The BCC English Department and Modern Languages Department invite you to an evening of poetry reading in English and Spanish:

Date:  Thursday, April 13, 2017

Time: 7:30 pm

Where: Pegasus Books, 2349 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley, 94704

Event page: https://goo.gl/WtHDTz

The event features two touring Argentine poets, Luisa Futoransky and Claudia Schvartz. Also appearing are Portuguese poet Ana Luísa Amara, with two noted translators, Willis Barnstone and Dan Bellm.

Readings will be made by:

Ana Luísa Amaral was born in Lisbon, and lives in the north of Portugal. Professor at the University of Porto, she holds a Ph.D. on the poetry of Emily Dickinson and has academic publications in the areas of English and American Poetry, Comparative Poetics and Feminist Studies. She is a senior researcher and codirector of the Institute for Comparative Literature Margarida Losa. Several plays were staged around her work, such as O olhar diagonal das coisas, A história da Aranha  Leopoldina, Próspero Morreu, or Como Tu.

Claudia Schvartz was born in Buenos Aires. She is a poet, translator, publisher, editor of collections of poetry and literary magazines, journalist and actress. Schvartz has also written several books of poetry, theatrical monologues, which she herself starred in, and several unpublished pieces of intense lyricism. She published La vida misma (1992), Ávido don (1999) and in the same year, her translation of the elegies and sonnets of Louise Labbé. In 2011 she published Eólicas and in 2015 El papel y su futuro. She is the chief editor of Editorial Leviatán in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Dan Bellm is a writer, editor, and translator living in Berkeley, California. He has published Deep Well (2017), Twilight (2016), Practice (2008), Buried Treasure (1999), among others. He has been awarded fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the California Arts Council, and poetry residencies at Yaddo and Dorset Colony House. 

April 5, 2017- BERKELEY, CA—The Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education (APAHE) has chosen Berkeley City College President Rowena Tomaneng as the recipient of its coveted President’s Award for 2017. The award honors the accomplishments of Asian and Pacific Island American college presidents and will be presented at APAHE’s annual conference and thirty year celebration on Thursday, April 6 at the Marriott City Center in Oakland.

A doctoral candidate in International and Multicultural Education at the University of San Francisco, Tomaneng took the helm as President of Berkeley City College in August 2016.  She expects to complete her dissertation on the educational dimensions of Filipina migrant workers’ activist identities this summer. She received her M.A. in English from the University of California, Santa Barbara and B.A. in English from the University of California, Irvine.

Before coming to BCC, Tomaneng served as the Associate Vice President of Instruction at De Anza College in Cupertino for six years. There, she lead the college’s institutional efforts with a number of initiatives, including Civic Engagement, Student Equity, and the Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution program (AANAPISI). In 2006, Tomaneng was a founding co-director and developed a range of community and educational partnerships at the Vasconcellos Institute for Democracy in Action, formerly the Institute for Community and Civic Engagement.

Tomaneng is also a faculty affiliate of the Asian Pacific American Leadership Institute (APALI) in Cupertino whose mission is to address the need to increase civic engagement and community voice for Asian Americans and other underrepresented groups through education and civic network.

Tomaneng expressed her gratitude for being chosen for the award and noted the significance of the work done by APAHE. “For over 21 years, I have devoted my teaching, research, and administrative work in the service of AAPI and other students of color. APAHE has been a leader in promoting equity in advancement and opportunity for Asian and Pacific Island Americans. Its example and leadership have shaped my practice as an equity-based educational leader within and outside of the institution,” Tomaneng said.

APAHE is dedicated to enhancing the educational opportunities for Asian and Pacific American students; promoting and supporting the hiring, retention, and advancement of qualified Asian and Pacific American faculty, staff, and administrators; and creating a better understanding of issues in the public affecting Asian and Pacific Americans in higher education.

Read the Press Release here.

The American Association of Community Colleges has awarded its 2017 Faculty Innovation Award to Berkeley City College’s Rachel Mercy Simpson. The award recognizes faculty across the country who have demonstrated leadership in the development and implementation of campus programs that have had a positive impact on the learning experience for students.

As co-chair of BCC’s Multi Media Arts department, Simpson is credited with promoting a culture of collaboration and inclusion and for piloting interactive teaching techniques that engage students in teamwork. BCC President Rowena Tomaneng said, “I have observed her passion for student equity and social justice, and she is constantly looking for ways to provide more access to students of color who are interested in pursuing careers in multi-media arts.” According to Tomaneng, Simpson’s influence on student learning is apparent. “The tone of the work produced by her students reflects the spirit of unity, caring and passion that she brings to this campus,” she said.

But Simpson’s work extends further than the classroom. Simpson organized a Multimedia Faculty Retreat where faculty learned how implicit biases could impact grading and expectations. Simpson invited students to share their experiences of prejudice and relay best practices that enabled them to succeed. She also designed several faculty trainings on how to engage students across varied experiences.

Since 2009, Simpson has been instrumental in transforming BCC’s Multimedia Arts program by developing a challenging and rigorous curriculum that focuses on sharpening technical skills while working as teams and mastering communication skills. Today, BCC’s Multimedia Arts program is one that is well respected by industry professionals who allow students to apply their learning beyond the classroom.

“My goal as co-chair of the Multimedia Department has been to create a top-notch community college media program that employs the arts as a gateway to rigorous and engaging academic and technical work, and to serve our diverse student body in preparing them for transfer and sustainable careers,” Simpson said.

Simpson will be recognized for her award by AACC at its 97^th annual convention in New Orleans in April, 2017. The AACC was established in 1920 as a forum for the nation’s two-year colleges. The association represents nearly 1,200 two-year, associate degree–granting institutions and more than 13 million students, as well as a growing number of international members in Puerto Rico, Japan, Great Britain, Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.

As we have done for the last 10 years, each semester our students work hard to design, plan, research and present a Health Fair to the entire college community.  Every aspect of the planning is done by the students, including selecting topics, researching them, creating vibrant display boards and important handouts for participants, out-reaching to community agencies and resources, and inviting vendors to table.

This service learning project is often the highlight of the semester, and our students deserve to have as many attend as possible!  You might even consider sending your students and creating an assignment for extra credit, as many of you have done in the past.

Please join me in supporting this important work and see you at the Health Fair on Thursday, March 30, from 11:00 am to 1:30 pm, in the BCC Atrium!

For more information, please contact Stephanie Sanders-Badt, ssanders-badt@peralta.edu, and visit the Public and Human Services website

President Rowena Tomaneng presents an update on BCC programs and reorganizations, hires, campus safety, and community collaborations in the March 14, 2017, issue of the President’s Bulletin.

First Come – First Served!

Join us for College and Career Week @ College Hour

Schedule of Events:

For more information, contact:

Doris Garcia
Faculty Diversity Internship Program
Email: dgarcia@peralta.edu

If elected, you will serve your campus during the 2017 – 2018 academic year.

We invite and encourage all students to participate in this election season.

Here’s your chance to run for student government, and in the process:

• Gain strong leadership experience
• Get involved with campus student government events and activities
• Advocate for your fellow students
• Bring social justice and change to your campus
• Have your voice heard and make a lasting impact on your campus

Election packets with all criteria available online on NOW at https://tinyurl.com/peraltacandidateapp2017 or check in with your campus Student Activities and Campus life Office

Application deadline is March 9^th @ 5pm, 2017.

Voting will be April 3^rd -19^th, 2017

 For more information, click: https://www.berkeleycitycollege.edu/asbcc/election-voting/  – all your election information in one place!

Facebook Event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1700423763581092/

Get involved, make a positive change within the Peralta Community College District, and on your campus.

For more information, contact 
Tiffany Taylor
Interim Director of Student Activities & Campus Life
Email:  tataylor@peralta.edu