Cuyamaca College offers training in green building careers

For those interested in a career within the “green” construction industry, Cuyamaca College is providing a six-week introductory course, free to eligible students through a training program co-sponsored by the San Diego Workforce Partnership.

The Introduction to Green Building Careers is funded through the State Energy Sector Partnership, an offshoot of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and will help displaced workers, the long-term unemployed, new workers, military veterans, and older youths gain the skills to compete for jobs in the expanding green economy.

Music of Azerbaijan

         The Grossmont Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale will be celebrating the rich musical heritage of Azerbaijan in a performance on Saturday, March 10 at 8 p.m. at the Birch North Park Theatre, 2891 University Ave., San Diego. With the country’s musical tradition influenced by neighboring Russia, some of Azerbaijan’s greatest master composers will be featured, along with Azeri folk artists Mehdi Bagheri, Parisa Daneshvar, and Amir Etemadzadeh on original instruments.  

Sustainable Urban Landscape conference March 8 at Cuyamaca College

The theme for the fourth annual Sustainable Urban Landscape conference being held at Cuyamaca College March 8 is “The Bottom Line for Green is Black,” examining the ways that good landscaping practices can be a profitable business model in addition to helping the environment.

The keynote speaker for the event is architect John Picard, known as the “green prophet” for his pioneering work in sustainability. He was a founding member of the U.S. Green Building Council, a trade organization that promotes sustainability in how buildings are designed and built. He has conceptualized and built hundreds of the smartest homes, workplaces and communities in America and his vision guides the future planning of dozens of Fortune 500 companies.

Last year, more than 250 people attended the conference, geared toward landscape professionals, educators and others interested in keeping current with the latest in sustainable landscape practices. The conference, hosted by Cuyamaca College’s Ornamental Horticulture department, is being held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the college’s Performing Arts Theatre, with a reception to follow at the Water Conservation Garden.

Running on empty

This message to sent to Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District employees Feb. 16 by Chancellor Cindy L. Miles

      For the past few years, we’ve been able to lessen the brunt of the state’s funding crisis by budgeting frugally and being incredibly conservative – even pessimistic – in predicting the amount of money we would get from Sacramento. For this fiscal year, we were able to avoid much of the effect of midyear cuts by assuming the worst-case scenario regarding state funding.  

      This worst-case scenario came to pass in December, and we were ready for it. However, recent news from the state is even worse. We were prepared for the $6.3 million midyear cut we got (the Tier 2 state budget trigger), but now we’ve learned that we can expect an extra 3.3 percent deficit – or about $2.8 million –  this year, due to a major shortfall in student fee revenues collected at the state level. Fortunately, we’ve got savings to cover this reduction. Unfortunately, spending this one-time savings drains our defenses against more cuts looming next year.

Kembang Sunda -- Sundanese Gamelan music Feb. 23 at Cuyamaca

Kembang Sunda

     

     Kembang Sunda, a San Diego based gamelan ensemble that performs traditional Sundanese music from West Java, Indonesia, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 23 at the Cuyamaca College Performing Arts Theatre. 
    The group specializes in gamelan degung music, but has also been exploring gamelan salendro and kacapi suling repertoire.

      Gamelan ensembles developed in the ancient courts of Java and Bali, and primarily consist of tuned bronze percussive instruments. Many different dance and vocal styles are accompanied by gamelan ensembles, as well as puppet plays and important ceremonies. 
     The group's  mission is to entertain, educate and expose an international audience to the beauty and diversity of Sundanese music and culture. Kembang Sunda, directed by Amy Hacker, has performed throughout Southern California since 2007.
 Tickets are $8 general admission, and $5 for students, staff and seniors. For more information, visit www.cuyamaca.edu/performingarts

An amazing student -- an amazing story

Hadil Safar

 

      When Hadil Safar came to the United States four years ago, she couldn't speak a word of English. Through hard work and determination, she now has a 4.0 grade point average in her second semester at Grossmont College -- and a bright future ahead of her.
       Safar, 19, was one of the students honored Saturday morning at the Grossmont College scholarship awards breakfast. She received a $1,500 scholarship from the Foundation for Grossmont and Cuyamaca Colleges, the merged foundation now serving both colleges in the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District.

Gourmet meals offered at Grossmont College

Culinary arts students prepare a gourmet meal      

    Gourmet meals prepared by award-winning chefs and served in Grossmont College’s new student center will be offered on Thursday evenings this spring for the bargain price of $20 per person.
      The meals are prepared by students in Grossmont College’s Culinary Arts program under the guidance of Chef Joe Orate. Grossmont’s culinary arts students have won numerous culinary awards through the years, and Orate was recently honored as "Chef Educator of the Year 2012" by the San Diego Chefs Association. Two Grossmont culinary students, Cindy Meyer and Vanessa Huynh, also received President's Medallion awards for their participation in fundraising events on behalf of the San Diego Chefs Association.

Author to speak on effects of Hurricane Katrina

As part of Black History Month, Cuyamaca College will host a talk 1-3 p.m., Feb. 13, by Tanis King Starck, local author of "And Her Name was Katrina: Life After the Storm, a Reflective Journey of Social Justice and Inequality in America."

The free lecture will be held in Room I-207 in the student center. Starck is the director of the Intercultural Relations Department at San Diego State University. Her lecture will be followed by SDSU's Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity performance of Step, a competitive dance typically performed by African American fraternities and sororities. For maps and directions to Cuyamaca College, click here

Grossmont and Cuyamaca students heed the call to service

Ron Cook's video of Grossmont and Cuyamaca college students washing vans at Home of Guiding Hands

     Students from Grossmont and Cuyamaca colleges heeded Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s clarion call to do good for others by extending the MLK Day of Service to Saturday, Feb. 4, when student leaders and other volunteers joined together at the Home of Guiding Hands to wash and clean the nonprofit group’s service fleet of vans.    

Report shows college district's significant impact on East County's economy

Grossmont-Cuyamaca brings lots of money and jobs to East County

          

          A just-released analysis shows the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District’s yearly economic impact on San Diego’s East County region exceeds $477 million, including the nearly $100 million the local economy receives directly from college district operations.

The comprehensive report clearly shows the college district provides substantial benefit to its students, the East County area and the San Diego County region.

Grossmont College's new student center a hub of activity

The new student center at Grossmont College

    

      After 18 months of remodeling and construction, the Grossmont College student center has reopened, instantly becoming a lively hub of activity.
    And no wonder.
    With meeting rooms for student groups, ample comfortable seating for dining,  lounging  or study, easy access to a career  center and other student services, as well as  a 10-foot screen  in the lobby for watching movies, four food stations, and a mini-market, a transformation has taken place to rival any  extreme makeover  on reality TV.