Chancellor's News Brief

I hope this message finds you well. I am pleased to share the 2024-2025 Chancellor’s goals and objectives for the District, recently approved by the Board of Trustees. These goals are designed to guide our efforts in promoting student success, fostering equity, and enhancing our institutional effectiveness.

In particular, Goal 4 emphasizes the importance of supporting the District-Wide Strategic Plan for 2024-2027. Developed through our college's participatory governance processes, this plan aligns with our educational master plans and focuses on four key areas: enhancing student success by improving academic outcomes; maintaining fiscal integrity by boosting alternative revenue sources and instructional productivity to drive enrollment; expanding and enhancing adult education and noncredit courses and programs to better serve the community; and fostering a positive and productive work environment by improving employee satisfaction.

With your dedication and spirit of collaboration, I am confident that we will achieve these objectives and maintain our commitment to delivering exceptional education and support to our students. The ultimate goal is to foster an environment where every student has an equitable opportunity to thrive and for our shared vision for excellence in education becomes a reality.

With gratitude,

Dr. Whitney Yamamura
Chancellor

Please send examples of persistent innovation, by which I mean having a good idea and then putting in the hard work to make that vision a reality. The more examples submitted, the better I can highlight your successes in future letters and in the community!

A core mission of California community colleges is to provide access to education programs and workforce opportunities for every learner—foster youth, adult learners seeking general education diplomas, individuals who are reskilling, veterans, high school students in dual-enrollment programs, and low-income first-generation students.

California Community Colleges' Vision 2030 targets increasing the number of students earning a living wage, recognizing that students often lack accessible, reliable data on the economic outcomes of their educational choices. To address this, the Coast Community College District (CCCD) is utilizing geospatial tools and data to synchronize academic offerings with labor market needs in priority sectors, including advanced transportation; biotechnology; business; digital media arts; energy; construction; utilities; nursing and allied health; information and communications technology; and retail, hospitality, and tourism.

Given that the median household income in Orange County was $106,209 in 2022, community college students need educational programs and information that enable them to achieve sufficient salaries and economic advancement. This strategic alignment aims to provide students with the critical information and education needed to secure sufficient entry-level salaries and foster economic advancement, with career education certificates and degrees offering average returns ranging from 14 to 45 percent in health care and 15 to 23 percent in other fields.

The Coast Community College District Foundation Board of Directors is proud to recognize the important work of faculty by offering grants to fund innovative educational practices and professional development opportunities for faculty members within the Coast District. Ten $2,000 Faculty Funding Opportunity Grants were awarded for 2023-2024. Congratulations to all the grant winners!

• Anthony Silva (OCC)
• Chris Kerins (OCC)
• David Giordano (OCC)
• Duy Tran (CCC)
• Eliza Rubenstein (OCC)
• Laura Behr (OCC)
• Michael Tran (GWC)
• Nabawia Elsoudani (OCC)
• Stephanie Bridges (CCC)
• Steve Fuchs (OCC)

Coastline’s Ethical Hacking Camp, held from July 22 to July 25 at Garden Grove’s Technology Campus, was a great success. This four-day introductory event welcomed high school students into the dynamic world of ethical hacking and careers in offensive cybersecurity.

Participants engaged in hands-on learning, utilizing top-tier opensource tools to hone their skills in this high-demand job market. It provided the students with practical experiences in network, wireless, and web penetration testing. The camp was fully funded by grants and organized by Dr. Brown and the technology team at Garden Grove, ensuring that all students had the opportunity to explore this growing and in-demand field.

For many of the participants, the event provided invaluable exposure to cybersecurity careers equipping the next generation with skills and knowledge in a critical area of global technology.

Representatives from more than 60 Honda PACT (Professional Automotive Career Training) programs across the nation gathered at Golden West College on July 23–24 for the 2024 Honda PACT Educators Conference.

The annual conference featured updates on program initiatives, instructor professional development for new tools, test drives of new Honda electric vehicles and networking opportunities for faculty and administrators. A conference awards dinner was held on July 24 at the Hilton hotel in Costa Mesa, where automotive technology faculty John Kasabian was awarded the “Challenging Spirit” award by the Honda PACT team.

The Honda PACT program offers automotive technician training that enables students to become Honda- and Acura-certified technicians. As part of the two-year program, students are required to complete a paid internship at a Honda or Acura dealership within their surrounding area, which often turns into full-time employment following completion of the program.

The 21st annual Orange County Children’s Book Festival returns to Orange Coast College this fall with an exciting lineup of special guest authors spanning a broad genre of interests. Families are invited to gather at OCC to celebrate the love of books and the joy of reading. The free event will be held on Sunday, September 22, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Main Quad.

The 2024 guest authors include cartoonist and teacher Gene Luen Yang, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of middle-grade novels Jasmine Warga, Newbery Medal-winning author Cynthia Kadohata, and actress and producer Austin Highsmith Garces.

This OC Children’s Book Festival will feature numerous activities such as storytelling, conversations with authors, book signings, face painting, train rides, a bounce house, and a surprise appearance of special guests from a faraway galaxy.

Admission and parking is free. All ages welcome. For more information, please visit the OC Children’s Book Festival website.

Chancellor, Week of August 5
Dr. Yamamura is in the District, Monday through Friday.