Berkeley City College

Just two years ahead of its 50th anniversary, Berkeley City College (BCC) is a public two-year institution serving just over 6,500 students from its urban campus in the center of Berkeley and through expansive dual-enrollment programs throughout the Bay Area. College president, Dr. Angélica Garcia, shared that the college is committed to its goal of playing a pivotal role in ending poverty and impacting the increasing pressures of gentrification in the community.

During my visit to Berkeley City College, my hosts were proud to share some of the promising practices that have led to the college having the second highest transfer rate of all colleges to UC Berkeley. One such example is the institutionalization of core elements of the college’s Dual Enrollment for Equitable Completion (DE4EC) program, which is critical to the implementation of Guided Pathways. The Guided Pathways project is an initiative of the California Community College system and an equity-focused framework designed to provide students with clear enrollment avenues, course-taking patterns, and support services. The College Futures Foundation supported the project, and to date, the college has seen a significant reduction of equity gaps in its Latinx student populations. In fact, Berkeley City College was recognized as a 2022 Equity Champion for Latinx Students by the Campaign for College Opportunity, supporting over 65% of Latinx associate degree earners to earn an Associate Degree for Transfer to a four-year college in the 2020-21 academic year.

Additionally, the college has instituted an innovative student ambassador program with both onsite and online assistance through live chat and virtual screen sharing to support online registration and instruction support. Often the first point of contact for students, the student ambassadors ensure that prospective students’ communications are directed to the correct staff to support them.

Sarah Latino, BCC Student Ambassador and Student Trustee, shares, “If I were in their shoes, I would want the same amount of help and energy we’re giving them. They deserve our best.”

At Berkeley City College, the enthusiasm for dual enrollment programs is clear. Programs have grown exponentially from 342 enrollments in 2019 to 1,574 students in 2022. Over 76% are from historically minoritized communities in 2022 and 85% continue their enrollment at BCC.

The collaboration of instruction and student services is evident and one BCC DE4EC Practice Faculty shared, “We need a collective mindset shift across the campus about what Dual Enrollment can be, who our Dual Enrollment scholars are, and how we need to make moves to meet our BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), first gen, scholars where they’re at.”

Photos include the downtown Berkeley BCC campus and ACCJC President Mac Powell with BCC Staff. (From left to right: Dr. Phoumy Sayavong, Senior Research & Planning Analyst; Sean Brooks, Vice President of Administrative Services; Dr. Mac Powell, ACCJC President; Dr. Angélica Garcia, President; Kuni Hay, Vice President of Instruction; Lisa Cook, Dean of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences; John Nguyen, Director, Student Activities & Campus Life; and Christopher Lewis, Dean of Math, Science and CE.)

Students know how to share it best, as

Gursimar Kaur, a sophomore at Berkeley High School and a dual enrollment student at BCC said, “I started my journey as a dual enrollment student in 2020. I was able to learn and consider my future options and career pathways and I got to experience what a college class can look like and will look like in the future. I think the benefit of doing those classes was that I was able to figure out what I wanted to do and which direction I wanted to head into. BCC supported me to find my passion and make choices to help me achieve my goals.”

BCC also offers the Networking Opportunities Vision & Action (NOVA) Scholars Program. The program is in partnership with the Berkeley High School RISE Program in which 9th-grade scholars complete a series of BCC Career Exploration courses, a dual enrollment pathway. The NOVA Scholars program establishes a relationship with students and BCC as they explore their pathways. It provides opportunities for young scholars to earn college credit before they even step foot on a high school campus, and inspires them that their career and higher education goals are possible.

A recent Nova Scholar describes their experience: “I heard about this program through my friends at school. I loved that they explained that you can make connections here and further yourself and get college credits. I made connections with people [at BCC] who really want to see me and my friends as scholars grow and get into our dream schools and have a good and successful life. It helps me prepare for what college work would be like. When it comes to a sense of work ethic and how to hold myself up for studying for college, this is a great start. BCC is a great institution and I plan to take some classes to further my skills in Mechanical Engineering, Calculus, and Math.”