President/CEO Message

JuLY 22, 2021

It's Thursday, and although the campus is closed tomorrow, construction doesn't stop. We are monitoring the progress on Instructional Building #1 very closely, considering classes are scheduled in that building for the fall semester. I know many faculty and Classified staff whose offices will be in Instructional Building #1 are wondering when they will be moving into their new spaces. We do not have a set move-in date. However, I anticipate the move will occur in early September. I am hopeful we will have a grand opening for Instructional Building #1 on Tuesday, November 16, 2021, at 3:00 p.m. The President/CEO Message - July 22, 2021, includes COVID-19 information and other campus-related updates.

Compton College COVID-19 Update

Los Angeles County's Daily COVID-19 Data webpage reports 2,551 newly recorded confirmed cases in Los Angeles County as of 6 p.m. on July 21, 2021. The county now has a total of 1,273,390 reported cases (including cases reported by Long Beach and Pasadena health departments). For more information, go to publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/data/. Compton College is operating at Level 4 - Severe Infection Rate according to the Compton CCD Pandemic Outbreak - Emergency Operations Plan.

COVID-19 Safety Training

COVID-19 Safety Training is available online via Keenan & Associates - SafeColleges online training. All employees are asked to complete the training before returning to work on campus. The training is not required, but the District is providing health and safety training options for employees. The brief videos include the following topics:

Coronavirus Awareness (10 minutes)
Coronavirus: CDC Guide to Mask Making (9 minutes)
Coronavirus: Cleaning and Disinfecting the Workplace (10 minutes)
Coronavirus: Managing Stress and Anxiety (12 minutes)
Coronavirus: The Basics of Vaccines (10 minutes)

A reminder email regarding the training will be provided via email to all District employees by the Office of Human Resources early next week.

Fall 2021 Enrollment Update

As of today, July 22, 2021, Compton College has generated 637 FTES for the Fall 2021 term. Our fill rate is currently 24%, and our seats filled is 3,976. Click here to view today's enrollment snapshot.

The fall semester begins Saturday, August 21, 2021, with weekday classes beginning on Monday, August 23, 2021. Please encourage students to apply and register as soon as possible as some sections are already full.

Discharging Compton College Students' Unpaid Enrollment Fees from Spring 2020 through Spring 2021

As mentioned in the President/CEO Message - June 7, 2021, and the President/CEO Message - July 1, 2021, I shared my interest in utilizing the institutional dollars from the American Recovery Plan Act to cancel students' unpaid enrollment fees from spring 2020 to spring 2021. Furthermore, I mentioned Senate Bill 132 - Postsecondary Education Trailer Bill, which included the following language.

(n) (1) A community college district may use available emergency relief funds provided by the federal government to waive the fee requirements established pursuant to this section for a student who has not paid the fee due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

(2) A community college district may use the authorization established pursuant to this subdivision only to waive the fees of students that are unpaid due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. A participating community college district shall first waive the unpaid fees of low-income students and students from underrepresented communities.

At the Tuesday, July 20, 2021 Compton CCD Board of Trustees meeting, the Board of Trustees approved CCCD Resolution No. 07-20-2021A - Resolution to Approve the Discharge of Outstanding Student Enrollment Fees. Once the Governor signs Senate Bill 132 - Postsecondary Education Trailer Bill, Compton CCD will pay approximately $600,000 in enrollment fees for current and former Compton College students, who were enrolled between spring 2020 and spring 2021. The fees include enrollment fees, Student Activities, and Student Representation fees, as well as the Health fee for all students except out-of-country students. After the Governor has signed Senate Bill 132 - Postsecondary Education Trailer Bill, students will be notified that their outstanding fees have been paid. The Compton College Call Center will also follow up with these students and provide them with fall 2021 registration information.

Thank you to everyone that has been involved and those who have provided creative input on this matter. This initiative will give our students much-needed financial relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.

FREE Resources Available for Summer and Fall Students

It is not too late to apply for free resources for the summer term. Laptops, Wi-Fi hotspots, calculators, meals & food vouchers, housing referrals, headsets, and financial assistance are available to currently enrolled students via the Student Resources Form, available here. Edquity emergency grants are available to summer 2021 students who have experienced financial hardship and expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information and to apply for a grant or free resources, go to www.compton.edu/studentservices/student-equity-program/student-resources. Questions? Send an email to tartarsupport@compton.edu. Fall 2021 students may apply now to access the free resources.

Compton Community College District Board of Trustees Retreat

The Compton CCD Board of Trustees has a Board Retreat scheduled for Saturday, July 24, 2021, with the open session commencing at 9:00 a.m. via Zoom Meeting. Information on how to access the Compton CCD Board of Trustees meeting is available here.

Virtual "Back to School" Town Hall Meeting

Compton Community College District Board of Trustees Member Dr. Deborah Leblanc will host a virtual town hall meeting on Wednesday, August 11, 2021, at 5:00 p.m. via Zoom. Community members, parents, students, and employees will have the opportunity to discuss topics such as enrollment, ongoing construction, the safe reopening of the Compton College campus, and more. Click here for the Zoom Meeting information.

President/CEO Closing the Loop

I appreciated the participation by faculty and Classified staff at Tuesday's Tartar Talks. After reviewing the comments made about Compton College's social media presence, I have decided to explore outside agencies that can help increase our engagement, provide video content, and actively manage our paid ad campaigns on social media throughout the enrollment cycles. I have also asked the Compton College Call Center to ask former students why they are not returning to campus to better understand our decline in retention. If you have any other creative input related to enrollment and recruitment, please send them to me at kcurry@compton.edu.

You also asked if we were planning on mailing something to our community, letting them know we are offering online and in-person classes this fall. A postcard will be mailed to all in-District residents letting them know "It's Not Too Late!" to register for fall 2021 classes, as well as providing information on the Steps to Enrollment, in-person services available, and an invitation to RSVP for the August 18, 2021, New Student Welcome Day. Click here to view the postcard.

I wanted to close the loop on our Full-Time Equivalent Students (FTES) goals for the 2021-2022 year. Included in the Compton College 2021-2022 Goals, which were included in several President/CEO Messages, and were approved at the May 18, 2021, Compton CCD Board of Trustees Meeting, our goal is to grow enrollment to 4,518 FTES by offering 1,389 sections for the 2020-2021 year.

Final Thoughts

As mentioned in the President/CEO Message - July 15, 2021, I wrote a series of op-ed stories for the Los Angeles Sentinel titled "Unapologetically Fighting for Black Student Success." The four-part series concluded this week, and all four articles are available here. In the final article titled 'Removing Educational Barriers, Especially High Textbook Costs," I discuss the importance of Zero Cost Textbooks and Open Educational Resources. I truly believe high textbook costs are a financial barrier for our students, and we must provide alternative options for our students.

As I first mentioned in the President/CEO Message - July 1, 2021, for the past couple of weeks, I have been reflecting a lot on budget allocations, one-time and ongoing, and the process for ensuring the budget allocations are leading to our intended outcomes as it relates to student success. In the fall 2021 semester, I will be asking the Compton College Core Planning Team to provide recommendations on potential evaluation tools for the college. Furthermore, we need to have difficult conversations about reducing budgets associated with one-time and ongoing allocations that have not met their intended outcomes. Those are my initial thoughts. If you have inspired recommendations regarding the evaluation tools for the college as it relates to one-time and ongoing budget allocations, please email me at kcurry@compton.edu.

Please be safe and have a wonderful weekend.

Sincerely,

Keith Curry, Ed.D.
(preferred pronouns: he/him/his)
President/CEO
Compton College