Word from the Editor:

It’s hard to believe that summer is half over.  I hope you’ve all enjoyed the extra day off each week and had a chance to get out of the Valley heat for some time at the mountains or the beach.

As we prepare for the fall semester, enrollment management is high on the priority list.  Don Warkentin attended a seminar on this topic and came back with some great ideas about contacting students who have started, but not completed, the application process or enrollment in classes.  This might also be a good time to contact all those former students who are just a few units short of obtaining a certificate or degree.  We have some great classes planned.  Let’s all work to fill them.

Speaking on working to fill classes, I would like to thank all of the faculty and staff members who have volunteered this summer to work in our booths at Farmers Markets (Coalinga and Hanford) and Kings Fair.  While it’s sometimes inconvenient to work evenings or weekends at these events, we make contact with lots of potential students.  Kathy Watts reported that during the Tuesday Farmers Market in Coalinga, she enrolled several new students in preschool and signed up parents for free parent education classes.  If you would like to help in Coalinga, let Kathy know.  We’re still looking for volunteers in Hanford for the first three weeks of August.  Glenda Jones is coordinating that.

Franklin University notified us that one of our former students has now earned her bachelor’s degree using the bridge program between West Hills and Franklin.  Congratulations to Susan Kincade and her staff who worked hard to make the partnership with Franklin possible.  It allows students who complete an AA degree (at any community college) to enroll in a third year of “bridge” classes at West Hills (at our regular tuition of $26 a unit).  Their final year is online through Franklin.  Scholarships and financial aid are available.