Dear SDCCE Community,
May marks Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! 18% of students with Asian and Pacific Islander roots make up our total student population. We proudly celebrate and uplift our incredible Asian American and Pacific Islander employees, students, and community members at San Diego College of Continuing Education. Like our Deans Andrei Lucas and Michele Madrid Novak, Professors Sam Phu, Huimei Lai, and Nikki Austria, as well as standout alumni Chefs Sarah Ramos, Rie Sims, and Cybersecurity Director Raven Antiquiera to only name a few. Thank you ALL for making SDCCE a safe and welcoming environment for everyone. To show your support, please download the graphic asset to post digitally. Stay tuned for AAPI Heritage Month events!
Additionally, May 6th through May 12th is national Nurses Week. I want to wish a happy Nurses Week to our dedicated leadership, faculty, staff, and students at our Cesar Chavez Campus! Your efforts to champion our innovative Healthcare Careers program is invaluable to diversifying and leading the public health field.
Enrollment Updates
SDCCE’s overall enrollment for spring stands at 30,972 (6% greater than this time last year, and a 0.2% increase from last week). SDCCE’s overall headcount is currently 16,551, an increase of 7% compared to last spring (15,402) and a 0.7% increase compared to the previous week (16,440). FTEF scheduled for the spring semester is 3% greater than last spring (191.27 to 185.92). View the enrollment report.
This month, SDCCE also celebrates Jewish American Heritage Month! We honor the rich history, diverse culture, and remarkable contributions of the Jewish community and extraordinary achievements of our Jewish faculty, staff, admin, and students at SDCCE.
Enrollment for summer begins May 13th, new summer class schedules are arriving to all campuses and are being mailed to homes this week!


SDCCE celebrated sustainable fashion and local artists with our Clothing and Textiles program at the "Make It Last" Capstone event on April 26th. Centering the "Make It Last" project made of individually designed denim squares from students and community members, the event was a gathering of current/former students and vendors sharing their work and local poets and designers delivering powerful performances. A huge thank you to Sew Loka and our Clothing and Textiles instructor Shirley Pierson for leading our community in sustainability. View Clothing and Textiles event photos here.
The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper highlighted SDCCE's series of Black Student Success Week events, "SDCCD celebrates and honors the pursuit of Black student equity".
If you were not able to attend, take a look back at the recordings:
- Haitian Student Experience A Journey of 2000 Miles by Dr. Terry Sivers
- Career Transitions: A Black Perspective by Zuri Williams
- Let's Talk About Mental Health Racial Battle Fatigue by Janisha Street and Jeremy Garcia
- Becoming Your Own Self Validation by Starla Lewis and Ishe Hollins
A special thank you to Dr. Terry Sivers, Janisha Street, Jeremy Garcia, Zuri Williams, Starla Lewis, and Ishe Hollins for facilitating these powerful workshops.

SDCCE supports Dreamers at City College during May 3rd Districtwide 2024 Undocumented Student Conference. Twenty-three SDCCE students, faculty, and staff were in attendance. The SDCCE Immigrant-based Support Program (ISP) collaborated with the City College Outreach team to present a workshop titled, “Continuing Education Students-Start Here!”. Thank you Sheyla Castillo, Victor Gonazles, Armando Carignan, and to our ISP student leaders for representing our college beautifully! Learn more about ISP here.
Speaking of support for our Dreamers, English as a Second Language (ESL) Professor Amanda Simons was among the panelists for a CATESOL Professional Development with TELL-IG leaders Johanna Gleason and Jennie Kim to discuss AI and its potential impact on the teaching landscape. Dr. Kelly Metz-Matthews, ESL Assistant Program Chair moderated a panel during the CATESOL San Diego Chapter Spring Conference, which included a huge turnout from SDCCE faculty. Way to go Amanda Simons, Ryane W., Johanna Gleason, Jia Sun, and Jason Greeno! Additionally, Dr. Kelly Metz-Matthews has been appointed to serve as an English Language Specialist in Indonesia with the U.S. Department of State. Congratulations Kelly, this is a huge win for our college and our district!
Following our very successful WASC Accreditation visit, I would like to extend a thank you to Margarita Posner, Accreditation Faculty Coordinator and ESL instructor, for serving on a three-day virtual visit as a member of an accreditation visiting committee for a WASC-serving school! Each year, as part of our WASC Accreditation requirements, administrators, faculty and classified professionals are asked to volunteer on WASC visiting committees at WASC-accredited Adult Education schools that are part of K-12 or community colleges across California. If you are interested in being placed on active status for WASC Visiting Committee consideration, please contact Dean, Jessica Luedtke. These are wonderful opportunities to share your program/department area knowledge and to see and learn from external schools.
North City Campus has had several recent high school diploma graduates from WestCare's Female Community Reentry Program (FCRP) for female offenders who are able to finish their term while living at a facility within the community as they work to lay the foundation for self-sustainability following their incarceration. WestCare believes people are capable of change and seek to motivate and Uplift the Human Spirit in every person they touch. Their program provides domestic violence, substance abuse classes, reentry, and life skills classes. Additionally, they focus on the development of educational and vocational skills, by linking participants to healthcare, education, and community ties, including programs at San Diego College of Continuing Education. The students who have been taking classes in the online accelerated high school diploma have been very motivated to finish their joint diploma and transition to employment, community college, and job training programs. A couple of the students have been awarded scholarships at the annual SDCCE Scholarship Awards. Congratulations graduates and thank you Professor Cat Prindle for leading this cohort!
All ages are welcome to inaugural College of Continuing Education Mental Health Fair on May 15 from 12:30 to 3 p.m. at the Educational Cultural Complex, 4343 Ocean View Blvd., on the patio between Buildings B and C. Learn about mental health support available throughout the region and relax for an afternoon of filled with food, games, and mental health engagement. Questions? Email BeWellSDCCE@sdccd.edu.
Save the Date for Workshop: May 13, 2024, 1:00pm - 3:00pm: Topic: African Immigrant Experiences and Challenges in Education
Reminder: we are one week away from the workshop facilitated by Dr. Siri Brown. Please RSVP here to attend an enlightening workshop on the African immigrant experience and the challenges faced by Black students, including those from Haiti and Somalia. It aims to explore the broader context of Black immigration and diaspora and encourage participants to be agents of change.
Employees are invited to participate in two virtual workshops that will be facilitated by Deanna Cherry and Ricardo Vidal from R&D Facilitation, focused on culture change at our college. These two virtual workshops that will be facilitated by Deanna Cherry and Ricardo Vidal from R&D Facilitation will be held via Zoom.
To RSVP email: deanna.RDFacilitation@gmail.com RSVP not required. However, those who RSVP will be entered into an opportunity drawing.
Session #1 will be on Creating Greater Wellbeing- for ourselves and our students in our classroom and workplace cultures, and will be offered at the following times:
- Monday May 6th 12:00 - 1:30 PM
- Tuesday May 7th 12:00 - 1:30 PM
Session #2 will be on Improving Communication- mirroring our values in our syllabi or office documents, will be offered at the following times:
- Wednesday May 8th 3:00 - 4:30 PM
- Thursday May 9th 3:00 - 4:30 PM
For SDCCE professional development opportunities, visit the professional development web page for upcoming workshops.
Free emergency medical technician classes are coming to Southeastern San Diego at the Educational Cultural Complex! Tune in now with NBC Reporter Marianne Kushi, Deputy Fire Chief. Robert Logan and SDCCE Foundation Director Dr. Tami Foy to learn more. Applications are being accepted through May 12th at CalJACAcademy.org.
A Youth Development training will be held on May 17th from 11am to 1:30pm, which will offer methods to better support and understand young adult learners transitioning to SDCCE. Register for Youth Development training.
Students, faculty, administrators, and classified professionals from the San Diego Community College District will march under the district banner at the annual Pride Parade on Saturday, July 20, 2024. This year’s parade theme is "Making History Now!" Register to march with SDCCD at the annual Pride Parade.
Student Services Assistant Dr. Anthony-Thomas has been nominated for the California Community Colleges Classified Employee of the Year award. Read more about Dr. Anthony-Thomas’ story in SDCCE’s News Room here.
SDCCE students are welcome to attend Heart In Mind, a district-wide mental health wellness project open to all students with disabilities. Students can join here via Zoom on Wednesdays at 2pm.
On May 17th, HGA will be submitting the ECC Theatre construction design documents to the Division of the State Architect (DSA), these documents are crucial for obtaining approval and ensuring that the college’s construction project meets all necessary regulations and standards.
SDCCE's May Student Newsletter was sent to current students on May 3rd, read here.
The SDCCE FELI (Five-Day Experiential Learning Institute) will be offered this summer from June 24th through June 28th at North City Campus (6/24-6/27) and the VEBA center (6/28). Register for SDCCE FELI.
A reminder that all requests of the Communications Department must be approved by a dean or vice president and requires submission of a request form. You can find the Project Request Form link on the Faculty and Staff Resources Page of our website. Allow ten working days for a request to be completed. If a request needs immediate attention, please complete the form and contact the Public Information Officer.
President's Updates
SDCCE proudly sponsored the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC) 2024 Noncredit Institute, which was held from May 2nd through May 3rd. SDCCE leadership enjoyed attending the conference, spending two days with our leadership, academic senate and faculty who presented. Learn more about our college's workshops here.
During the ASCCC 2024 Noncredit Institute I presented on noncredit pathways for a session on harnessing data in noncredit titled, “Using Noncredit Education to Build an Equitable Future”. I look forward to bringing this knowledge back to SDCCE as we advance the field of noncredit education for our adult learners across the nation. Stay tuned for more information!
I attended my first Goodwill Board of Director's meeting as a board member on April 29th. The Goodwill represents service to the community. I am excited for what is to come through this collaboration.
The Research Corner
This week we invite you to check the report What are the Most Common Enrollment Patterns in Noncredit Education and Credit Education? from the Center for the Study of Higher Education and Postsecondary Education at the University of Michigan. This report looks at data from students in colleges in Iowa and California to find the most common enrollment patterns among these students. The report may be found on the following link. Take a minute to review this resource and email jsalcedo001@sdccd.edu if you have any questions.
President's Office Hours
President's Office Hours are back! Individual zoom meetings will be 20 minutes and are available on a first come first serve basis. If you would like to schedule a virtual appointment with me, please email sdccepresident@sdccd.edu for detailed information.
Best,