Peralta Community College District's Only Student-Run Publication
Peralta Community College District's only student-run publication.

The Citizen
Peralta will join in international “Great Shakeout” earthquake drill
Peralta will join in international “Great Shakeout” earthquake drill
October 14, 2025
Chancellor Tammeil Gilkerson speaking to a crowd of Peralta employees during the fall 2025 District FLEX Day at Merritt College in Oakland, CA on Aug. 15, 2025.
Big changes may be coming to Peralta. Here’s the plan so far
October 8, 2025
Merritt College to host "Peralta Pumpkin Pursuit" district fundraiser marathon
Merritt College to host “Peralta Pumpkin Pursuit” district fundraiser marathon
October 7, 2025
Leslie Blackie speaks during public comment at the Sept. 23 Board of Trustees study session at Merritt College. (via PCCD livestream)
Student support programs highlighted at Sept. 23 Board of Trustees study session
October 5, 2025
Peralta set to launch campus shuttle service in December
Peralta set to launch campus shuttle service in December
September 29, 2025
A pair competes in the Potato Dance contest, where two people hold a potato between their foreheads and dance around the arena at the NAHC Powwow at Merritt College in Oakland, CA., on September 27, 2025.
‘Laughter is Medicine’, Annual Powwow highlights Native American healthcare
October 13, 2025
Trellis and sign stand at the entrance to the Urban Community Gardening class plot at the Lakeside Park Garden Center in Oakland, CA., on September 23, 2025. 
Merritt College urban garden class sows “practical skills”
October 6, 2025
Alexandra Tejeda Rieloff performs with her band at Etcetera Wine Bar in San Francisco, CA., on April 15, 2025.
Alumnus reflects on decades-long performing career: “it really started in Laney College”
September 26, 2025
Yunomi by Ian Bassett is one of the featured works at the new exhibition. STOKED highlights the unique texture and color of wood-fired ceramics.
National art exhibition ‘STOKED’ showcases wood-fired possibilities for Laney ceramics program
September 24, 2025
Mina Spasely, peer mentor for SALAAM learning community and nursing major at College of Alameda, poses in front of the sign for the college. SALAAM aims to uplift CoA students from Arab, Southwest Asian and North African diasporic communities.
SALAAM program helps immigrant women find confidence and careers at CoA
September 19, 2025
Alexandra Tejeda Rieloff performs with her band at Etcetera Wine Bar in San Francisco, CA., on April 15, 2025.
Alumnus reflects on decades-long performing career: “it really started in Laney College”
September 26, 2025
Yunomi by Ian Bassett is one of the featured works at the new exhibition. STOKED highlights the unique texture and color of wood-fired ceramics.
National art exhibition ‘STOKED’ showcases wood-fired possibilities for Laney ceramics program
September 24, 2025
Berkeley City College Multimedia Arts student Yunha Kim created the new owl mascot in collaboration with Marcus Creel, the district's graphic design specialist. (Owl and banner design via Yunha Kim and Marcus Creel. Used with permission.)
Berkeley City College arts student helps new mascot take flight
April 16, 2025
The pieces shown in Clay, Paper, Wood are crafted by advanced Laney students across many mediums. The gallery offers a tranquil space in the center of Laney College’s campus.
Laney Art students get crafty in new gallery show
March 10, 2025
Native American photographer Dugan Aguilar spent decades documenting the lives of Indigenous Californians through his camera lens. His collection of work is on display now at the Oakland Museum of Califoria. (Shown: “Mimi Mullen (Madiu) Grand Marshall,” 1997 Greenville Gold Digger Days Parade)
This Indigenous art exhibition is free for Laney students
January 27, 2025
Graphic made in Canva
Dial Tones and Disengagement: A student election marked by silence
October 16, 2025
Graphic of a student journalist, using a rolled up newspaper to break the ribbon of silence.
The Citizen will not “take down” the truth
October 4, 2025
Incumbent Area 2 Trustee Paulina Gonzalez-Brito, pictured here in The Citizen's newsroom, has what it takes to stay on the Peralta board for another four years.
EDITORIAL: Keep Paulina Gonzalez-Brito on the Peralta board
September 25, 2024
Staff Writer Desmond Meagley stands in the very spot where a security guard confronted him last month: the doorway of the men’s restroom in the Laney College Library. Meagley, who is transgender, tried to report the incident, but reached a dead end when an administrator told him he would need the security guard’s name.
The Catch-22 in AP 3435, Peralta’s Harassment Protocol
May 20, 2024
Social Media Editor Isabelly Sabô stands in front of the door to The Citizen's newsroom. Sabô is an international student from Brazil.
We’re not just ‘rich kids on vacation’: The journey of an international student
May 5, 2024
An athlete looks down the dark stairwell towards the locker rooms. Illustration by Eliot Faine
The Locker Room Stall: 47 years of Title IX allegations at Laney College
March 31, 2025
The American Straight A Academy helped students in China receive transfer degrees from the Peralta Community College District without paying international tuition or setting foot in California. The for-profit company, registered in Dallas, Texas, has not disclosed how much students pay for the experience.
Investigation: A look at the for-profit Chinese business that sold Peralta classes overseas
October 30, 2024
Investigation: Over half of PCCD conflict of interest disclosures nowhere to be found
Investigation: Over half of PCCD conflict of interest disclosures nowhere to be found
September 17, 2024
The Citizen Investigates: International Travel
The Citizen Investigates: International Travel
July 25, 2024
Sunshine Week 2024: Spotlighting public records
Sunshine Week 2024: Spotlighting public records
March 17, 2024
Peralta Community College District's only student-run publication.

The Citizen
Peralta Community College District's only student-run publication.

The Citizen

College of Alameda

Peralta set to launch campus shuttle service in December

Peralta set to launch campus shuttle service in December

Students will be able to pay a one time fee per semester to travel from all four Peralta colleges
Dustin Chu, Staff Writer • September 29, 2025
The shuttle bus program will start with limited service on Dec. 1, while full implementation will begin at the start of the 2026 Spring semester.
Mina Spasely, peer mentor for SALAAM learning community and nursing major at College of Alameda, poses in front of the sign for the college. SALAAM aims to uplift CoA students from Arab, Southwest Asian and North African diasporic communities.

SALAAM program helps immigrant women find confidence and careers at CoA

The program supplies students with materials, grants, food vouchers, and a safe community.
Romi Bales, Copy Editor • September 19, 2025
College of Alameda’s SALAAM program is a learning community that aims to uplift Arab, Southwest Asian and North African students. Through SALAAM, CoA students in need can receive classroom materials, food vouchers, assistance with transportation costs, early access to class registration, and more.
As a part of a tour of visits and study sessions at all four Peralta campuses, the Board of Trustees made their final stop at the College of Alameda.

April 22 Board Brief: College of Alameda highlights its academic programs and district enrollment trends

The college invited the Board of Trustees and the public to review its accomplishments
Romi Bales and Lylah Schmedel-Permanna • May 28, 2025

The Peralta Board of Trustees convened at the College of Alameda (CoA) on April 22 where CoA showcased two of its programs and reviewed the annual student success and equity data report. CoA President...

Elected student body leaders are invited to speak at the Peralta Board of Trustees meetings and provide updates to college administration on student life and needs.

Voting begins for Peralta student government elections

Ongoing student government elections will determine the future of student leadership and transportation access at each Peralta campus
Tamara Copes and Lylah Schmedel-Permanna • April 9, 2025

Let’s get ready to rumble! The 2025-2026 Peralta Community College Student Government elections are currently underway. Peralta students can vote for student representatives at their home college and...

Three candidates vie to lead CoA instruction

Three candidates vie to lead CoA instruction

As college faces budget challenges, candidates share strategies to boost enrollment
Stephon Autery, Staff Writer • November 26, 2024
The selected candidate will be tasked with overseeing the college’s instructional programming and managing faculty tenure review processes.
Basketball legend Gary Payton, who left a coaching gig at Lincoln University earlier this year, has been tapped to lead the College of Alameda's men's basketball team. (Photo: Faiza Ali/PCCD via Peralta Colleges Smugmug)

Lights flash at Payton press conference

CoA's new men’s basketball coach gears up for the season
Ivan Saravia, Staff Writer • September 20, 2024
“I’m coming here to give back,” Payton said, recalling his Bay Area roots.
NBA legend Gary Payton, who recently wrapped up a tumultuous coaching stint at Lincoln University, is set to make a splash at the College of Alameda this fall. (Photo: Keith Allison via Wikimedia Commons)

Exclusive: NBA Hall of Famer Gary Payton lands coaching gig at the College of Alameda

Ivan Saravia, Staff Writer • September 7, 2024
The basketball legend is hopping across the estuary after tumultuous stint at a private nonprofit university in Oakland.
Melanie Dixon appointed CoA President

Melanie Dixon appointed CoA President

After two years of acting appointments, the College of Alameda will finally fill the presidency with a permanent hire this summer
Ivan Saravia, Staff Writer • May 23, 2024
A former Sacramento college president will soon take the helm at the College of Alameda.
CoA's next president is one of these three college leaders

CoA’s next president is one of these three college leaders

Community feedback on the candidates is due midnight tonight
Desmond Meagley and Ivan Saravia • May 21, 2024
A former college president from Sacramento, a longtime community college administrator from Connecticut, and PCCD's own Rebecca Opsata are in the running for permanent College President of the College of Alameda.
The search for a permanent president of the College of Alameda is down to three candidates. William “Terry” Brown (left), Melanie Dixon (middle), and Rebecca “Becky” Opsata will respond to community questions at public forums on Thursday. (Photo courtesy: PCCD)

Finalists for CoA President unveiled

Community questions accepted until midnight tonight
Desmond Meagley, Staff Writer • May 13, 2024

The Peralta Community College District (PCCD) has named three finalists in the search for a permanent College of Alameda (CoA) President. Public forums for the candidates are set for Thursday; the deadline...

As College of Alameda searches for a new president, The Citizen searched for one of the college's former presidents. The late Jeanette Poore was the first woman to lead a community college in California.

CoA’s mystery woman: The forgotten legacy of the first female community college president in California

Romi Bales, Staff Writer • May 13, 2024
As College of Alameda searches for a new president, The Citizen searched for one of the college’s former presidents.
(Illustration: Eliot Faine/The Citizen)

CoA to host blood drive

College health coordinator says blood donations fell during pandemic
Eliot Faine, Staff Writer • April 13, 2024
Someone in the United States needs blood or platelets every two seconds on average, according to the American Red Cross.
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