panel, local leaders presented their experiences and perspectives on race and diversity relations in Kern County, as women in biracial marriages and women raising biracial children. The second panel featured Kern County women who are leading conversations around diversity to make our community and coalitions stronger.
Thank you to Brenda Valadez for her work in coordinating these discussions, and to Norma Rojas-Mora for facilitating the discussions.
Today, I’d like to share a short, 45-second clip from one of our students, Aris Trujillo, who spoke on her experience with light-skin privilege:
Get Out The Vote Caravan
Last weekend, the BC Cheer team and Drumline showed up to celebrate early voters on campus.
Thank you to Heather Foss and Tim Heasley for bringing the students out safely to engage them in one of the most critical exercises of citizenship in the United States.
Spotted on Social Media
Kalina Hill’s dog Thunder turned 11 this week!
Vice President of Instruction Billie Jo Rice shared this photo of her enjoying a beautiful day with her granddaughters:
I loved this note and these photos from the Rural Initiatives Facebook page:
Today our RI Team concluded day 3 of Bakersfield College in the Vineyards. In order to eliminate barriers for our rural students, innovative approaches are crucial to their success especially during a pandemic. We had the privilege of taking out BC face masks to those who feed the nation and through technology, info sent out in real time of their interest in pursuing their education…. bettering their lives and the lives of their families.
History professor Olivia Garcia shared her Halloween costume – she dressed as the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Olivia was instrumental in helping put together Bakersfield College’s tribute to Justice Ginsburg. Here is her introduction to that program:
In the News
Community Voices
Dean of Academic Technology Bill Moseley wrote a Community Voices piece about “preparing students for the workplace of tomorrow.”
“Last fall, the academic technology team at Bakersfield College, partnering with our Career and Technical Education leadership and several academic departments, launched an innovative effort to provide students and their future employers with a much sharper picture of student learning. Called badges or microcredentials, these digital representations of learning allow employers and students to see a much more detailed view of what happens inside a college course, down to the level of the critical skills and knowledge students will master. In addition to the more detailed view of learning, badges store information, such as when and how the skill was measured.”
Local Art
Retired Bakersfield College Professor Susan McQuerrey has a collection of watercolors, “Nature’s Colors”, on display at Dagny’s Coffee, and on the BAA Facebook page.
She shared a bit about her process in a recent Bakersfield Californian article.
Athletics
‘Gades Club’ Launched to Support Renegade Student Athlete Success
This last week our athletics department announced the launch of the ‘Gades Club’ to help support the success of Renegade student athletes both on the field and in the classroom.
Since 1922 Renegade Athletics has served as a launching pad for thousands upon thousands of student athletes who have gone on to professional careers both in their respective sports and off the playing field. The newly announced ‘Gades Club’ is a way for community donors to support Bakersfield College student athletes as they continue their academic and athletic careers at one of the most well-respected community colleges in the country.
“Participation in college athletics had long been a training ground for life lessons that transcend sports,” said current Renegade Interim Dean/Athletic Director Reggie Bolton.
“What our student athlete learn in their time here will stick with them through their entire lives. We appreciate the long-standing relationships and support the Bakersfield community has provided throughout the years. With the introduction of the ‘Gades Club’ we are looking to maintain a strong connection with that community and our Renegade alumni well into the future”
The ‘Gades Club’ will provide financial support to all 20 Renegade athletic male/female teams and will assist with the annual Hall of Fame and Renegade student athlete awards ceremonies. Click here to visit the ‘Gades Club’ webpage and make a donation to support the future of Renegade Athletics. The donation is tax deductible, but it is advised to speak with a tax professional for details.
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That’s all for now.
Until next time.
With much Renegade Pride and Collegiality.
sonya –
the luckiest and happiest college president ever
After the Senator cheered them on and shared that he was a trombone player, we visited the Veterans Resource Center to hear from Paul Beckworth about the growth of out student veteran population, what our veterans have been up to, and the plans for the new Veterans Resource Center coming soon to the Panorama campus. Senator Vidak heard directly from the 3 men studying in the lounge about their plans, what the new VRC means to them, and what they’re most looking forward to after finishing their education.
In the robotics lab, a number of students shared that their experiences this past summer at Bakersfield College have sparked their interests in STEM related careers and professions. Meanwhile, alumni and faculty shared the various tools and hands on learning experiences available within the robotics lab and how these technological advances are contributing to local industry.
Across the hall, we stopped in to Professor Ximena De Silva Tavares’ Chemistry course where Senator wanted to know what career fields everyone in the room was interested in. A young man spoke up saying he was interested in medicine and was looking forward to attending medical school after Bakersfield College.
On Wednesday morning, the community came out to join Kern County Department of Human Services, First 5 Kern, California Highway Patrol, Kern County Sheriff’s Department, Bakersfield Police Department, District Attorney’s Office Community Connection for Child Care, and BC’s Child Development Center team for a small program and safety demonstration.
BC’s Sea Turtles class of five-year-olds opened the program by singing “You are my Sunshine” and BC’s Child Development Center Director, Sue Vaughn welcomed all guests to our campus on the hill. BC’s Child Development Center is proud to be the host location for this years event. We are committed to being Bakersfield’s college and are happy any time the campus can serve as a location for uplifting the community through education and prevention. Cindy Uets, Deputy Director of the Department of Human Services spoke about the tragedies of child heat stroke deaths that occur every year in the US.
During the demonstration, a thermometer was placed inside a closed and parked car in sight. After watching the thermometer inside the closed vehicle rise dramatically, Robert Rodriguez of the CHP lead a demonstration of how many children could be lined up behind an SUV before the driver could see them in her rearview mirror. We had 25 three-year olds from the Seashells, Sea Horses and Starfish classrooms arranged behind the SUV before they were spotted.
This week, I also took some quiet time to remember past BC President, Dr. Lincoln Hall. It’s important to remember the Renegades and leadership that has brought our campus and community to where we are today. This week it was shared that Dr. Lincoln Hall, who served as Interim President of BC from January 2004 – March 2005 and then went on to serve at Porterville College, had passed away. Dr. Lincoln began his work in education after being released from active duty in 1954. He attended UC Berkeley to obtain his teaching credential and taught history, economics, and civics at Antioch High.
Nan said, “You guys!” And I think her face says it all!
The expertly prepared four=course meal and wine pairings were a highlight of the evening. I must say that I tend to avoid desert most evenings, but the desert at Sterling Silver was to die for. Stars of local cuisine such as Chef Thomas Chairez of Bakersfield Country Club, Chef Eric Sabella of Bakersfield College, Chef John Pilling of Trilogy Resort, and Chef Stephanie Caughell-Fisher of Gimmee Some Sugar worked together to plan the evening’s menu, and guests were treated to a delicious feast.
BC Football fought off a second half push by Moorpark and continued with their season-long trend of finishing strong by beating the Raiders 34-10 in front of over 5,000 fans at Memorial Stadium to complete a festive homecoming celebration Saturday and open conference play with a win.
Before the homecoming game, I attended the BC Alumni Association’s first TailGade. It was a wonderful event and a lovely afternoon to welcome home our Alumni to their campus on the hill. The large tent provided plenty of shade for eating and fellowship. The food from Fred’s BBQ was a big hit. We had delicious large, juicy grilled steaks, beans, salad and rolls. The steaks were so gigantic, I couldn’t even finish mine and the dinner was well worth the price of admission. They even offered refreshing la Rosa Frozen Fruit Bars for dessert. Perfect for the weather!
BC Professor Catherine Jones had a Community Voices piece published this week where she shared the associate degree program in Occupational Safety and Risk Management. She says, “Kern County is blessed with many types of industry and now there will be an educational pathway for safety and risk management professionals which matches the diversity in industry.” 
In fact, it was a great week to be a Renegade with a special day off on Tuesday to relax and celebrate a holiday with friends and family. On July 4th, the United States commemorates the start of a grand experiment in self-governance.
Two weeks of Agriculture Career Camps were a success! Bakersfield College’s partnership with The Wonderful Company allowed 8th grade students to explore different career options in the agriculture industry.
The camp started with industry guest speakers and a tour of Sunview Vineyards. Thank you Marko Zaninovich for allowing us to visit Sunview Vineyards! They are leading the agriculture industry by using beneficial insects to control unwanted pests in lieu of spraying pesticides.
In the evenings, campers tackled rock walls, swam and went bowling! It was a dynamic week and with support from The Wonderful Company, students were exposed to various career option in agriculture. Thank you Rebecca Farley and Tony Alteparmakian for facilitating this amazing opportunity.
I had my own notion of grief.
