President/CEO Message

October 12, 2020

Campus Community,

Today, I broke every one of Chief Facilities Officer Linda Owens’ rules related to visiting Compton College construction sites. I forgot my hardhat and construction vest when I visited Instructional Building 1 and Instructional Building 2 construction sites. Luckily, the construction management firm provided me with those items upon my arrival. It was amazing to visit the construction sites and witness the pace of these construction projects. As I think about the 2021-2022 academic year, I realize we will have three new construction projects completed at Compton College, which is truly unique. Not to mention the other construction projects that have been completed since March of 2014. The President/CEO Message - October 12, 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 11, 2020, there were 971 newly recorded confirmed cases in Los Angeles County. The county now has a total of 282,135 reported cases (including cases reported by Long Beach and Pasadena Health Departments). There has been a total of 6,771 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.

COVID-19 Resources for Compton Community College District Employees

Human Resources has developed a new webpage for District employees that provides resources and information to assist students as the campus community continues to work remotely. Click here to visit the webpage.

Tartar Success Institute 2.0

On October 9, 2020, I had the opportunity to participate in the Compton College Tartar Success Institute 2.0. Special thanks to our Guided Pathways Tri-Chairs and the planning committee for organizing a fantastic event. The PowerPoint presentation from the Tartar Success Institute 2.0 is available here. As mentioned in the President/CEO Message - October 8, 2020, I encourage you to visit the Compton College Institutional Effectiveness webpage. I am proud to share with you two new data dashboards that were developed by Institutional Effectiveness:

Over the past week, I heard many concerns about the data you are looking for to support the student experience. However, we should be mindful as we continue to explore the student experience using data to answer the following questions:

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

We will continue to have conversations and work with you to ensure you have access to data and promptly utilize it to support the student experience.

Fall 2020 Late Start Classes Enrollment Campaign

As mentioned in the President/CEO Message - August 24, 2020, a marketing plan was developed to increase enrollment in late-start fall 2020 classes. Click here here to view the plan. The plan included a letter from me to more than 6,700 Fall 2019 students who had not registered for a Fall 2020 class. Click here to read the letter. Current Fall 2020 students were also targeted with reminder emails being sent to their @compton.edu email accounts and banner images were posted on both the College website and the MyCompton portal.

Winter 2021 Schedule of Classes

Registration for winter 2021 begins on Tuesday, November 17, 2020, and the Winter 2021 Class Schedule PDF is available here. The online searchable schedule will be available later this week.

Student Communications

An email was sent to students today, October 12, 2020, reminding them of the eight-week mid-term classes that begin this Saturday, October 17, 2020. All emails sent to Compton College students are available online on the Student Communications & Information webpage.

Compton College Response to the California Community College Chancellor's Office Call to Action

In the President/CEO Message - October 5, 2020, President/CEO Message - August 3, 2020, President/CEO Message - August 27, 2020, President/CEO Message - September 17, 2020, and the President/CEO Message - September 24, 2020, I provided you with an update on the Compton College California Community Colleges Call to Action. Tina Kuperman, Director of Diversity, Compliance, and Title IX, and Dr. Kendahl Radcliffe, Division Chair of Social Sciences, have been working together to develop Compton College's Response to the Call to Action. An updated draft of the Compton College Response to the California Community College Chancellor's Office Call to Action is available here. I am incredibly proud of the work Tina Kuperman and Dr. Kendahl Radcliffe has done on our response. Furthermore, I am very impressed with the Compton College Academic Senate's bold commitment in support of Black Lives Matters. Please forward your feedback on the Compton College Response to the California Community College Chancellor's Office Call to Action to tkuperman@compton.edu and kradcliffe@compton.edu by Friday, October 23, 2020.

Compton Community College District Board of Trustees Meeting

The next meeting of the Compton CCD Board of Trustees is scheduled for Tuesday, October 20, 2020. The closed session begins at 4:00 p.m., with open session commencing at 5:00 p.m. via Zoom Meeting. Information on how to access the Compton CCD Board of Trustees meeting is available here.

Compton Community College District Fiscal Health

During the 2020-2021 year, the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office will be monitoring and evaluating the financial health of Compton CCD, including the necessity of a Special Trustee for Compton CCD. The California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office is requesting the assessments and updates in the following areas Fiscal Health, Governance, and Accreditation by Thursday, 15, 2021. More information is included in the letter received on October 9, 2020, from the Lizette Navarette, Vice-Chancellor of College Finance and Facilities Planning, is available here.

Final Thoughts

In closing, October is LGBTQ+ history month and I want to recognize our LGBTQ+ students and employees. I want you to know we support you and value your dedication and how you contribute to the diversity of Compton College. Hopefully, within the next couple of weeks, I will be able to meet with the LGBTQ+ Workgroup to review their recommendations and discuss additional events, professional development, and other activities we can implement at Compton College during the 2020-2021 year.

Please be safe, and have a wonderful week.

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