President/CEO Message

October 8, 2020

Campus Community,

I do not know about you, but this has been a long week for me. On October 6, 2020, we held our annual Compton College and Compton Community College District legislative update; the event was well attended, and I shared information on Compton College 2024, enrollment, and our response to COVID-19. We also provided the updated Compton CCD Legislative Report Cards, which are available here.

Today, October 8, 2020, we had our High School Principals' Roundtable with over 33 participants and representatives from Compton, Lynwood, Paramount, and Los Angeles unified school districts. Staff provided overviews on the Compton College Guided Pathways and EOPS/CARE programs. The presentation is available here. Furthermore, we shared the Compton, Lynwood, and Paramount unified school districts' dashboards available here, in the Entry section. The President/CEO Message – October 8, 2020, includes COVID-19 information and other campus-related updates.

Compton College COVID-19 Update

Los Angeles County's current risk level is Tier 1 (widespread), according to California's "Blueprint for a Safer Economy." On October 7, 2020, there were 1,645 newly recorded confirmed cases in Los Angeles County. The county now has a total of 277,445 reported cases (including cases reported by Long Beach and Pasadena Health Departments). There has been a total of 6,709 deaths reported in Los Angeles County. For more information, go to http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/data/index.htm. According to the Compton CCD Pandemic Outbreak - Emergency Operations Plan, Compton College continues to operate at Level Four - Severe Infection Rate.

Essential Employees Work Schedule

The Essential Employees Work Schedule for October 12-17, 2020, is posted online here. The schedule will be updated every Thursday for the following week as employees continue to gradually return to campus.

Individual Requests to Come to Campus

Individual employees (faculty, Classified staff, managers/supervisors) who are not included on the Essential Employees Work Schedule who wish to come to campus must submit an Individual, One-Time Request Form online. Requests must be submitted at least two business days in advance after obtaining your manager/supervisor's approval.

The location you wish to visit on campus will determine what day of the week (Monday-Thursday) you can come to campus. Please note, individual requests to come to campus are only scheduled between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. This schedule helps track occupied spaces on campus in terms of capacity and cleaning needs. Please review the chart available via the online request form before making your request.

UndocuAlly Task Force

The Compton College UndocuAlly Task Force submitted recommendations to me during the 2019-2020 year, and those recommendations are available here. The UndocuAlly Task Force serves to recognize, assess, and implement strategies to assist our undocumented/AB 540 students with enrollment, persistence, and completion of their academic goals. On October 7, 2020, I met with task force members and discussed their recommendations. Below are my responses to the recommendations and next steps from the meeting.

  1. Compton College, Compton CCD, and I are committed to the UndocuAlly Task Force's work.
  2. Keith Cobb, Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships, will provide administrative oversight and support to the UndocuAlly Task Force.
  3. In compliance with Assembly Bill 1645, Alma Lopez, Financial Aid Coordinator, will serve as the Compton College Dreamer Resource Liaison.
  4. Funding for the UndocuAlly Task Force will be included in the Financial Aid Department budget.
  5. Compton CCD will provide $2,000 ongoing funding in support of the UndocuAlly Annual Undocumented Student Action Week. 
  6. During the 2020-2021 year, Compton CCD will provide $4,000 in one-time funding to support the UndocuAlly activities, including outreach, provisional items, and professional development. The task force will provide an updated budget for the $4,000. For the 2021-2022 year, the UndocuAlly Task Force will request funding through the Student Equity and Achievement Restricted Budget Request process.
  7. We will establish an UndocuAlly email account to communicate with Compton College students.
  8. We will add the AB 540 and Undocumented Student Resouces webpage link to the Compton College Student Services webpage.
  9. Pilar Huffman, Professional Development Manager, will meet with the UndocuAlly Task Force to plan professional development activities for the campus community.

In closing, I want to provide you with information on the Undocumented Student Action Week, scheduled for Monday, October 19,  through Friday, October 24, 2020. Click here for a listing of events.

Resilient Conversations Forum

We are all impacted by the pandemic and social justice issues, and the continued popularity of social media use has influenced our daily lives. Join one or all three of the webinars on practical strategies to support mental well-being and resilience. The virtual gatherings will include discussions and workshops that help navigate faculty, Classified professionals, and administrators through challenging conversations. Webinars are scheduled on three Fridays: October 9, October 23, and October 30, 2020.

If you are interested in participating in one of the forums, please send an email to Pilar Huffman, Professional Development Manager at phuffman@compton.edu, for the Zoom Meeting information.

Student Communications

Currently, enrolled students were sent an email today with information regarding the Great California ShakeOut Earthquake Drill scheduled for 10:15 a.m. on Thursday, October 15, 2020. All emails sent to Compton College students are available online on the Student Communications & Information webpage.

Upcoming Events

October 9, 2020         Resilient Conversation Forum #1: Interactive Discussion "Employee Burnout" (Zoom) 3:00 – 4 p.m.

October 13, 2020       Community Meeting – Dr. Deborah LeBlanc, Board Member, Compton CCD (Zoom) 5:00 –  6:30 p.m.

October 14, 2020       Community Meeting - Barbara Calhoun, Board Clerk, Compton CCD (Zoom) 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.

October 15, 2020       Great California Shakeout (virtual) 10:15 a.m.

Every week, please check the online calendar of events, which is available here.

Final Thoughts

During several meetings over the past few weeks, including a meeting with our Achieving the Dream coaches, the topic of data was a common theme. The discussions focused on the collection and use of data as it relates to the student experience. I think it is great that we are having these types of conversations at Compton College, and in the coming weeks, we will be building on those dialogues. I encourage you to visit the Compton College Institutional Effectiveness webpage, which is available here. We are currently working on dashboards to support our Tartar Success Teams, and as we move forward, we will meet their data needs. 

I hope that over the next couple of weeks, we can continue to explore the student experience using data to answer the following questions:

  1. What do we know and understand about the student experience?
  2. Do we understand why the student experience is happening?
  3. What are the potential actions we could take to impact the student experience positively?
  4. After the actions have been implemented, how do we know it is changing the student experience?

It is not always about the data; it is about the student experience and using it to help inform our decision-making. I look forward to the upcoming conversations centered on the student experience and the use of data.

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

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