SBCC Foundation Delivers the Promise

SBCC Foundation Delivers the Promise, originally published in Santa Barbara Independent on November 19, 2020.

SBCC Foundation Delivers the Promise, originally published in Santa Barbara Independent on November 19, 2020.

An Update on the College’s Signature Project

The SBCC Promise — which provides regional high school graduates the opportunity to attend Santa Barbara City College full-time, free of charge, for up to two years — started its fifth year this fall, with 5,000 students projected to have benefited by the end of the year.

SBCC Foundation CEO Geoff Green gave us an update.

Have there been any changes to how the SBCC Promise works? We’ve been adjusting the offerings of the Promise based on feedback, so for us it’s a real-time experiment. One of the things we’re trying to figure out is how many students complete two or three years of the Promise but still have to stay one or two or three more semesters to be ready to transfer.

We’ve also gotten requests from a few students saying, “I’m ready to go, but I can’t afford to pay for all of these transfer applications.” So we just added that if they go to a counselor and say, “I need help with this,” we’ll pay for their transfer apps. We’ll do that for students who were Promise students in, say, 2016-17 and are just now completing what they need for transfer.

You also changed the program so students who have a unit load accommodation, and take fewer classes because of a disability, can stay in SBCC Promise for longer. Yes, as we learn about different things, we’ve been doing that kind of stuff as we’ve also tried to measure and monitor.

Does SBCC Promise pay the college the same amount it would get if the students were paying individually? Yes, and in fact this was one of the unanticipated benefits that [former SBCC president] Jack Friedlander told me about the first semester we did this, before he retired. He said, “Do you realize you actually generated a half million dollars last semester for the college? All of those students, who based on previous data would not have been full-time, they went full-time so they could take advantage of the Promise. Because of those additional units they paid for, that equaled half a million dollars of revenue for the college.”

How are you doing right now in terms of funding? It’s tough. We have now sustained it for 4.5 years. [Initially,] we raised about $3.5 million within six months. So we raised enough money to get all the way through year one and two and part of year three very early and then it sloughed off. Basically, we were excited, we put all our energy into the program, and now we have to circle back and kick up our fundraising. So you can expect after the pandemic moment starts to shift back to whatever our new normal is, you’ll see a big public campaign around funding the Promise.

SB Independent Cover, Schools of Thought, November 19, 2020.

SB Independent Cover, Schools of Thought, November 19, 2020.

Originally published in the Santa Barbara Independent on November 19, 2020. To read the section as it appeared in print, please click here.

 

2019 Schools of Thought: The State of Education in Santa Barbara

In taking a look at the latest news and trends related to education in Santa Barbara County, it’s clear that there is an impressive breadth and depth of learning opportunities here in town. From the readers and writers workshop model to incorporating mindfulness practices, social-emotional learning, Latin studies, highly experiential learning, and meshing digital design with fine art traditions, educators are working hard to develop strategies that work for the ways individual students learn best. 

This special section was developed by asking the issue’s sponsors to suggest story ideas based on people, projects, or trends that they’re excited about in their schools and organizations. From that list, we selected stories that represent a wide variety of learning experiences in Santa Barbara and produced the editorial content independently. 

We hope you enjoy it and learn something new about learning! 

African Adventures for Laguna Blanca’s Zack Moore

AHA!’s Peace Builders Put Social-Emotional Education First

Bodhi Path Offers Enlightened View of Technology

Fielding Grad Mallory Price Leads for Literacy

Providence Launches Innovative Design Program 

Raising S.B.’s Next Generation of Teachers 

Saint Therese Academy Provides a Latin Advantage 

SBCC Auto Tech Gears Up For The Future

SBCC Brings the World to the Kitchen

S.B. Middle School Brings Its Best to the Table

The Joy of Experiential Learning at Crane School

The Montessori Method’s Many Success Stories

Unplugged Yet Connected at Midland School 

Leslie Dinaberg is currently the editor in chief of Touring & Tasting magazine. She spent the last 11 years as managing editor of Santa Barbara Seasons, has also edited national business and college student magazines, and writes regularly for a number of publications. Leslie has also authored three nonfiction children’s books and is the coauthor of Hometown Santa Barbara: The Central Coast Book, an insider’s guide to her hometown. See lesliedinaberg.com or follow her on Instagram (@LeslieSDinaberg) and Twitter (@lesliedinaberg). 

Click here to read this story as it originally appeared in the Santa Barbara Independent on November 7, 2019. SB Independent Schools of Thought Insert 11.7.19

SBCC Auto Tech Gears Up For The Future

SBCC Automotive Technology, From Schools of Thought, Santa Barbara Independent, November 7, 2019.

SBCC Automotive Technology, From Schools of Thought, Santa Barbara Independent, November 7, 2019.

Women Are Thriving in City College’s Automotive Technology Program 

The future of automotive technology is indeed female. 

With women accounting for just 27 percent of the U.S. auto manufacturing workforce (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018), and a skills-gap study forecasting a shortfall that will leave approximately 2.4 million U.S. manufacturing jobs vacant through 2028 and beyond (Deloitte Insights, 2018), it’s an ideal time for young women to pursue this in-demand career field. 

On a recent visit to SBCC, instructor Brittanye Muschamp’s Engine Rebuilding class in a shockingly clean, newly renovated engine lab, clusters of students, male and female, inspected and cleaned engine blocks and measured cylinders and pistons. Muschamp worked in the automotive service industry for many years before joining SBCC as the first full-time female faculty member in the department. At this rate, she won’t be the last. 

Jennifer Oseguera feels right at home with her arms elbow-deep in an engine. She’s wanted to be a race car driver since she was a little girl. “I had a race car team in high school, so I have some experience there,” she explained. “I got into auto body shop when I was in high school as well.” 

In addition to taking her second year of the automotive technology classes at SBCC, Oseguera also commutes to Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo for their auto body program. “I would like to have my own auto body shop or technician shop at some point and do some racing and custom paints as well as restoring classic cars,” she said. 

“It’s very welcoming, especially being here as a girl now that we have a female automotive teacher,” said Oseguera of her SBCC experience. “The guys don’t shut me down, and they treat me like everybody else. I’m learning a lot and getting a lot more hands-on experience.” 

Michelle Tepeque is a Santa Barbara High grad and one of 46 Automotive Technology participants in the SBCC Promise program, which provides hometown high school graduates free tuition for two years. She used to watch a lot of car restoration shows with her dad, but she never really thought about the automotive field as a career until recently. “Then a lot of my guy friends were doing it, and I thought, well, I’m kind of interested in seeing how it is,” she said. “So I gave it a try last semester and really loved it. Now, this semester, these are the only classes I’m taking.” 

As for being one of the only females in class, Tepeque said it’s mostly accepting. “I didn’t feel like all eyes were on me, and most guys are pretty laid-back about it, like they don’t really care. There are some that do give you more shit than others — they’ll ask you questions and make you feel like you don’t fit in. But being in this industry, I know there’s going to be a lot of men that will try to put you down because you’re female, so it’s teaching me to have thicker skin and stand up for whatever I’m doing.” 

Overall, she’s had a great time. “I feel like I actually learn things more when I’m hands-on like this,” said Tepeque. “Mostly, I love it.” 

Click here to read this story as it originally appeared in the Santa Barbara Independent on November 7, 2019. SB Independent Schools of Thought Insert 11.7.19