Reports to the Board of Trustees
Each month, President Torres gives a report on college activities, honors and achievements during the regular meeting of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees.
For previous reports, please see the board reports archive.
Board Meeting of March 10, 2025
Annual Report Highlights 2024 Achievements
Our new college Annual Report is hot off the presses! The 28-page booklet includes a “By the Numbers” look at De Anza College, along with new programs, a Measure G update and a host of great achievements, awards and activities from the last calendar year.
The full-color report is packed with great photos of our students, our beautiful campus and memorable events from 2024, including the commencement celebration last June. It also has information about community engagement and fundraising to support our students’ basic needs.
The report was produced by our Office of Communications. It’s available in printed format and can also be viewed as a digital flipbook or a downloadable PDF at deanza.edu/president/annual-report.
Innovation Grants for 2025-26
I’m thrilled about our new Innovation Grants program, which is designed to advance student equity, retention and increased enrollment by providing financial support for to new, entrepreneurial project ideas at De Anza.
Grants are available in amounts up to $2,500 and will be funded by the Foothill-De Anza Foundation in concert with my office. Last week, I sent an email to all employees about this program and invited them to apply for grants by submitting their ideas for projects that apply innovative methods to delivering instruction, services or team building in ways that reinforce student success, community engagement and a growth mindset.
Grant applications are due by June 20 for projecs that will be implemented in the 2025-26 academic year. Grant recipients will be announced at the fall 2025 Opening Day event on our campus. For more information, visit deanza.edu/president/innovation-grants.
CEO AI Leadership Boot Camp
I was pleased to attend the Community College CEO AI Leadership Boot Camp two weeks ago in Southern California, where the presenters included our own Chancellor Lee Lambert and Vice Chancellor Jory Hadsell. This was an intensive weekend program designed especially for community college CEOs, covering tools and strategies for using artificial intelligence in higher education.
The event was organized by the Leadership Institute for Tomorrow and the Community College Think Tank. Other speakers included UC Irvine professor Vijay Gurbaxani, author Brian Merchant, UCLA professor Safiya Noble and Microsoft executive Roopa Felten.
Major Progress in Reducing Textbook Costs
I want to highlight some amazing work that’s being carried out by our Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) grants coordinator, Shagun Kaur, and a host of faculty members working with her, along with Associate Vice President for Instruction Sam Bliss.
Working with a $1.6 million grant from the state, Shagun and instructors in the relevant programs have developed a
comprehensive process for creating zero-cost pathways to earning associate degrees for transfer (ADT) in several subjects, beginning with an ADT in Mathematics. The process for the Math degree included identifying six required courses along with a zero-cost GE pathway and then developing textbooks, instructor materials and a homework system based on open educational resources. This work is now almost complete.
As the next step, instructors will “soft launch” the textbooks this spring, in order to get student feedback. After the new materials are finalized this summer, they will be ready to formally launch the new Zero Textbook Cost associate degree for transfer in Mathematics this fall. A zero-cost ADT in Kinesiology, drawing on collaboration across three disciplines, will be launched in winter 2026.
Meanwhile, work is underway to develop ZTC pathways for four more associate degrees for transfer – in Political Science, Communication Studies, Global Studies and Psychology – and two CTE certificate programs – in Data Science and Project Management – which are scheduled to launch in fall 2026.
The process is also being used to develop ZTC materials for four Meteorology courses, two Astronomy courses and one Health course – all scheduled to launch in fall 2026. Plans are also in place for one more CTE certificate and an ADT in Journalism to launch by fall 2027 or sooner.
All told, more than 80 courses are being converted to using zero-cost materials. These efforts are transforming our college by lowering student costs, boosting access and success, and fostering faculty collaboration and innovation – leveraging AI, open-source platforms, accessibility and copyright expertise.
Student Trustee Profiled on State Athletics Site
One of our amazing students, De Anza student Trustee Iris Li, is the subject of a feature profile on the website of the California Community College Athletic Association, or 3C2A.
In addition to her work in student government, Iris is also sophomore captain of our women’s soccer team and is Academics Commissioner on our Student-Athlete Advisory Council. She’s a two-time All-Coast Conference selection for the team, and earned Academic All-Conference honors for maintaining a perfect 4.0 GPA in the 2023 and 2024 fall seasons.
Congratulations, Iris!
Innovation Center Business Model Competition
More than 75 students from a variety of majors had the opportunity to pitch marketing strategies and win cash prizes during a Business Model Canvas Competition hosted on Feb. 28 by the De Anza Innovation Center, which is part of Dean Manisha Karia's Business, Computer Science and Applied Technologies Division. The event was sponsored by KeyPoint Credit Union.
Students competed in 19 teams to present their ideas for marketing to Gen Z consumers, who may be unfamiliar with credit unions and how they compare with banks and newer, online financial services. Each team prepared a “business model canvas” or one-page template that addressed customer segments, value propositions, revenue streams, resources, partnerships and other essential elements.
Five teams won a total of $1,300 in prizes, including a $500 first prize for the team of Carine Chan, George Huang, Leo Huang and Sylvia Nghiem. Judges included faculty members John Francis and Sukhjit (Bob) Singh, along with Mehrdad Khosravi, dean of Physical Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering, along with several representatives from KeyPoint.
Working on Strategy
First-Place Winners
Students and Judges
Music Students at Grace Cathedral
Students in our vocal music programs have been invited to perform in a special program at San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral on March 29. The program will feature students in our Chorale and Vintage Singers ensembles, led by instructor Cyril Deaconoff, singing "Fauré Requiem" in collaboration with our Chamber Orchestra, directed by instructor Grace Lai.
If you can’t make it to that concern, our Music Department is also hosting a winter concert next Saturday, March 15, at 7 p.m. in the VPAC Auditorium. The Concert Band, Vintage Singers, Jazz Ensemble and De Anza Chorale will be performing. Student admission is $5 and general admission is $10.
Food Pantry Earns Gold Certification
I’m proud to share that De Anza’s Food Pantry has earned the highest level of certification from the Nutrition Pantry Program (NPP), a statewide initiative affiliated with the CalFresh Healthy Living program
at the Santa Clara County Public Health Department.
The program works with food pantries to ensure they’re operating at the highest standards. De Anza earned “gold” certification after NPP representatives reviewed the Food Pantry's practices in key areas such as nutrition education, cultural and dietary accommodations, inventory and waste reduction.
Coaching Honors for Owiesny
Longtime instructor and coach Cheryl Owiesny was recently inducted into the California Community College Soccer Coaches Association (CCCSCA) Hall of Fame, in recognition of her dedication and excellence over 30 years of coaching at De Anza.
During her career, Owiesny coached eight women’s teams to Coast Conference championships. She earned “Coach of the Year” honors numerous times at the conference, regional and national level. She’s also held leadership positions in the CCCSCA and been a strong advocate for women’s and men’s athletics. Owiesny retired from coaching in 2022 but continues to teach at De Anza.
Singh Selected for 3C2A Hall of Fame
Another member of our Athletics family is also being honored: Kulwant Singh, retired longtime De Anza athletics director and soccer coach, will be inducted into 3C2A's Hall of Fame next month.
Singh was De Anza’s athletics director from 2004-21 and served as head soccer coach for men (1990-2006 and 2013) and women (1991-97). Under his leadership, De Anza won 11 conference championships and two state championships for men, and four conference championships and two state championships for women. That includes separate state championships for both men and women in the same year, 1994.
Recent Campus Activities
Finally, there’s always something interesting happening on our campus, and recent weeks have been no exception:
- Our International Student Programs office and students organized a celebration of Nowruz on Wednesday, Feb. 19, with dances, music and foods from several different countries that celebrate the spring holiday.
- On the same day, our Black Faculty, Staff and Administrators Network hosted an event with radio host Nikki Thomas, discussing Black culture, media and legacy in connection with Black History Month.
- The Office of Equity and other groups invited representatives from the Rapid Response Network to conduct a Know Your Rights training about how to respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Monday, Feb. 24.
- Our Rising Scholars program and the Office of Professional Development hosted a screening of the film “Almost Home: Life After Incarceration” on Thursday, Feb. 27.
- Students interested in health careers heard a panel of nurses discuss their academic and career experiences during the Fifth Annual Sandra Diaz Health Professions Career Panel last Monday, March 4.
- And our Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services program will hold a Deaf Awareness Event this Thursday, March 13, where everyone is invited to learn more about deafness and deaf culture.
You can find a calendar of upcoming campus events at deanza.edu/events.