PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
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Happy New Year! Each year, at
this time, I reflect back upon the previous year with gratitude and
appreciation and look forward with hope and enthusiasm for the many opportunities
that appear ahead. I am so very thankful for the opportunity to work with
such talented and dedicated individuals here at Grossmont College. I am
also comforted to know that no matter what challenges or obstacles appear
before us, that together our collective efforts will ensure that we prevail.
Despite the challenges we will face in the future, nothing encourages me more
than the commitment of our faculty, staff and administrators to change lives
through education.
At
the state level, 2011 will be defined by a new Governor and Legislature
wrestling with the structural imbalance of our state budget. Here at
Grossmont College, 2011 highlights will include continued
construction on the Griffin Center building and Student and Administrative
Services building, celebration of our 50th Anniversary Year, starting work
across our district on an educational master plan, and continued progress
towards our strategic goals. It will be a time to work together as we
promote the positive things that unite us and engage in dialogue and
compromise to overcome those differences that have the potential to divide us.
Thank you for all you do for our college and our students!
We are excited to see you all at the
Spring 2011 Convocation on Tuesday, Jan. 18 in the Main Gym. Our faculty will
be returning for the start of Flex Week. A light continental breakfast will
begin at 8 a.m. in the area between the Main Gym and Exercise Science building
(same as last fall). In order to protect our gym floor, since the gym floor
cannot accommodate heels, dress shoes or street shoes, we are encouraging
everyone to wear HOUSE SLIPPERS. Prizes will be awarded for
the best house slippers in five different categories, including:
“Most Creative”
“Most Colorful”
“Most Courageous”
“Most Character”
“Most Grossmont Spirit” Also part of Convocation will be the announcement of the President’s Leadership Award. In lieu of a “State of the College” report by me, we will have a guest speaker. Dr. Robert Bramucci, Vice Chancellor of Technology/Learning Services at South Orange County Community College District in Mission Viejo, promises to be energizing and provocative and get us to look at things in new ways. I am also looking forward to hearing the keynote presentation on “The Pulse of Higher Education in the State of California” by Steve Boilard, Director, Higher Education, with the Legislative Analyst’s Office, California’s nonpartisan fiscal and policy advisor. I hope you will make every effort to be there. Staff members, please work with your supervisors to ensure your ability to participate while balancing the needs of your departments. There will also be an online broadcast. More details to follow.
Have you ever wondered how
the college planning process works? Find out why it’s as easy as “PIE.” PIE stands for Planning, Implementation and Evaluation.
Everyone is invited to attend a presentation on the college planning process
from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 11 in Griffin Gate. The GCCCD
Classified Senate are coordinating the event and presenters will be Dr. Chris
Hill and myself. Please RSVP to Pat Murray via e-mail or ext. 7316 on or
before Jan. 10. Our goal at Grossmont is to develop a culture that values the
input of people in identifying those things that we do well, examining those
areas where we can benefit from improvement, and utilizing data to inform the
decisions that we make. The planning effort within the college strives to
integrate the long-term vision and goals with the annual implementation of
strategies by each college department or unit to achieve those goals. The
accomplishment of those goals is measured and evaluated through a comprehensive
unit review process.
GCCCD has the distinct honor of
co-hosting the League for Innovation in the Community College’s “Innovations
2011 Conference” along with the San Diego Community College District. The
conference will be held Feb. 27 to March 2, 2011, at the Hilton San Diego
Bayfront Hotel. Innovations 2011 is the premier event for professionals
dedicated to improving organizational teaching and learning, and discovering
new approaches for enhancing the community college experience. The conference
provides a tremendous forum for collaboration among academic experts and
leading community college professionals, while granting participants exclusive
access to the most inventive and thought-provoking programs from around the
world. More than 2,000 community college faculty, professional staff and
administrators are expected to attend. Thank you to the many, many
volunteers who agreed to participate in supporting the conference in exchange
for free entrance to all aspects of the conference! All of the
volunteer slots have now been filled due to your energy and enthusiasm.
We look forward to the conference and also highlighting our
district throughout the conference.
GC Art Professor Jim
Wilsterman will present “Rain Events and Associated Investigations,” a
sculpture exhibit at the Hyde Art Gallery that opens Monday, Jan. 24, and runs
through Thursday. Feb. 24. The exhibit features about 25 pieces that were
created on campus by Jim. The pieces feature a water conservation theme, and
some of them display the pattern of rain that fell here on campus. The Hyde Art
Gallery, located in the 200 Building on campus, is open from 10 a.m. to
6:30 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays, and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesdays and
Wednesdays.
The Grossmont College Lady Griffs
women’s basketball team hosted its 23rd annual Grossmont College Holiday Tournament,
Dec. 28-30, at Grossmont College. Eight teams competed in the three-day
tournament, including GC, Bakersfield, Cypress, Santa Ana, Antelope Valley,
Santa Barbara, Mount San Jacinto and Reedley. All games were played in our Main
Gym. Cypress College defeated Mt. San Jacinto College 70-56 to win the
tournament. The Lady Griffs finished in fourth place. The final day of the
tournament began with a battle of the dueling Santas, with Santa Barbara
beating Santa Ana, 60-47 to win the consolation match. Grossmont showed well in
the third-place game but fell to Antelope Valley, 73-68. The game remained
close for the entire 40 minutes, but despite great rallies by the hosts, it was
Antelope Valley that walked away with the third place trophy.
More than 1,000 people,
including family members, friends from the local soccer community and former
athletes, attended a standing-room-only memorial service held on Sunday, Dec.
26, at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church on Lake Murray Boulevard. GC Athletic
Director Jim Spillers was joined by numerous Grossmont coaches and colleagues
at the service. Jim was among the six speakers at the service along with family
members. Coach Howie passed away on Sunday Dec. 5. Howie was a part-time
faculty member in our Exercise Science Department and the founding women’s
soccer coach. During his 15 years as head coach, Hawver led the team to 12
state playoff appearances. In 2008, Hawver was diagnosed with ALS, or Amyotrophic
Lateral Sclerosis, often referred to as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. The GC family is
proud to have been associated with such a vibrant member of the soccer
community who was absolutely in love with the game.
HOLIDAY HAPPY ENDING
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You may have seen news
reports about Sunny and Cher, two abandoned black Labrador
mix puppies whose ears were mysteriously cut off. Sunny was found in November in a Mission
Valley shopping center. Cher was rescued while wandering the streets of
Tijuana. Both were from the same litter. More than 100 families applied to
adopt the puppies from the San Diego County Animal Shelter. After thorough
vetting, an Oceanside family was selected to adopt Sunny and a Rancho San Diego
family was selected to adopt Cher. Cher’s new family is shown in this photo of
Scott and Penny Scarbrough and their son Joseph Watson. Joseph is wearing
a Grossmont sweatshirt and has attended both Grossmont and Cuyamaca
Colleges since Fall 2009. “High school was hard for him because he had some
medical issues to deal with, but he is thriving in college with a 4.0,” said
Penny. “Every instructor in college has been awesome.” Joe is enjoys
chemistry and wants to be a pharmacist. Both parents are teachers at Hillsdale
Middle School.
