President's News Burst for November 2011

President's Message

November marks the beginning of the busy holiday season. This is the time when night comes early, and dawn comes late. This Sunday, Nov. 6, at 2 a.m., Daylight Saving Time will end and we will return to Standard Time (“Spring forward, Fall behind”). So, don’t forget to set your clocks back one hour and “gain” an extra hour of sleep.

Registration for spring classes begins on Nov. 14. Please encourage students to plan ahead, have options in mind and don’t wait until the last minute to act on important educational matters. Students may, again, experience some disappointments as a result of state budget cuts.  At Grossmont, our enrollments remain high despite the cuts we’ve made.  This spring I will be asking that you please abide by your course maximums to ensure an effective and safe learning environment.  Stay tuned for more details. 

Autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together. With gratitude, I am looking forward to Thanksgiving Day.  It’s a time to reflect on the many blessings and opportunities in our lives.  Despite challenging, economic times, the comfort of family and friends provides strength and encouragement.  The opportunity to do the kind of work that we do here at Grossmont among the wonderful people that work here are also among my many blessings.  In short, I count each of you as a blessing in my life.  Thank you for all you do for our students!

  
Fifty and Fantabulous

Thanks to all who supported and attended our recent 50th anniversary fundraising celebration at the Health and Sciences Complex. “Fifty and Fantabulous” was the theme. Guests attended in the attire they may have worn as a college student. About $100,000 was raised at the fundraiser. Proceeds will benefit the Grossmont College Griffin and Dreamkeepers Funds through the Foundation for Grossmont and Cuyamaca Colleges, the recently formed fundraising organization that supports students and educational programs at Grossmont and Cuyamaca Colleges. Here are links to recent publicity stories about the event.

-- http://eastcountymagazine.org/node/7654
-- http://santee.patch.com/events/grossmont-college-50th-anniversary-fundraising-celebration
  

Scholarships Available for Students
Selam Gebrekristos, Scholarship Specialist, is encouraging staff and faculty  to submit their Spring 2012 campus based scholarship applications by November 7th. For more information and application go to http://www.grossmont.net/fa/scholarships.

Honors for Former Culinary Student
Kris Saradpon, now working as a cold prep chef and assistant kitchen manager chef at San Diego State University, was recently awarded first place in the 11th annual Culinary Challenge at the National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS) national conference.  Saradpon won the challenge and a gold medal with his dish, "The Tri-Tip Trio."   In the link below, SDSU recognized GC culinary instructor Joe Orate: “Under the guise of Culinary Olympics Gold Medalist and Grossmont College chef instructor Joe Orate, Kris found his passion for culinary competitions.” http://www.nacufs.org/recognition-culinary-challenge

  
Congratulations!

•       At the recent Pasadena City College Tournament, four members of the Grossmont Speech/Debate team finished as finalists, including Bryan Hatton (senior impromptu speaking), Gabriela Johnson (senior impromptu speaking), Jake Weber (novice impromptu speaking) and Vanessa Spear (novice extemporaneous speaking).
•       At the recent Concordia University speech-debate tournament, six students from Grossmont took home five awards. They included Gabrela Johnson (semi-finalist in Junior Division Parliamentary Debate), Jake Weber (semi-finalist in Junior Division Parliamentary Debate), Jesse Gault (quarter-finalist in Novice Parliamentary Debate), Bryan Hatton (quarter-finalist in Novice Parliamentary Debate), Vanessa Spear (quarter-finalist in Novice Parliamentary Debate and finalist in Novice Impromptu Speaking) and Gabi Johnson (6th place in Junior Parliamentary Debate). At Concordia, 33 colleges and universities, including 24 four-year universities, attended the tournament, representing four states, including California, Arizona, Texas and Kentucky.
•        The San Diego Reader has published a favorable three-part review of the Grossmont College Symphony Orchestra’s recent performance of “I Am Woman,” featuring Anna Belaya, soprano. Selections also performed included “Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman” by Joan Tower of New York; "The Four Temperaments,” by Danish composer Carl Nielsen; and, Symphony No. 3, also known as the Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, by Henryk Gorecki of Poland. The reviews were written by staff writer Garrett Harris. Here is the link: http://www.sandiegoreader.com/staff/garrett-harris/
•        P.J. Ortmeier, AOJ, was quoted in a La Mesa Patch article about crime trends in the East County. This is an example of our faculty’s outstanding reputation in the community. Here is a link: http://lamesa.patch.com/articles/largest-share-of-crime
•        Congratulations to Michael Grant, Media Communications chair, for winning a San Diego Press Club journalism writing award on Tuesday evening. Michael won in the “Daily Newspapers and Websites, Column” category for a column written for La Mesa Patch on “Back to the Future: La Mesa’s Own Mile of Classic Cars.” In addition, Rick Griffin, College and Community Relations, won four writing awards. One of the awards was for our Campus Scene newsletter. It was the third year in a row that “Campus Scene” has been recognized with a writing award from the San Diego Press Club.
•       Thanks to all who participated in our recent earthquake drill. We were among hundreds of schools, colleges and universities participating up and down the state in the “Great California Shakeout” earthquake drill at 10:20 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20. An estimated 8.2 million people participated in this year’s Shakeout. The drill started with a mega-sound system reproduced the low frequency rumble of an earthquake in the Main Quad. Approximately 110-to-130 low frequency decibels simulated the roar and vibration of an actual earthquake. Our thanks to Jim Papageorge, Media Communications, for the sound system. A story about the event was posted on the Santee Patch website. Here is the link: http://santee.patch.com/articles/shake-out-2011-quake-simulation-at-grossmont-college

Upcoming Campus Events

•        Two events relating to “The Henrietta Lacks Project” will be held this week. A screening of the documentary “Miss Evers’ Boys” will be shown at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 1 in Building #26, Room #220. Joe Sargent, director, and Donald Morgan, cinematographer, will introduce the film and lead a discussion on the ethics of human subject research. On Wednesday, Nov. 2 in Room #220, students can watch a live feed of author Rebecca Skloot's appearance at San Diego State University starting at 2 p.m. and at the University of San Diego starting at 6 p.m. This is part of our ongoing campus collaboration based on Rebecca Skloot's “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.”
•        The Theatre Arts Dept. will host a fundraiser at the Souplantation restaurant, 9158 Fletcher Parkway, La Mesa, from 5 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 1.  Souplantation will donate 20 percent of all sales if a flyer is presented when you purchase a drink with your meal. To obtain a flyer, contact Alexis at ext. 7234.
•        The Grossmont College Spanish Club will host its annual celebration of "Dia de los Muertos" (the Day of the Dead) from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 2, in Griffin Gate, Building #58 in the Modular Village. A 20-minute documentary movie, "Rites of the Day of the Dead," will be shown, preceded by a lecture from Virginia Young, faculty advisor to the Spanish Club. Also available will be free distribution to students of "pan de muerto" (bread of the dead) and hot chocolate. Currently on display at Grossmont College's Tech Mall is a dia de los muertos altar featuring figurines, flowers, foods, handouts, masks and photos of deceased people. Funding for this event was made available for this event from Grossmont College's World Arts and Cultures Committee.
•              The Muslims Student Association (MSA) will host “The Status of Women in Islam,” an informative lecture about the rights and social status of Muslim women according to Islamic ruling, differentiated from culture and stereotypical images portrayed in the media, starting at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 3, in Building #51, Room #583. The speaker will be Tehseen Lazzouni, founder and director of the Islamic Speakers Bureau of San Diego (ISB), an educational resource organization that educates the San Diego community about Islam and Muslims.
•        The Grossmont College Guitar Guild will present “Blurring the Edges,” a benefit concert for the Grossmont Guitar Guild Scholarship Fund featuring performance by Grossmont College guitar instructor Fred Benedetti and cousins Peter Sprague on guitar and Tripp Sprague on saxophone, at 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 4, at the campus Recital Hall, Room #220, Building #26. Cost to attend is $10 per person general admission. Tickets are available at the door. For more information, phone the Grossmont College Music Dept. at (619) 644-7254, or visit www.grossmont.edu/music.
•        The Grossmont College Dance Department’s fall 2011 Master Class Series will continue with the following classes in the main dance studio: On Saturday, Nov. 5, “Dance Injury Prevention and Nutrition” from 10:30 a.m. to noon with guest instructor Katy Ewalt; and two jazz classes with guest instructor Denise Leitner, including beginning jazz from 12:15 to 1:45 p.m. and intermediate jazz from 1:45 to 3:15 p.m. On Friday, Nov. 18, two ballet classes with guest instructor Javier Velasco, including beginning ballet from 1:30 to 3 p.m. and intermediate/advanced ballet from 3 to 4:30 p.m. For more information, call ext. 7766.
•        The Career Center will host an Adult Reentry seminar on “Make Your Papers Look Good” with Tate Hurvitz, English instructor, from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 8, in Building #36, Room #346.  A Student Employment workshop with Nancy Davis and Pamela Benge on “Systematic Job Search” will be held from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 16, in Room #346. The job search workshop will discuss how to tap into unadvertised jobs, mining for gold on the Internet and making professional connections. For more information on Adult Reentry Seminars, call ext. 7697 or visit www.grossmont.edu/adultreentry. For more information on Student Employment Workshops, call ext. 7614 or 7611, or visit www.grossmont.edu/studentempservices.
•       The International Club is looking for firewood for its bonfire event on Friday, Nov. 11.  If you have firewood to donate, please contact club advisor, Barbara Clark at ext. 7209, Barbara.clark@gcccd.edu.  
•       The English Department’s Creative Writing Program will continue its fall 2011 Reading Series with an appearance by Lidia Yuknavitch, author of “The Chronology of Water: A Memoir,” starting at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 14 in Building #26, Room #220.
•        “Artists Who Teach,” a photography exhibit, will run at the Hyde Art Gallery from Nov. 14 to Dec. 15. The exhibition’s opening reception date is Nov. 15. The Hyde Art Gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Admission is free. The Gallery is located in Building #25 across from Café 200. The gallery will be closed during Winter break from Dec. 26 to Jan. 13.
•       The Music Department‘s Afro-Cuban Jazz Ensemble will perform in concert at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Cuyamaca College Fine Arts Theatre. Cost to attend will be $8 per person general admission.
•        The Grossmont Symphony Woodwind Quintet will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 17, at the campus Recital Hall, Room #220, Building #26. Cost to attend is $10 per person general admission. Tickets are available at the door. A second performance of the Woodwind Quintet will be held at 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 18, at All Saints Episcopal Church, 625 Pennsylvania Ave., San Diego. Admission is free at the church.
•        The Grossmont College Guitar Guild will present a performance by Grossmont College Music Dept. classical guitar instructor Robert Wetzel starting at 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 18, at the campus Recital Hall, Room #220, Building #26. The performance is a fund-raiser for the Grossmont College Guitar Guild. Admission is $10 per person general admission.
•       Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) and ASGC are planning to host an “Every Monday BBQ,” starting around 11 a.m., to raise money for the EOPS Holiday Party. The location is between Buildings #30 and #31.
•        The Grossmont College Theatre Arts will host the opening night of the world premiere of “Tata Twins-the Remix” on Thursday, Dec. 1. The play is adapted by Jeannette Thomas, a Grossmont College instructor, and based on The Twin Menaechmus by Plautus. Department chair  Beth Duggan is directing. The play is a modern adaptation of the Roman comedy of mistaken identity that serves as the inspiration for Shakespeare’s “A Comedy of Errors” (adult situation and language). Dec. 1 also will be the celebration of Grossmont College Theatre Arts Department’s 50th Anniversary. Come join in on the celebration! Alexis will be happy to be of assistance, ext. 7234.
•        The annual ASGC/CARE holiday party for EOPS, CARE and CalWORKs students will be held from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 9, in Griffin Gate. The CARE program student/parents are low-income, single head of household, CalWORKs recipients, who attend full-time, with a goal to build better lives for themselves and their children, becoming self-sufficient. Each year, the CARE Program receives toys from the Marine Corps Toys-for-Tots Program. This program provides toys for the children under 1 year to age 10. We are looking forward to your continued generous support this year. The CARE families include tweens and teens. We are asking for gift cards, certificates and/or merchandise, possible gift baskets for the teens and the student/parents. If you or your department would like to make a donation, please contact Gerardette Nutt at ext. 7785 or Kitty Walden at ext. 7733.

Sports Report

The Griffins football team beat visiting Fullerton 19-13 on Saturday, Oct. 29, at our home field. With 39 seconds left, Griffins defensive end Shane Pennix intercepted a screen pass at the Grossmont 23-yard line and returned it 13 yards to wrap up the victory. The team travels to Pasadena for a 6 p.m. game on Saturday, Nov. 5. The final home game is at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 12.