As the fall semester kicks into gear, the Peralta Community College District (PCCD) Board of Trustees got busy with another regular meeting on Sep. 10.
In addition to approving this year’s budget, the board also swore in a new student trustee.
Pierce Byrne takes student trustee oath
New Student Trustee Pierce Byrne was sworn into office. Byrne, a Business and Administration major at Berkeley City College (BCC), will serve alongside Student Trustee Sophia Parmigiani for the 2024-25 year.
Byrne plans to visit each PCCD campus twice a month to listen to questions and concerns from students, according to PCCD Chancellor Tammeil Gilkerson.
Previously, Byrne served as a Senator and the Vice President of Administration for the Associated Students of BCC.
“His focus is on helping students transition smoothly and find their voice in community college,” Gilkerson said during the meeting.
Crickets as board approves $325m budget
The board unanimously approved the budget for the 2024-25 academic year, approving over $325 million in funds, and confirming over $11.8 million in cuts districtwide.
Not a squeak was heard after Board President Paulina Gonzalez-Brito opened a public hearing for the budget item, or after Gonzalez-Brito opened the item for discussion. Trustees discussed the first reading of the budget at last month’s meeting.
By contrast, last year’s budget was marked with contention around faculty raises and the limitations of shared governance.
READ MORE: Peralta budget update: $2 million funds “miscoded”
Peralta eyes ‘Black Serving Institution’ designations
In her Chancellor’s Report to the board, Gilkerson endorsed a bill that would create a “Black-Serving Institution” designation for California colleges and universities.
SB 1348 was passed by the California legislature last month and is awaiting a signature from Governor Gavin Newsom.
“While the designations exist for Hispanic Serving Institutions and Asian-American, Native American and Pacific Islander Serving Institutions, frustratingly there is no such designated designation for Black Serving Institutions,” Gilkerson said.
According to Gilkerson, all four Peralta colleges would meet the criteria for the new designation.
Black students must make up at least 10% of the student body or account for at least 1,500 enrolled students for a college to qualify. Colleges also need to submit Black student success data, such as number of degrees and certificates awarded, to the state along with a plan for reducing academic achievement gaps.
