Subject: Foothill College Fusion Staff Newsletter
From: Andrea Hanstein <hansteinandrea@fhda.edu>
Date: 03/05/2015 2:13 PM

FOOTHILL COLLEGE FUSION
- Staff Edition -

IN THIS ISSUE
FOOTHILL COLLEGE FACULTY AND STUDENTS TO OPEN SAN FRANCISCO CHINESE NEW YEAR PARADE
paradeFoothill College faculty member Bubba Gong is choreographing the grand opening of The Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade this Saturday, March 7, at 6 pm in San Francisco.  Named one of the top ten parades in the world by International Festivals and Events Association (IFEA), it is one of the few remaining illuminated parades in the country.  Started in the 1860's by the Chinese in San Francisco as a means to educate the community about their culture, the parade and festival have grown to be the largest celebration of Asian culture outside of Asia.  Since l958, the parade has been under the direction of the San Francisco Chinese Chamber of  Commerce.
 
Gong, a Bay Area Theatre Critics', Dean Goodman and Drama Logue recipient,  will be dancing with the award-winning Foothill College Repertory Dance Company which he founded to broaden and expand the opportunities beyond the classroom in l987.   The world premiere of East Side Story, will be a synthesis of Peking Opera, Broadway, Ballet and Hip Hop and even include American Sign Language.  A twist on the iconic American musical West Side Story, sheep and wolves will electrify the streets of San Francisco.
 
A San Francisco tradition since the Gold Rush, the parade will be broadcast on Fox (channel 2), KTSF (channel 26), and KICU (channel 36).
BASIC SKILLS PROJECT HOSTING STUDENT VOICES SYMPOSIUM

brownThe Foothill College Basic Skills Project is hosting a Student Voices Symposium on Wednesday, March 11 in the Hearthside Lounge. The event will take place in two shifts, 10 am - 10:50 am and 11 am - 11:50 am, to allow as many students and staff as possible to attend.

 

Participants will first walk thru a series of installations designed to demonstrate the process of student learning. Students will then present best practices with time allotted for questions. Throughout the event, participants will be asked to write down questions or comments they have. Presentation topics will range from growth mindset, group collaboration, and college challenges/achievements.

 

Faculty are encouraged to bring their classes to the event. For more information, please contact event organizers Susie Huerta and Hilda Fernandez.

 

ETS HOSTING SERIES OF TOWNHALL MEETINGS

etsIn an effort to facilitate communication and collaboration, Educational Technology Services (ETS) has scheduled a series of townhall meetings. The meetings will allow the general college community to learn more about upcoming projects and ask questions. The first series of townhalls have been scheduled and center around four initiatives - information security, technology purchase coordination, Online Education Initiative, and Office 365 conversion.

 

The full schedule is below. All meetings will be held in the Toyon Room unless otherwise noted. No RSVP is needed.


Office 360 Conversion

Monday, April 6 at 9:30 am

Monday, April 6 at 2:30 pm

 

Technology Purchasing

Monday, May 4 at 10:30 am

Tuesday, May 5 at 3:30 pm

ONLINE EDUCATION INITIATIVE SELECTS COURSE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
 carlotaIn February, the California Community Colleges (CCC) Online Education Initiative (OEI) announced its intent to award Instructure Inc. the contract to provide an online course management system and related services to community colleges statewide.

 

Support for Instructure's Canvas system was nearly unanimous among the OEI's Common Course Management System (CCMS) Committee members, with overwhelming support from student participants, officials said. Canvas is a course management platform that is currently being used by more than 1,000 colleges, universities and school districts across the country.

 

The CCMS Committee made its recommendation to OEI management at a meeting held in Sacramento on Thursday, February 5, following three days of detailed demonstrations of features, functions and services, and in-depth interviews with the vendor finalists who met all the stringent criteria of the RFP process. The OEI Steering Committee unanimously supported the vendor recommendation of the CCMS Committee.

 

Canvas is known as a uniform, easy-to-navigate online environment with a full complement of tools and support for both students and faculty. The company will work with OEI to provide a robust solution that can keep pace with technology advances and the expanding needs of a sophisticated online education environment. It is also envisioned that the tools will be intuitive to use, allowing faculty to spend more time on professional development for pedagogy than on learning the technology of the course management system.

 

The decision to adopt Canvas as the official Foothill College online course management system will include a comprehensive campus with participation from members of all campus constituencies.

FREE ACCESS TO SELF-PACED ONLINE TRAINING VIA LYNDA.COM
FOOTHILL MUSIC THEATRE PRESENTS SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE

 theatreThe Foothill Music Theatre is currently peforming the Tony-award winning musical Sunday in the Park with George, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Only five performances remain, all taking place in the Lohman Theatre:

Thursday, March 5 at 7:30 pm

Friday, March 6 at 8 pm

Saturday, March 7 at 2 pm and 8 pm

Sunday, March 8 at 2 pm 

 

One of the most acclaimed musicals of our time, Sunday in the Park with George is the moving study of the enigmatic painter Georges Seurat. It won a Pulitzer Prize for its deeply insightful and highly personal examination of life through art and the artist. 

 

Tickets are $30-32 general admission, $28-30 seniors, and $20 Foothill Staff. Tickets may be purchased online or by calling the Box Office at 650-949-7360.  

REGISTER NOW FOR INFORMATION SHARING WORKSHOPS

infoBased on feedback provided after the Winter Professional Development Day, Student Services, in collaboration with the Professional Development Committee and Classified Senate, is sponsoring a series of Information Sharing Workshops. The workshops are designed to facilitate communication between colleagues to share important information, updates and changes that can improve productivity and support student success. Refreshments will be served and attendance counts toward PGA/PAA credit.  


Friday, March 6

9:30 to 11:30 am

President's Conference Room

Facilitated by Laureen Balducci & April Henderson

 

Monday, March 16

1 to 3pm

Toyon Room

Facilitated by Teresa Ong & Roland Amit

 

Wednesday, March 25

10am to 12 noon

President's Conference Room

Facilitated by Janet Weber & Antoinette Chavez

 

RSVP for an Information Sharing Workshop� 

WINTER WELLNESS WORKSHOPS OFFERED BY PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES

blackalumsTwo workshops remain in the Office of Psychological Services and Personal Counseling is  Winter Wellness Workshop series: 

 

Annoying Thoughts: How to Get Rid of Them 

Thursday, March 12

12 noon - 1 pm

Altos Room 

Learn how to stop thinking negatively, and start thinking positively to help reach your goals!

March 26, 12:00

 

Self-Care: How to Be a Better You 

Thursday, March 26 

12 noon - 1 pm
Altos Room 

Discover the benefits of self-care, through relaxation techniques and mindfulness, and uncover how to live a happier life with a happier you!

 

Light refreshments will be served. To register, please call 650.949.7910 at least one week in advance. 

MEN'S AND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAMS ENJOY WINNING SEASONS
basketballBoth the men's and women's Foothill College basketball teams have enjoyed winning seasons this winter.

 

The men's team entered the state playoffs as the number 17 seed and quickly upset their first-round opponent, American River College, 78-67. Last week, the team traveled to Fresno City and stunned the Northern California top seed, beating them 72-64. Last night, the team played San Joaquin Delta and defeated them in a close game, 55-52. The team has now reached the Final Four and will take on Merritt College this Saturday, March 7! 


The women's team won the South Coast Conference League, going undefeated with a 10-0 record. Foothill's Angie Reid
Angie Reid was named Conference MVP while Rose Tahaafe and Leslie Tiongco were named to the All-Conference First Team. Head Coach Jody Craig was named 2015 South Coast Conference Coach of the Year and picked up for 400th collegiate win.

FOOTHILL COLLEGE PHYSICS INSTRUCTOR DAVID MARASCO SELECTED TO PARTICIPATE IN PRESTIGIOUS NASA PROGRAM

nasaFoothill College Physics instructor David Marasco has been selected to participate in research flights aboard SOFIA, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy.  Only 24 educators from around the country are selected for this prestigious program annually.  He is only the second community college instructor in the history of the program to be chosen for this prestigious honor.

    

The flying observatory is a highly modified Boeing 747SP jetliner carrying a 100-inch (2.5-meter) effective diameter telescope. Fitted with instruments that collect data at infrared wavelengths, SOFIA flies at altitudes between 39,000 and 45,000 feet (12-14 kilometers) on 10-hour overnight science missions.

 

Each educator team will complete a graduate credit astronomy course and then will be paired with a team of professional astronomers conducting science flights aboard SOFIA. After their flight experiences, ambassadors take what they've learned from the program into their classroom and communities to relate the scientific discovery process and its value to society.

FOOTHILL COLLEGE GOOD NEWS CORNER!
Foothill College is listed fourth on list of Best Online Associate Degree Programs at BestColleges.com.
hanksIn case you missed it ...

The Wednesday, February 25 issue of US World News and Report mentioned the Foothill College online learning program.

To read the article in its entirety, click here.
 

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