Concerts to showcase 3 on Grossmont faculty

EL CAJON – Three members of the Grossmont College music faculty will collaborate in a pair of concerts presented by the Grossmont Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale at 8 p.m., Saturday evening, Sept. 14, at Grossmont College Recital Hall (Building 26, Room 220) and at 2 p.m.,  Sunday, Sept. 15, at All Saints Episcopal Church of San Diego, at the corner of 6th and Pennsylvania Avenues.

The faculty members are violinist Alyze Dreiling, lyric coloratura soprano Audra Nagby, and classical guitarist Robert Wetzel.  They will perform a variety of selections ranging from English lute songs to virtuoso works by Paganini to Spanish canciones.  Tickets for the Saturday evening performance at Grossmont College are $10 general admission and $5 student admission.  At All Saints Episcopal Church on Sunday, a free will offering will be encouraged.

Dreiling has soloed on violin with the Detroit Symphony, Philharmonia Hungarica, Florida Chamber Orchestra, Knoxville Symphony and the Knoxville Chamber.  She currently is on the faculties of Grossmont College and the University of San Diego.  

Nagby has been a soprano soloist in such productions as Handel’s Messiah, Webber’s Requiem, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mozart’s Requieum, Haydn’s Creation, Faure’s Requiem, Mozart’s Missa Brevis in C, Orff’s Carmina Burana and Hadyn’s Lord Nelson Mass.  She serves on the board of directors of the National Association of Teachers of Singing.

Wetzel studied guitar with the legendary Romero family, playing lute and guitar in a foursome with Celin, Pepe and Angel Romero at the Napa Music Festival in 1977. He teaches classical guitar at Grossmont College, and performs alongside fellow Grossmont College faculty member Fred Benedetti as the award winning Odeum Guitar Duo, showcasing innovative music that can be performed on two classical guitars.

Composers whose works will be presented during these concerts are Paganini, Cerruti, Coste, Dowland, Pilkington, Purcell, Gluck, Sor and Villa-Lobos, according to Dr. Randall Tweed, conductor of the Grossmont Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale.

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Grossmont College participates in National Suicide Prevention Week

Above: Juliette Harrington, student health service specialist, displays red bracelet with helpline phone number (888) 724-7240; bottom: Harrington and Romalyn Watson, health promotion specialist with the County of San Diego, show that they are wearing their bracelets while staffing information tables at Griffin Center on Monday, Sept. 9

EL CAJON—There are acute warning signs that indicate someone is seriously contemplating suicide and there are other, more subtle, signs.  Both types were explained at Grossmont College as part of its national Suicide Prevention Week observance.

Health officials report that  one person in the United States dies by suicide every 14.2 minutes, claiming over 38,000 lives each year.  From 2000-2011, suicide took the lives of 4,132 San Diegans.  An estimated 1,100 students affiliated with colleges and universities die by suicide each year.

In an attempt to reduce these fatal statistics, a red “not on my watch” wristband bearing the help number (888) 724-7240 was distributed at Griffin Center along with materials denoting the warning signs. According to the literature,  a person in acute risk for suicidal behavior may engage in any of the following behaviors:

* Threatening to hurt or kill him or herself, or talking of wanting to hurt or kill him/ herself.
* Looking for ways to kill him/ herself by seeking access to firearms, available pills, or other means.
* Talking or writing about death, dying or suicide, when those actions are out of the ordinary.

Additional, but more subtle, warning signs listed on literature distributed by the American Association of Suicidology included:

*Increased substance (alcohol or drug) use
* No reason for living, no sense of purpose in life.
*Anxiety, agitation, unable to sleep or sleeping all the time
* Feeling trapped—like there’s no way out.
* Hopelessness
*Withdrawal from friends, family and society
* Rage, uncontrolled anger, seeking revenge
*Acting reckless or engaging in risky activities, seemingly without thinking
*Dramatic mood changes.

In literature distributed on campus by the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention and Program, these facts about suicide were reported:

*In the United States it is estimated that an attempt is made once every minute. For every single adult who completed suicide it is estimated that there are 35 attempts.  For teens it is estimated there are 100 to 300 attempts for every completed suicide.

* Among 5 to 15 year olds, suicide is the third leading cause of death.

* The fastest-growing group completing suicide is children between the ages of 10-14.  This rate has doubled in the last two decades.

* 90 percent of all people who die by suicide have a diagnosable mental illness at the time of their death.  60 percent of all people who die by suicide suffer from depression—the most treatable of mental illnesses.

If you or someone you know needs help or is in crisis, San Diego County’s 24-hour Access & Crisis Line is (888) 724-7240.

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Grossmont College awards scholarships totalling over $45,000

Grossmont College Scholarship Officer Selam Gebrekristos, right, congratulates, from left, Billie Lockett, John Stewardson and Isagani Lagundino, all winners of $750 scholarships from the San Diego Foundation Dietschman Fund for students pursuing careers in health care. 

EL CAJON--The motto of Grossmont College, "changing lives through education," was dramatically illustrated Saturday, Sept. 7, at a Scholarship Award Breakfast at which more than $45,000 was distributed to 75 students in awards ranging from $150 to $2000. Some students won multiple scholarships.

As smiling student after student walked to the front of the Griffin Gate meeting hall to accept an award, those in the audience who knew the hardships that some of them had endured could not help but feel a wave of gratitude. Now, in large measure because someone had believed in them, the recipients are on their way to successful lives.

Selam Gebrekristos, the Scholarship Officer at Grossmont College, is herself no stranger to adversity, having fled with her parents and siblings from their home in Eritrea to a refugee camp in The Sudan, where she lived for several years before coming to live in the United States.  "I've complained about things in my life and they were nothing compared to some of the things that these students went through at very young ages," she told an interviewer.

The students had written of their lives in essays, which, for the sake of privacy, are quoted here without their authors' names.  In Gebrekristos' estimate, the essays are testaments to the resiliency of the human spirit and to how important it is for people to have relatives, educators, and other mentors in their lives who believe in their potential.

One young woman related that  she had been kidnapped by her mother when she was 2 1/2, then kidnapped back by her father.  "I felt like a commodity rather than a human being," she wrote.  Repeating the pattern of her mother, the student became pregnant and addicted to drugs.  However, she wrote, "I entered a program, have become clean and sober ever since" and "have enrolled in college and have been attending school for the last year and a half."  More adversity including an eviction from her apartment and the death of her mentor grandmother didn't deter her.  "I fought back with determination to succeed instead of trying to escape," she wrote. "During this period I earned a 3.7 GPA and completed all courses."

A young man who said he had despised education, wrote of changing his attitude after an elderly clarinetist, who had performed overseas, suggested that he join his band, despite the young man having no previous experience. "I accepted his offer and played the euphonium for his band. From the start, I loved it."  As ability to perform music improved, so too did his academic achievement.  When an uncle who had encouraged him was found murdered, "at that moment I dedicated my future to learning my art."  He became a leader in his high school band, captain of his swim team, coached at a city swimming pool, and played in the local symphony.  At Grossmont College, he is now a music major.

A young woman who was working in a store was suddenly faced by an armed robber, who put a knife to her throat, demanded money, and threatened to rape her.  "All of a sudden a miracle happened, he had a sudden change of heart and decided to let me go. After this horrid experience, I found myself in a state of shock for quite some time.  I was suffering from post traumatic stress and could not bring myself to return to work.  I went from being a confident woman, who thought I was invincible, to a person scared to leave the house."  A psychologist encouraged her to work as a volunteer with zoo animals, which led to her becoming certified as a volunteer animal interpreter and helped to build back her confidence.  Eventually she decided to go to Grossmont College, where "I strive to achieve the best grades possible."

Another young man was in and out of foster homes, juvenile hall, and even jail for felony vandalism.  He wrote that he has been trying to turn his life around since, completing high school, enrolling in college, completing 25 days of community service and five years of probation with favorable reports.  Now, "I am committed to be not only a product of transformation, but also a role model," he said. 

Because community colleges are such a great educational value at $46 per unit, an award of $500 can go a long way toward funding a full semester, and $1,000 can cover a year of tuition/ fees and educational supplies, Grossmont College President Sunita V. Cooke commented to the award recipients, their families and donors.

Gebrekristos told an interviewer the scholarships provide students with an important emotional stimulus.  "They are about being believed in and being selected out of the thousands and thousands of students here," Gebrekristos said.  "It is not free money; they work for it.  They have to write these essays. They have to do research.  They have to get letters of recommendation.  It's not easy and that is why a lot of students don't apply.  So when they are selected for a scholarship, it is a real honor."

Grossmont College faculty members have been very important in the scholarship award process, Gebrekristos said..  They often tell her about hard-working students in their classes who could really benefit from scholarships.

In their essays, many students wrote about wanting to be like the mentors who have positively influenced their lives.  In addition to admired relatives, these often included teachers, coaches, volunteers, and other agents of positive change in society. 

More information about the Scholarship Program at Grossmont College, including some scholarships that still remain available and others for which applications open Sept. 30, may be obtained by contacting Gebrekristos at (619) 644-7121, or via email selam.gebrekristos@gcccd.edu  

*
Fall 2013 Scholarship Awards recipients included: 

Heather Airy, Celeste Allen, Kirsten Andrews, Zach Armstrong, Krystelle Ashbaugh, Michelle Bales, Coloni Brown, Therese Camoras, Janet Carter, Alexandra Cisneros, Benjamin Deharo, Stephanie Diaz-Gonzales, Emiliana Emery, Tamarah Fadhil,  Julie Flanery, Masaleen Frank, Dashika Gallon, Yennis Gangora, Stephanie Garetson, Marissa Gonzalez, Chase Granito, Tahmina Habibzada, Yeabsra Habtegebriel, Diana Heinsbergen and Simone Henderson.

Enrique Herrera-Ponce, Janeane Horan, Joseph Horvitz, Gladys Ignacio, Thirada Kingphuang, Makiko Kishimoto, Isagani Lagundino, De'Shaun Liddell-Patacsile, Jiawen Liu, Billie Lockett, Tamika Lovelace, Rosalinda Lopez, Lorena Marquez, Dianne Martinez, Sandy Matti, Tamara McMillan, Sandra Mekhaail, Aaron Menjuga, Teri Moody, Minerva Munoz, Sean Murray, Thi Nguyen, Ashely O'Neil, Jennifer Onderdonk, and Cleatus Peake

Phuc Pham, Brittany Pharis, Lakeisha Powell, Jessica Pruitt, Daniel Ramos, Jesus Rangel, Nisreen Rofaeel, Brandon Barnes Rose, Christina Rubalcava, Andrew Schauf-Anderson, Courtney Scheck, Parastu Sharifi Shehnaz Sial, Carlyn Stech, Katherine Stetler, John Stewardson, Linnea Tatupu, Jeah Telebrico, Haile Tesfalidet, Anastacia Tucker, Panteli Vourakis, Kirstyn Wagner, Christina Wortman, Walnet Youhanan and Diana Youhanna.

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Prof. Herzfeld-Pipkin tells what makes a good ESL teacher

                                          Nancy Herzfeld-Pipkin

EL CAJON--Retiring following a 37-year multiple college career as an English and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) faculty member, Prof. Nancy Herzfeld-Pipkin answered unhesitatingly when asked at her Grossmont College retirement party what quality ESL instructors need most.

"Compassion," she declared.

A portion of the ESL students at Grossmont College "are immigrants from all over the world, refugees, people who are struggling, people who are here under very difficult circumstances," she said.  "They are here because they were forced to leave their country. They didn't want to leave their country but circumstances happened that they had to.  They came with almost nothing, and learning language and a new culture is not easy, so you have to have compassion."

So, Herzfeld-Pipkin said, she tried to make students feel comfortable in her classroom, while at the same time insisting upon high standards.  "There is a little bit of making sure that they are okay, but also making sure that they understand all that they will have to deal with," Herzfeld-Pipkin commented during a Friday, August 30, retirement celebration on campus with faculty, staff and administrators.

Making students work hard for their ESL classroom grade prepares them to do well in academic courses that they will take in other college disciplines, she noted.   If standards were to be relaxed, on the other hand, "you would not be preparing them to deal with what is coming up in the environment they chose. It would in fact be a lack of compassion because you set them up for failure."

Herzfeld-Pipkin said she is proud of the seven books she has authored for use by ESL students. When she started at Grossmont College, she recalled there was an exercise book that asked students to write about such topics as their favorite superstition, holiday, and color.

"At midterm, students were coming to me and saying 'I have to drop my history class,' and I thought 'We are not preparing them!' so I just started writing some materials based on academic themes.. One was on the African American experience, starting with Frederick Douglass, the Civil War, the Jim Crow era, Civil Rights -- they need to know this.  The student reaction was incredible:  'You mean we are going to learn something from this?' I remember an Iraqi guy, a biologist, who fled because (Iraq's dictator) Saddam (Hussein) wanted him to work on chemical weapons and he wouldn't.... He told me that in his music class, they were talking about the jazz era, and the teacher said 'Jim Crow.'  The student was excited to report  'I knew what it was, just like all the Americans, and I was so proud of myself.'

Other chapters in that book addressed different subjects in a general-education curriculum. There was  "a little bit about learning styles, history, the environment, culture, health, so no matter what class they took, they would have a smattering," Herzfeld-Pipkin said.  "You focus on that vocabulary, and those ideas and the grammar that comes up most often in those disciplines."

Besides writing books geared to ESL students -- her first was about a trip she made across country from New York to California -- Herzfeld-Pipkin has participated in innumerable conferences, workshops, seminars and convocations to assist in the professional development of new ESL teachers.

"What her many admiring students are not aware of is what she has done to advocate on their behalf," commented Agustin Albarran, dean of English, Behavioral and Social Sciences at Grossmont College.  "She has served on numerous committees such as Academic Senate, Student Success Committee, East County Cal-Pass EL/ESL Intersegmental Council, Chancellor's Refugee and Immigrant Planning Team, and International Student Committee." 

Furthermore, said the dean, "she has presented workshops to Grossmont College Faculty and to San Diego-Imperial Counties Community College Association (SDICCCA) interns, sharing best practices when teaching non-native speakers in their classes. She has also served our faculty on the Facilities Committee, Faculty Staffing Committee, ESL Assessment Test Writing Team for California Community Colleges and ESL Full-Time Instructor Hiring Committees... Nancy has been deeply committed to creating and developing learning communities in the ESL department."

History Prof. Sue Gonda, president of Grossmont College's Academic Senate, said she recently had a conversation with Beth Smith, the Grossmont College mathematics professor who currently is serving as president of the statewide Academic Senate for the 112 California Community Colleges, about Herzfeld-Pipkin's retirement.  She said they agreed that Herzfeld-Pipkin could be counted upon in every academic forum to always "bring back into the conversation the big picture, student success, which is what we are here for." 

Gonda also praised Herzfeld-Pipkin's devotion to community service learning, by which students may earn course credit by relating their volunteer experiences with agencies in the community to their studies in the classroom.

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The gathering in Griffin Gate in Herzfeld-Pipkin's honor also included some lighter moments.  For example, Barbara Loveless, who has shared office space with Herzfeld-Pipkin for seven years, recalled that the first thing Herzfeld-Pipkin told her when Loveless arrived at their shared office quarters was that she had been meaning to throw away some 30 years of collected papers that were piled up around the office.

Now that Herzfeld-Pipkin is retiring, "she is finally going to get rid of those papers dating back 37 years," Loveless exulted.   Loveless said that she learned some of the things Herzfeld-Pipkin hopes to do after retirement.  With her son and daughter-in-law expecting a child, she wants to devote time to being a grandma, she wants to travel to Hopi Indian country to collect Kachina dolls and turquoise, pursue gardening as a hobby and lifestyle, do more hiking in Mission Trails Regional Park, and  "eat chocolate for pleasure," not for stress!

Prof. Oralee Holder, chair of the English department, told of a special connection with Herzfeld-Pipkin that neither of them at first realized they had.  Early in her career, she said, she was flying from San Diego to San Francisco and met on the plane a man with whom conversation was so interesting they  decided to correspond, which they did for approximately three years before losing touch.  About five years ago and 25 years after that plane ride, Herzfeld-Pipkin came into Dr. Holder's office with a note card bearing her name and a message.  "Is this yours?" she asked.  She had found it along with many other letters among her brother Gerry Herzfeld's effects, explaining "Gerry was a pack rat like me!"

Because Nancy Herzfeld-Pipkin originally utilized the name "Nancy Pipkin" before deciding to hyphenate it with her maiden name, Holder said she always thought of her fellow faculty member as "Pipkin" and didn't realize the "Herzfeld" name indicated a relationship.  What a surprise it was for both women that Gerry had lengthy correspondence with his sister's colleague!  Holder also was able to share with Pipkin the "other half of the story," letters that Nancy's brother had written decades before.  It became a way for Herzfeld-Pipkin to understand other aspects of her brother's life.

(Story by Donald H. Harrison, Photo by Barbara Loveless)