Printable version

Focus on People

AWARDS, RECOGNITIONS AND NEWS ABOUT MISSION COLLEGE STUDENTS AND STAFF
Photo of Dr. Adriana Barrera and Dr. Karen Hoefel
An administrator with experience in finance and technological support services has joined the staff of Mission College. Dr. Karen Hoefel (right, in photo with Dr. Barrera) was appointed vice president for administrative services by President Adriana Barrera in March. Hoefel is responsible for business and fiscal operations, computer services, plant facilities, security, telephone and reprographic services. She said her key goals include strengthening communication within her division and across all areas of the campus. She also feels it is important to formalize clear and structured policies that apply to the many services provided by her division. Hoefel holds a doctorate in education from UCLA and an MBA from California State University, Northridge. Hoefel comes to Mission College most recently from Pilgrim School in Los Angeles, where she served as headmaster for five years. Prior to that, she held several positions at CSUN, including director of the University Budget Office, director of finance and logistical services, interim vice president for budget planning, and project director of a campuswide administrative systems coordination.
Photo of Luis Perez
Luis Perez graduated from Mission College last year but he remains a familiar sight on the Sylmar campus. Now a junior at UCLA, Perez works as a counseling aide at Mission College, dividing his time between the Transfer Center and EOP&S. Those familiar with Perez’s commitment to community won’t be surprised to learn that he already has made an impact at Westwood. In his first year, Perez founded a student group at UCLA called IDEAS – Improving Dreams, Equality, Access and Success. Perez said the organization consists of about 100 members who are sometimes referred to as "AB 540 students." AB 540 is the law which allows California immigrant students who attended for three years, and graduated from, a California high school to pay "in-state" tuition, regardless of their residency status. However, they still do not qualify for state-funded financial aid. Perez said these students battle perceptions common among fellow students, college instructors and administrators that they aren’t entitled to be at UCLA. "They need a support system and that’s what IDEAS provides," he said. All AB 540 students are required to file applications to obtain legal permanent residency. Many AB 540 students now attending college are awaiting the outcome of legislation in Congress that would grant them legal status to fully pursue their higher education goals.
Photo of Carlos Diaz and inset of an image from his film "Imagine"
The work of Mission College multimedia student Carlos Diaz (photo) was featured recently at the UCLA Vitas Film and Folklore Festival. The film, "Imagine," is a documentary short about a Los Angeles homeless shelter and its visitors. For the piece, Diaz followed a homeless woman along her daily journey and documented families and children (in image from film) who are struggling on the streets.
Photo of Connie and Sarah Vasquez
A strong showing by Mission College students at the recent Culinary Challenge Competition in Las Vegas. The crew from Sylmar captured five silver and six bronze medals, as well as four honorable mention awards. Silver medals went to the team of Jesus Sanchez, Rudy Garcia and Daniel Rossi; and individual silver medals to Connie Vasquez and Sarah Vasquez (photo), who happen to be mother and daughter. Bronze medals went to Lloyd Taylor, Murglen Muoneke, Sandy Castaneda, Suzanne Davis, Oscar Aguayo, and Tracie Loscotoff. Honorable Mention recognition went to Scott Sullivan, Olga Volquartz, Gaby Rocha (also mother and daughter),and Deborah Kaya.
Image for Lucy Griesbach's exhibit of installation work
"Through the Loophole," an exhibit of installation work (image) by multimedia instructor Lucy Griesbach was a featured event at the Harris Art Gallery at the University of La Verne during April and May. The show included digital constructs, wall drawings, video imagery, and sound. According to Griesbach, the focus was on presenting conceptual mergers between scientific worlds and real experiences, such as a circulatory system mitigated by drinking tea, with the effect of producing what she calls a "science of the ordinary."
Photo of Dr. Eloise Cantrell
Three Mission College students have each won a $1,000 scholarship from the International Food Service Executives Association. The scholarships were awarded to Donna Ramos, Jason Ritter, and Rachel Korab based on grade point average, leadership activities and an essay about their goals in the food industry. The awards were announced at the association’s conference in Denver. Mission College Family and Consumer Studies instructor Dr. Eloise Cantrell (photo) was a guest speaker at the gathering.
Photo of Sarah Moffitt and her painting
Students and guests who take time to relax in the Campus Center lobby are greeted by works contributed by two Mission College art students. The paintings hang on the walls adjacent to the windows that overlook the Quad. On the north wall, visitors see "The Green Man" by Sarah Moffitt (photo). Part of a group of paintings from her mythologies series, this work by Moffitt (based on a Celtic myth) is representative of masculinity in nature and at the same time a symbol of fertility. Overall, said Moffitt, it reinforces a state of balance in the world. On the north wall hangs "Writing" (below) by Orlando
Image of painting by Orlando Martinez
Martinez. The painting gives us his rendering of "…the abstract nature of language." Martinez, a two-time Getty Museum grant recipient, said "Language can be just a bunch of formatted lines, but the lines that make up language can be engaging and sublime." Martinez uses graffiti as a departure to explore this abstract idea.
Photo of PATH executive director Bonnie Bailer and Baltazar Martinez
Former ASO President Baltazar Martinez has a new job doing what many parents find difficult to do with their own children. Martinez works for PATH, a federally funded program through Northridge Hospital that promotes teen sexual abstinence. As a health educator, Martinez (in photo with PATH executive director Bonnie Bailer) and other counselors visit after-school programs at middle schools in the San Fernando Valley and discuss abstinence with students. Martinez said topics include not just sex but also self-esteem, peer pressure, puberty, and the consequences of teen pregnancy. Parents must give permission for their children to attend. In many cases, those same parents later attend workshops led by Martinez and his fellow counselors. "One thing I’ve learned is that when it comes to sex, parents and their kids live in two different worlds, especially in immigrant families," he said. One of his most difficult, but rewarding tasks has been helping families bridge the gap between what the parents think their children know about this difficult subject, and what the children are actually exposed to from everyday culture, the media and their friends. Martinez expects to continue working in the program until he resumes his studies, which he hopes will be this fall at Loyola Marymount University.
Image of Barbara Kerwin's work Titania and Oberon
It’s going to be an active summer for art instructor Barbara Kerwin. Her work will be featured in exhibitions at opposite ends of the country. A work entitled Titania and Oberon (image) will be part of an exhibit called "Shakespeare as Muse. " The show will run from July-September at the Schneider Museum of Art in Ashland, Oregon. Running almost concurrently in Atlanta will be an exhibit at Soho-Myriad Gallery titled "L.A. Abstraction," which will also feature works by Kerwin. Additional shows will follow in the coming months in Los Angeles and Riverside. With understatement, Kerwin described the semester just concluded as "awfully busy." In addition to teaching drawing and painting full time, Kerwin also serves as an academic vice chair supervising studio arts.