CAMARILLO — A grant from Edison International, parent company of Southern California Edison (SCE), will fund student scholarships in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and an energy conservation innovation lab at CSU Channel Islands (CI), university officials reported June 30 in a media release.
The $50,000 grant, awarded to the Henry L. “Hank” Lacayo Institute for Workforce & Community Studies (HLI) at CI, will provide scholarships to low-income, underrepresented students who show promise in STEM. It will also help launch the online HLI SCE Energy Conservation Lab — a partnership between CI and Edison International to advance and share successful energy conservation practices with area residents and businesses.
“This grant represents a great step forward in the effort to educate future leaders in the vital areas of STEM and energy conservation,” Richard R. Rush, president of CI, stated in the release. “We are grateful to Edison International for its ongoing support of the CI campus, our students and community. Through partnerships like these, we are strengthening our workforce and environmental commitment for the good of the entire region.”
Launched in 2010 with funding from Edison International, HLI is an independent, nonprofit public policy institute intended to build a robust regional workforce for the 21st century. Named for workforce and community leader Henry L. “Hank” Lacayo, the institute focuses on conducting research, community outreach, education and leadership development programs that will enrich the area’s economy, workforce and quality of life.
OXNARD — Arcenio J. López takes the helm as Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project’s executive director. Executive Director Margaret Sawyer, after taking off a few months to give birth to her second child, will continue as a crucial member of the leadership team in the capacity of development director, the organization reported in a media release.
“She will also help us realize the start-up of our FM radio station, already in process. We are deeply grateful for Margaret’s four years of executive leadership, and her dedication to continuing this journey,” Sandra Young, president of the MICOP board of directors. López began work with MICOP in 2003 as a volunteer at monthly community meetings. He had been seeking a way to contribute to the success of his community, and was drawn by MICOP’s vision and broad reach, Young said. In 2006, he was hired as the organization’s first community organizer. He mobilized Mixtec families in El Rio and Nyeland Acres to successfully press for better school busing and public safety policies, founded MICOP’s Tequio Youth Group and adult literacy program and also launched the organization’s Indigenous Interpreter Services. In 2010, he was selected by the board as associate director, supervising MICOP programs and leading MICOP’s “¡No Me Llames Oaxaquita!” campaign. Originally from San Francisco Higos, Oaxaca, Arcenio graduated from high school in Mexico and from Oxnard College.
SANTA MARIA — Lompoc native Nohemy Ornelas’ journey through higher education officially came full circle when the Allan Hancock College Board of Trustees approved her as the college’s new associate superintendent /vice president of Student Services during the board’s meeting, college officials reported in a media release.
“It is a true honor. Opportunities like this do not come across very often,” said Ornelas, who graduated with honors from Hancock in 2001. “As a professional, it’s always a dream to come back and give back in your own community.”
In her new role as vice president, Ornelas will serve as a cabinet member and advisor to Hancock Superintendent/President Kevin Walthers, Ph.D. Walthers said Ornelas would return to Hancock with a wealth of experience and leadership skills.
“The college’s strategic plan calls for better integration with our community. Nohemy’s close ties to Hancock and community will enhance our ability to meet those goals,” said Walthers.
Ornelas will also oversee departments such as Admissions and Records, Counseling, Financial Aid, Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) and more.
“To me, Hancock represents exactly what the motto of “start here, go anywhere” means. The college opens doors to opportunities for students. My goal is to widen those doors and pathways to success.”
Ornelas, who grew up in Lompoc, first enrolled in classes at Hancock as a high school student. She went on to earn an associate in arts degree in liberal arts. Ornelas later received a bachelor’s degree in law and society from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in June 2003. She returned to Hancock in fall 2004 to work as a financial aid specialist and counseling assistant.
OXNARD — After entering his second successful decade in real estate, Michael Delgado is joining the real estate team of Coldwell Banker Oxnard Beach, according to a media release.
Every year from 2003 to 2013, Delgado was awarded “Top Listing Agent” and “Top Producing Agent” awards, plus the Chairman’s Circle 10 Year Legend Award, received by only the top 1 percent of agents nationwide.
Delgado said he is thrilled to be setting new goals for success as a member of Coldwell Banker’s real estate team.
Before becoming a Realtor, he successfully created and operated a large transportation, cold storage and logistics firm of more than 70 employees from 1993-2002.
VENTURA COUNTY — Ventura County Public Health (VCPH) announced Thursday that it has achieved five-year national accreditation through the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). VCPH is the first public health department in California to earn this important distinction.
The national accreditation program, jointly supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, sets standards against which the nation’s more than 3,000 governmental public health departments can continuously improve the quality of their services and performance. To receive accreditation, VCPH underwent a voluntary rigorous, multi-faceted, peer-reviewed assessment process to ensure it meets or exceeds a set of quality standards and measures.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the VCPH team for helping us achieve this extraordinary accomplishment,” said Rigoberto Vargas, Ventura County Public Health Director. “The accreditation process, which took more than two years to complete, is a testimony to our department’s hard work, dedication and ongoing commitment to continuous improvement.”
Public health departments play a critical role in protecting and improving the health of people and communities. In cities, towns and states across the nation, health departments provide a range of services aimed at promoting healthy behaviors; preventing diseases and injuries; creating safer neighborhoods; administering life-saving immunizations; and preparing for and responding to public health emergencies.
OXNARD — Two soccer-loving teens who help promote fitness at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Oxnard and Port Hueneme (BGCOP) have been selected to serve as official U.S. Flag Bearers during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the organization reported in a media release.
After winning a local essay contest sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company, Alberto Lemus and John Heath, both 16 and from Oxnard, will have the experience of a lifetime representing the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) and the United States at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
“Alberto and John are role models for their work in our Triple Play program, educating their peers on basic nutritional values, promoting a positive self-image within the Club and bringing together the community for important events,” said Tim Blaylock, BGCOP chief professional officer. “Representing our country at the 2014 FIFA World Cup is a great honor for these two teens and our Club.”
The teens, both longtime club members from humble, hard-working families, wrote a joint essay about their leadership roles in the Club’s Triple Play program. Triple Play is a health and wellness program that strives to improve the overall health of Club members ages 6-18 by increasing their daily physical activity, teaching them good nutrition and helping them develop healthy relationships. As part of the program, Lemus and Heath introduced soccer, handball and weekly Triple Play fitness challenges to previously incarcerated youth; made significant changes in the way BGCOP implements its Healthy Habits Program; helped plan and implement a Bone Marrow Drive in partnership with BE the Match Foundation; and hosted the “Give a Smile” event, in which they partnered with local dentists and Universal Pictures to provide overall hygiene essential bags for more than 250 local homeless families.
The Coca-Cola Company, founding partner of the Triple Play program, will cover all trip expenses and will provide Lemus and Heath with tours of the Brazilian cities Recife and Olinda. The Club youth will also be given official 2014 FIFA World Cup flag bearer uniforms, Coca-Cola leisure uniforms, an official game picture, as well as a SONY Xperia smartphone.
Alberto Lemus is a junior at Channel Islands High School in Oxnard. Soccer is embedded not only in Lemus’ life but in that of his entire family. Lemus and his father have always dreamed of going to the World Cup. Lemus played soccer briefly at his high school, but most of his soccer experience has been playing recreationally with family, friends and at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Oxnard and Port Hueneme, where he has been a member for seven years. In addition to playing soccer, he is also a dancer, favoring many forms of Latin dance such as Bachata and Salsa.
John Heath is a junior at Pacifica High School in Oxnard. Soccer has been a huge part of Heath’s life; he has played in AYSO leagues, in school and at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Oxnard and Port Hueneme, where he has been a member for nearly 10 years. He plans to become a doctor of sports medicine so he can treat professional soccer players’ injuries. Heath plans to attend UCLA for his undergraduate degree. He is currently ranked third in his class and is en route to achieving this goal.
SANTA BARBARA — Meghan Corella Morales, of the Department of Education of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School, has won a 2014 Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award, presented by the UCSB Academic Senate as part of its slate of awards for research, teaching and mentorship.
Each year, teaching assistants play a vital role enhancing the teaching mission of the university. The Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award recognizes the contributions of graduate students to the teaching and learning process of UC Santa Barbara. “I see her to be one of the most deserving TAs that I have had the privilege of working with…,” wrote one of Morales’ faculty references. “She has exceeded my expectations in every aspect from her clear communication skills, her motivation and dedication to her work, to her sincerity and thoughtfulness in her interactions with others.”
Morales is a candidate in the Department of Education, working with her adviser Dr. Jin Sook Lee. Her research focuses on language and social justice in a variety of educational contexts. She received her bachelor’s degree in 2007 from Occidental College in Spanish Literary and Cultural Studies and her master’s in Education in 2013.
She is a former English language teacher and has been a teaching assistant for three classes in the Department of Education: Culture, Development, and Education; Research on Teaching and Learning in Sociocultural Contexts; and Introduction to the University Experience. As a TA, Morales strives to create a classroom in which teacher and learner roles are fluid, viewing such fluidity as central to the ongoing process of learning to become the kinds of listeners and thinkers who can challenge entrenched social inequities and collaboratively re-envision schools and society.