SLOs, COORs, and Accreditation

While LMC recently received an outstanding Accreditation review, the visiting team and Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges have given the college an urgent assignment - update all course outlines to include course-level student learning outcomes (SLOs).

The visiting team commended the college for its institutional and program-level SLOs and initial efforts to assess them. However, only about 30 percent of the 725 "active" course outlines (COORs) currently have the required SLOs. By October 15, 2009, LMC must report to the Commission on a plan for how it intends develop and assess the course SLOs and "use the results of those assessments to improve student learning." The team suggested that the college needs to "take action to increase the rate of institutional progress." Title 5 also requires that COORs be updated every five years - another reason to undertake this work.

Since receiving the recommendation in early February, academic managers have met with the Academic Senate, Curriculum Committee, department chairs and Shared Governance Council to solicit input on how to accomplish the assigned charge.

College President Peter Garcia noted that the college cannot afford to be placed on warning, probation or "show cause" - it must mount an institutional response in order to take care of the development and assessment of SLOs. Senior Dean Richard Livingston told the department chairs that "this is not just a compliance issue. Our experience is that the SLO process is that it leads to improved course outlines, which should lead to improved student learning." Garcia noted that LMC's collaborative approach will be to offer "reasonable incentives" to get the work done.

President Garcia has asked Dean Kiran Kamath to convene a task force of key college leaders to oversee development of the plan to meet the Commission's various deadlines for SLOs/assessment. This spring departments will be asked for their plans (including "action agents") to get all COORs up to date.

The college is also committed to offering support to faculty to get the COORs updated, including:

• Individual "coaching" by Curriculum Committee representatives.
• "Camp Course Outline" on several Fridays throughout this semester.
• Additional camp sessions during June and July.
• Substitutes to allow full-time faculty to attend the camp, if needed.
• Stipends for adjunct faculty members (as authorized by the dean and department chair).
• Clerical support, as necessary.

Implementation in the fall of the Curricunet computerized course outline system should also assist faculty in completing the updates in a timely manner. The catalog deadline for the updated outlines is October 30, 2009. Management and faculty leaders are also working on plans for leadership for the Teaching and Learning Project, which oversees assessment at LMC.

Faculty can access the list of COORs, indicating which ones need to be updated, by going to the Office of Instruction intranet page and clicking on Resources and Links, followed by "LMC courses" or click here.

Camp Course Outline and the COOR Hall of Fame

MORE CAMP COURSE OUTLINE SESSIONS AVAILABLE!!!

View slideshow

To respond to the popular demand for more Camp Course Outlines, we have added a date for March. For this month, Camp will be offered from 9:00-3:00 on March 20th and 27th. If you teach on Friday mornings come for the afternoon portion. During the last Camp session, three COORs were begun and completed after lunch, so even working for a couple of hours with support is useful and some COORs can be completed in that time period.

If you can't attend on these Fridays, consider contacting Nancy Ybarra or Janice Townsend for an individual coaching session. We will work with your schedule to find a time for the coaching session.

You should have received a hard copy of the invitation. The foundation is providing lunch so please RSVP by the Tuesday before Camp so we have enough food for everyone. Also, please encourage your department's part-time faculty to attend. For questions, contact Janice Townsend at jtownsend@losmedanos.edu or x 3240.

ARE YOU PART OF THE COOR HALL OF FAME?

The following LMC faculty have participated in professional development activities this semester around updating COORs, which now include "aligned" student learning outcomes. Their outstanding professional efforts are moving LMC toward meeting Accreditation recommendations and Title 5 requirements.

· Lori Biles · Gabriella Boehme · Scott Cabral · Tess Caldwell · Jim Cohen · Kurt Crowder · Dennis Gravert · Paula Gunder · Laurie Huffman · Joan Germany · Florence Kline · Mara Landers · Annie Martin · Maria McGill · Don McKnight · Andy Ochoa · Pam Perfumo · Len Price · Tue Rust · Patsy Sherman · Cyndi Soraoka · Jeannine Stein · Julie Von Bergen · Nancy Whitman · Kathy Willett · Michael Yeong

A special thanks to our caring and competent COOR coaches: Christina Goff, Myra Snell, Janice Townsend and Nancy Ybarra. Faculty who have worked with the coaches are uniform in their praise for both the process and the outcome.

Finally, kudos are in order for the programs that have all of their COORs up-to-date, including SLOs -- Automotive, Environmental Science, ETEC and PTEC. A number of other departments are hard at work to join this elite group.

Enrollment Is Up Again!!!
Thanks to everyone, from student services to facilities to instruction, we are enjoying an excellent beginning to spring semester. For a district enrollment report as of March 16, click here to view our PDF...

4CD 60th Anniversary History Boards at LMC During March
The District's 60th anniversary history boards are now on display through the end of March at the LMC Library. This viewing is part of the tour to display the boards at each of the campuses. A second set of history boards are touring at Contra Costa County public libraries -- this month's location is the Concord Public Library.

PDFs of the history boards can be viewed on the District website at http://www.4cd.edu/60th/ in case you can't amble over to the library any time soon.

LMC Basketball Team Earns MVP and Coach of the Year Awards

Los Medanos College freshman Tyree Murray recently was recognized for his consistent skill on the courts as he was named the 2009 Most Valuable Player of the Bay Valley Conference basketball league. The Deer Valley High School graduate scored an average of 21 points per game, and sank 92 3-point shots this year, a record in Northern CA. The LMC guard was also honored as 1st team - All State guard.

Basketball coach Derek Domenichelli described Tyree's advantage: "As an incoming freshman, Tyree made a great adjustment to the college game. His high level of maturity helped him succeed as a student/athlete. His mental toughness and strong work ethic were key to his success as Most Valuable Player of the BVC."

Domenichelli should be applauded in his own right as he won Coach of the Year of the Bay Valley Conference for the second time (2005, 2009). His LMC team has a record of six 20+-win seasons in the last seven years, including a 25-win season in 2008 and a 23-win season in 2009. Domenichelli played basketball at Cal State East Bay and earned his master's in Physical Education there also. Following three years of coaching at Pittsburg High School, he has just completed his eighth season coaching at LMC.

LMC President Peter Garcia commented, "During his tenure at Los Medanos College, Coach Domenichelli has established that our student athletes and our basketball program, under his skillful leadership, will perennially be among the best in Northern California."

Other players were rewarded with awards also including Jeremy Knowles and Joe Simpson (both from Pittsburg High School) with First Team-All BVC, and Brian Benoit (from Acadlana High School, Scott, LA.) with Honorable Mention-All BVC.

Linda Kohler Nominated for State Award

LMC Senior Accountant Linda Kohler was nominated for the California Board of Governors first annual Classified Employee Award by just one colleague, yet there seems to be Districtwide agreement that she is a superb choice. The District's Governing Board endorsed that choice at its February 25 meeting.

A District employee for 23 years, Linda is the longtime president of both the District Classified Senate Coordinating Council and the LMC Classified Senate. When she is not involved in District shared governance issues, she is busy monitoring all categorical funds at LMC--those monies that do not come out of the college's general funds, which includes EOPS, financial aid, competitive grants, and Title V, and other aspects of the business office. The purpose of the award is to recognize outstanding classified employees throughout the California community college system. Up to six award recipients will be announced and honored at the May California Board of Governors' meeting. Nominees are evaluated on their commitment to the mission of community colleges; professional ethics and standards; serving the institutions through participation in professional and/or community activities; and serving as a leader beyond the local institution.

While Linda professes not to know who submitted her name for the new state award, her supervisor, Bruce Cutler, LMC director of Business Services (who says that someone other than he did the nominating), called it "a great nomination." "Whatever job Linda has, she does the best she possibly can. In assuming responsibility for the financial end of our grants, she has made such a valuable contribution to the District and the college," said Cutler.

"Linda has helped create and maintain an active governance forum at Los Medanos College, and she has made classified staff participation integral to the college's decision-making culture," said LMC President Peter García. "She's also an amazing steward of public funds in her day job! The college is a better place because of her counsel and support."

"I enjoy working with the people who are involved in our shared governance work, and with all the people in the District," said Kohler. "I like being part of this process and am proud that we have been able to institute some things just because somebody had an idea and now it has become a tradition."

She singles out longer-term initiatives like "JobLinks," the annual professional development day for all classified staff, and the four-year-old "Chancellor's Chats" program, which affords staff the opportunity to get to know District Chancellor Helen Benjamin better.

Not A Genuine Black Man Performance a Fundraising Hit!

The success of Not A Genuine Black Man starring Brian Copeland at the Campanil Theatre in Antioch last December brought in thousands of dollars to LMC student scholarships, Friends of the LMC Library and the Caro Lena Foundation (Copeland's own non-profit for African American issues and educational resources).

We extend our gratitude to everyone who helped to make this a resounding success: LMC President Pete Garcia, LMC Vice President Dan Henry, LMC Foundation Executive Director Lindy Wille, Senior Dean/Information Technology Cherry Li Bugg (representing Friends of the LMC Library), Drama Instructor Joanna Folino, and Rick and his fabulous staff at the Campanil. But most especially to the greater Antioch/Pittsburg community of supporters. Another benefit fundraiser is in the works for the spring.

Update on LMC Employees

New Manager
Bill Dalrymple, Interim Director of Business Services

New Classified Employees
Steven Butler, Custodian II
Amanda Brainerd, Media Design Specialist, Marketing and Media Design
Ronald DeKelaita, Custodian II (from Classified Hourly to Classified Regular)
Jon Espino, Lab Equipment Technician II (eves), VocTech

Classified Temporary Out-Of-Class Assignments
Faidra Rodriguez, Financial Aid Assistant II
Gil Wagner, Lead Custodian
Susie Purdy, Transcript Audit Specialist

Two Camp Course Outline Sessions in March!!!

Don't miss out on the momentum! Expert assistance and camraderie will help you join the COORs Hall of Fame. Camp will be offered from 9:00-3:00 on Fridays, March 20th and 27th. If you teach on Friday mornings come for the afternoon portion. RSVP by the Tuesday before the session and the Foundation will provide a lunch for you. Contact Janice Townsend for more info at jtownsend@losmedanos.edu or x3240.

Submit a Proposal to Present at the Strengthening Student Success Conference

The Strengthening Student Success conference provides a unique opportunity for a wide cross-section of people-including faculty, deans, program directors, student services staff, professional development leadership, researchers, and planners- to engage with each other on strategies for building institutional effectiveness and student learning. Held October 7-9 at the San Francisco Airport Marriott, our 2009 conference will explore the integration of evidence into practice.

We are seeking presentations that address assessment practices and how results are used to improve student success and learning within one or more of the following topical areas:
· Teaching, Learning & Assessment in the Classroom · College & Program Level Assessment · Closing the Loop: Using Evidence to Improve Practice · Leadership, Structures, and Sustainability for Assessment · Accreditation · Basic Skills · Career Technical Education · Student Services · Transition to College & Transfer

Presentation proposals are due on March 30, 2009. An easy-to-use online proposal application form, detailed information about strand topics and developing a successful proposal, as well as more information about the event, are available here.

email: bcella@losmedanos.edu

web: http://www.losmedanos.edu