Greetings SRJC!

I am truly thrilled to be welcoming you back to fully reopened SRJC campuses this fall semester. With about two-thirds of our classes and all of our support services available in-person, I look forward to seeing you back on-site and enjoying the vibrant campus life that makes SRJC a great place to work and learn.

We remain committed to take precautions against COVID-19 to ensure that our campuses and sites are as safe as possible. For more information, please visit covid.santarosa.edu.

The last few years have really tested our community and I’m so proud of the achievements of our faculty, classified professionals and administrators who dedicated themselves to helping our students pursue their educational goals throughout this time. We have accomplished much in the face of great challenges because of the incredible people who work at this college.

I hope that this PDA Day on Friday, August 12, we can show our appreciation with an entire day of professional development and interesting lectures from experts who reside amongst our own colleagues. 

In fall 2022, we will continue to advance the work of social justice at SRJC. Our commitment to becoming a more anti-racist and inclusive institution of learning includes providing additional training and learning opportunities for our entire college community. As a result, you’ll see a number of sessions and discussions on DEIA topics on the PDA Day agenda. I’d like to thank the Professional Development Committee for their work in organizing all of these important workshops and sessions.

This year’s fall plenary presentation will be given by Tim Wise, one of the most prominent anti-racist writers and educators in the United States. Tim’s presentation, ‘A Call to Action: Addressing Systems of Privilege through Equitable Change at the Personal, Policy, Practice, and Paradigm Levels,’ will help participants explore the causes, both formal and informal, for institutional racial inequities. Most diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work focuses on training people out of bad habits (implicit biases, stereotypes, fragility, unexamined privilege, etc.). Some DEI work adds to this individual focus by examining institutional policies and practices that get in the way of more equitable and inclusive work environments. But very few DEI efforts tackle the “fourth p”—the paradigm (or broader worldview or frame)—which tends to keep institutions from progressing on the road to equity.  By paradigm, Tim is referring to the overarching worldview of individualism and meritocracy, which leads most of us to assume existing power structures are basically valid, thereby undermining the logic of targeted efforts to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion. To sustain such efforts, Tim will address how to critically assess the weaknesses of this paradigm and develop a broader understanding of the social dynamics and systems of privilege keeping us from becoming a more equitable society. This session will help participants gain that understanding. In addition to the plenary presentation, Tim will also offer a follow-up workshop in Session I (10:20 am – 11:50 am) to further explore action ideas that stem from his presentation. Please see Tim Wise's full biography.

Please join me for a day of enriching lessons, crucial conversations and collegial camaraderie on August 12. I hope that this PDA Day can be a day of self-care and learning for us all.

In appreciation,

Frank Chong