Selected Presentations
Opening Day 2025
Sept. 18, 2025
The 2025 college Opening Day event included a celebration of employee anniversaries, introduction of new employees and several presentations:
- President Torres and Dennis Cima, executive director of the Foothill-De Anza Foundation, announced the recipients of $2,500 Innovation Grants for 2025-26
- President Torres reviewed new initiatives and opportunities for the 2025-26 academic year
- Mallory Newell, director of Institutional Research, Planning and Accreditation, described upcoming strategic planning efforts
- Guest speaker Trudi Radtke, an instructional technologist and designer at Moorpark College, spoke in the afternoon about "AI Literacy, Equity and the Future of Higher Education."
Below are links to the complete slide presentations from the morning and afternoon, and the list of initiatives and opportunities, with names added to indicate responsibility for those projects.
Initiatives and Opportunities: 2025-26
Creating Equitable Access and Pathways
- Bachelor’s Degree – first Auto Tech Management cohort starts this fall (Dave Capitolo)
- College Behind Bars – launching at Elmwood Correctional Facility (Sam Bliss)
- Dual Enrollment – new arrangements with high schools in Palo Alto and Elk Grove (Ram Subramaniam)
- Senior Guided Pathways – classes and mentoring opportunities for older adults (Ram Subramaniam)
- Spring Catalog Addendum – new offerings including noncredit courses designed to meet employer needs (Sam Bliss)
Elevating Equitable Engagement and Success
- Career Center – collaboration between CTE and OTI to assist students with jobs and internships;
first internship cohort to begin in spring 2026 (Randy Bryant) - Credit for Prior Learning
- New coordinator, webpage and improved processes for students to receive credit for learning outside the classroom
- Implementation of industry-certified training in Auto Tech and CIS (Sam Bliss)
- EdSights – AI-powered chatbot that will proactively reach out to students via text, offer information and resources, identify concerns and answer questions 24/7 (Michele LeBleu-Burns)
- Industry Driven Regional Collaborative (IDRC) Grant – $500,000 to enhance DMT programs in collaboration with employers, with new curriculum, equipment, faculty training, outreach to underserved students (Manisha Karia)
- Metallica Scholars – $75,000 grant providing $500 scholarships per quarter for 50 students earning certificates to become Electric Vehicle Technicians or CNC Machinists (Manisha Karia)
- Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) Pathways – 11 pathways for certificates, degrees or transfer, using zero-cost materials; developed by more than 80 faculty members (Shagun Kaur)
Galvanizing Community Impact and Innovation
- Institutional Effectiveness Partnership Initiative Partnership Resource Team (IEPI PRT) – technical assistance from peer experts on noncredit and contract education (Omar Torres)
- Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) Academy – additional engagement with middle and high schools, adult ed programs and underserved communities (Mallory Newell)
- Vision-Aligned Reporting (VAR) Academy – professional development to expand data coaching, align with statewide goals and reporting standards (Mallory Newell)
- Strategic Plan – new guiding document for 2027-2030; will serve as foundation for other planning efforts (Mallory Newell)
Sattvic Meals Foundation
March 8, 2025
President Torres spoke at the launch event for Sattvic Meals Foundation, which partnered with De Anza College this winter to serve free hot meals to eligible students.
In his keynote speech, President Torres noted that nearly half of all community college students report experiencing food insecurity. This has a direct effect on students' ability to study, he said, and "prevents talented students from reaching their true potential."