Our souls have been fed. Let’s get to work. Our time is now.

That was the message coming from Vision 2030: A Call to Action Adult Education Summit at San Diego College of Continuing Education’s historic Educational Cultural Complex on October 5 & 6 that drew an in-person, capacity audience of 300 educational, community, and political leaders from throughout the state, in addition to hundreds of others who tuned in to a summit livestream. 

Day 1 got off to an inspirational start thanks to the incomparable performer and artist Khalil Bleux, whose spoken word, accompanied to music, illustrated the essence of Southeast San Diego and the ongoing struggle faced by people of color. Just as moving was a land and labor acknowledgement by Dr. Stan Rodriguez, president of Kumeyaay Community College. That was followed by keynotes from California Community Colleges Chancellor Sonya Christian, who emphasized the critical importance of noncredit, adult education in uplifting the 6.8 million Californians living in or near poverty; SDCCE President Dr. Tina M. King; and President Valentina Purtell, of co-host North Orange Continuing Education (NOCE). 

The highlights are too many to count. During the first panel of the day, Centering Our Student Voices, East Los Angeles College student Travon Reed reminded folks of the challenges our adult students are facing and the deficits they are dealing with when they step onto campus. “What we need as students is for you to believe in us,” Travon said. “Don’t have a problem with reaching out.”

Other profound messages came from Ben Chida, chief deputy cabinet secretary to Governor Gavin Newsom, who emphasized the need to reorient our education system now to meet the demands of rapidly changing workforce demands. During Session 5, Not For Credit Programs that Lead to Economic Mobility, Kazeem Omidiji, director of community relations for San Diego Gas & Electric, praised SDCCE’s Utility Line Arborist Training Program as the epitome of workforce training, noting it is the only community college partner that is part of SDGE’s wildfire mitigation plan. Said former San Diego City Councilmember Tony Young, who is now interim CEO of San Diego Workforce Partnership, “Here, in this building, something amazing is happening.”

Friday’s session began with the talented Buki Domingos and Toot performing their rendition of the John Lennon classic “Imagine,” offering an appropriate segue into the day’s discussions centering on how critical it is to reimagine the California Community Colleges.

Among the Day 2 highlights was an inspiring message from both, Assemblymember Chris Ward and Councilmember, Monica Montgomery Steppe. 

Said North Orange County Community College District Chancellor Dr. Byron Breland at the Valuing All Students Equitably session: “We serve everybody; it’s critical that we get this right.”

Getting it right means reimagining how noncredit, adult education programs are – or are not – funded. Chancellor Christian, who was part of the same panel with Dr. Breland, emphasized that affecting change is not enough; sustaining change is just as critical. Affecting and sustaining change, all agreed, rests largely on effectively communicating the return on investment when it comes to noncredit colleges. The San Diego College of Continuing Education’s career education programs alone, for example, contribute nearly $250 million annually to the regional economy, with taxpayers receiving $9.10 in added tax revenue for every $1 invested in career education.

Vision 2030 is a framework for bold and thoughtful action — action for policy reform, fiscal sustainability, systems development and for process and practice reform in the field — to support our students, our communities and our planet. The framework has been guided by the Vision for Success (2017), the governor’s “Multi-Year Roadmap” (2022) and current issues and future considerations.

To Learn more about Vision 2030: A Call to Action Adult Education Summit visit, https://sdcce.edu/call-to-action/.