Dear PO Alum,

As you know, my retirement from over 40 years of work in higher education will begin soon. I would like you to know that I leave Pacific Oaks College & Children's School with great contentment. I have loved my time here, first as your Provost and then as your President. It has been a joy working in Pasadena, to experience such local pride in the community and the energy to serve. Our Board of Trustees brings the very best in leadership to us with its unique combination of passion, high expectations, open minds, and kindness. Our small but mighty faculty and staff include every category of the strengths that make for hard-working and
hard-thinking teams. I am very grateful for all that we have achieved together.

And our alumni: Thank you for keeping Pacific Oaks in your hearts just as much as we have kept you in ours.

Sharing in the marvelous journey of Pacific Oaks has been a great honor. I will never forget 
my time here.

Warm regards,
Patricia A. Breen, Ph.D.
President, Pacific Oaks College & Children's School


A MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Dear Pacific Oaks Community,
 
We are beginning the New Year by implementing the first step to ensure a smooth leadership transition in light of Dr. Patricia Breen's retirement. We thank Pat for her exemplary service to Pacific Oaks over the last five years, first as Provost and then as President. During her tenure, both the College and Children's School have flourished and grown under her leadership and guidance.
 
At the request of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Jack Paduntin assumed his Interim President role on January 2 and will continue through May 31, 2019. Dr. Paduntin started his academic career as Assistant Professor of Management at Brescia College. During the more than 20 years of his career in higher education, he has held various leadership positions including Associate Dean at California State University San Bernardino; Vice President of Institutional Research and Assessment at National University; President at National University International; and Vice President and Chief of Staff at John F. Kennedy University. Most recently he served as Chief Academic Officer for TCS Education System. Dr. Paduntin served on the board of examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and continues to serve on accreditation visiting teams for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WSCUC).
 
In 2018, Dr. Paduntin supported the leadership transition at Pacific Oaks College when he served as Acting Dean of Academic Affairs. His support on academic assessment, program development, academic collaboration and accreditation has prepared the College for its upcoming WSCUC accreditation visit in October 2019.
 
Dr. Paduntin's understanding of and familiarity with Pacific Oaks, as well as his commitment to our mission, will advance our agenda while the Board of Trustees assesses the needs of the College and Children's School and develops and implements a formal plan for the hiring of a new president. We look forward to embarking on the process that continues the enduring legacy and mission of Pacific Oaks, and I will send updates as the process continues.
 
Thank you for your continued support of Pacific Oaks College & Children's School.
 
Sincerely,
 
Fred Marcus, J.D.
Chairman, Board of Trustees
Pacific Oaks Education Corporation

MEET DR. JACK PADUNTIN
PACIFIC OAKS INTERIM PRESIDENT

I'm honored and humbled that the Board of Trustees asked me to serve as Interim President  of Pacific Oaks.

Both the College and the Children's School carry a long history and a strong commitment to education and to our community. Like you, I was drawn to Pacific Oaks for its mission and core values because I truly believe they are timeless despite the changes in our society. In fact, I feel they are more needed today to better educate our young children and our adult learners graduates and prepare them to serve these changing needs.

During the interim period, my focuses for Pacific Oaks are on our students and academic excellence. I hope to work with our College faculty to continuously improve our academic quality so that we ensure the traditional Pacific Oaks experience to our students. I'm also eager to work with the College community to provide premier services to our students and alumni. Together, we will use our core values of respect, diversity, inclusion and social justice to guide our mission.

Pacific Oaks is going through a major renovation project to improve our Pasadena campus. The project is scheduled to be completed in mid-2019. I will provide updates as we progress and invite you to stay connected and come back to visit Pacific Oaks.

Looking forward to meeting and welcoming you home.

Sincerely,
Dr. Jack Paduntin
Pacific Oaks College & Children's School



THE POWER OF COMMUNITY

In late summer 2018, Pacific Oaks College was presented the opportunity to adopt Collaborate PASadena. Collaborate PASadena is a supportive framework and program that grew out of a partnership between the City of Pasadena and Pasadena Unified School District. Collaborate PASadena's mission is to provide an inclusive network of voices from Pasadena, Altadena, and Sierra Madre engaged in securing access and resources, and creating opportunities for children and families. The three cities encompass the footprint of families attending Pasadena Unified School District as its target outreach. Essentially, Collaborate PASadena functions as a master connector to ensure that the over 1500 non-profit organizations in Pasadena work collaboratively to support children and families. The organization facilitates or is an active participant of 5 work groups and areas: Early Learning, Student Success, Supportive Communities, Parent Leaders & Community Partners, and Healthy Families.
As of fall 2018, Collaborate PASadena has officially become a part of Pacific Oaks College and serves as an anchor organization for the newly formed Center for Community & Social Impact (CCSI). CCSI provides the Pacific Oaks community with the opportunity to operationalize its mission through Community Partnerships, Research & Scholarship, and Service. Under Community Partnerships, CCSI connects with diverse sectors of the community to support efforts that increase access, address inequity, highlight injustice, and support positive change from a strength-based perspective. Research & Scholarship will take the form of community-based participatory action research projects, the dedication of a student's capstone project to the resolution of a community concern, or student fieldwork and internships to serve community needs. Service includes collaborating with organizations to identify needs that align with Pacific Oaks students' fieldwork/internship service requirement, while community partners gain a support system of expertise to help amplify their mission and expand their service capacity.
BRIGHTER FUTURES FOR FAMILIES AND YOUTH

 
On October 20, 2018, Pasadena/Altadena Coalition of Transformative Leaders (PACTL) and Pacific Oaks College, along with many agencies and dozens of parents, youth, and service professionals from our community hosted a major educational summit. The biannual event, "Brighter Futures for Families and Youth", saw 220 participants representing a cross section of Pasadena, Altadena, and the Greater San Gabriel Valley. Among the attendees were 80 parents, 60 youth (ages 11-18), 10 professionals, 40 presenters/speakers, and 30 volunteers.
 
The summit provided a safe space for youth and parents to discuss relevant and timely subject matter. Participants had the opportunity to attend workshops on topics such as Immigration Matters, Teen Alcohol and Drugs, Youth Coping with Depression and Preventing Suicide, Teen/Parent Communication, Increasing Protective Factors in Families, Getting into College and Affording Tuition, Bullying, and Brain Science. Teens came from area schools such as Pasadena High School, Blair High School, John Muir High School, Marshall Fundamental, McKinley, and St. Francis High School.
 
Speakers included John Perez, Interim Police Chief for Pasadena, Dr. Elizabeth Pomeroy, Member of the PUSD Board of Education, Leticia Alejandrez, Director of Communications at The California Endowment, and Christian Daly, Assistant Field Deputy for L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger. Among the numerous presenters and agency supporters were Day One, Pasadena Public Health Department, Prototypes, Boys and Girls Club of Pasadena, The Flintridge Center, El Nido, and Be Strong Families.
INAUGURAL SOCIAL JUSTICE NIGHT

 

On November 2, 2018, Pacific Oaks College held its inaugural Social Justice Night where Lesford Duncan, Pacific Oaks' first Social Justice Hero, was honored along with Honorable Mention, Angeline Chen, and other nominees.
About 75 attendees were on hand to celebrate progress at the benefit, which also raised scholarship funds for Pacific Oaks' students.
The evening was full of positivity and hope for the future but also an acknowledgment of the strength and resolve needed for continued social justice advocacy in the context of today's complex political climate. Lesford Duncan spoke of his own immigrant experience and how he arrived to his work in social justice, a story which attendees nodded their heads to in agreement and understanding.
Participants of Social Justice Night included a broad intersection of the community, including:
  • David Eads, Executive Director and CEO of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses
  • Mary Donnelly-Crocker, Executive Director of Young & Healthy
  • Steven Sneed, filmmaker of "Exploring Solutions to Gang Violence"
  • Alumni such as Billy Truong, Director of "L.A. on Cloud 9", an organization committed to serving the homeless
  • Faculty such as Cheryl-Greer Jarman, professor for the School of Human Development

To view more photos from the event click  HERE .


"There is nowhere like Pacific Oaks. There is no curriculum or program that is as intense,
enriching, and life changing as the one I am in right now. Your scholarship allows me to
continue in a program that I not only enjoy, but believe in!"

-B.A., Early Childhood Education Student
Pacific Oaks College

SUPPORT PACIFIC OAKS COLLEGE WITH A GIFT OF ANY AMOUNT
EVERY GIFT MAKES A DIFFERENCE

PACIFIC OAKS RECEIVES GIFT OF EDUCATION


Pacific Oaks College recently received a gift in the amount of $60,000 from The Broady Foundation. The generous donation will be used to establish The Earl and Anna Broady Foundation Scholarship, to be awarded to minority students who are pursuing their education at Pacific Oaks College.

Earl C. Broady, Sr. was a pioneering black man who started out as a janitor and later became
a judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court. During Broady's career, he served as a police officer and lieutenant for the Los Angeles Police Department throughout the 1930's and 1940's and also as a district attorney for the City of Los Angeles. In 1965, Broady was appointed to the Superior Court bench by then Governor Edmund G. Brown, Sr. When Broady's wife died in 2016, their trust established The Earl and Anna Broady Foundation.
EDUCATION BEYOND BORDERS

Pacific Oaks College faculty and students to traveled to Cape Town and Johannesburg for 
10 days as part of a three-month online course called "Identity in Context: Examination of South Africa." The Fall 2018 interdisciplinary course offers participants the opportunity to 
learn more about psychological, social, educational, legal, and healthcare perspectives 
from other working professionals and students with the help of TCS Education.

A warm and exciting welcome from the people of South Africa.

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT


Richard Jacildo graduated from Pacific Oaks College in 2016 with a Bachelor's Degree in Human Development. Since then, he has transformed what he has learned into the classroom into an artform. He shared a special performance at Social Justice Night. His
hip-hop and rap performance included his songs "I Don't See Bruce" and "The Color of My Face", which were well-received and got the audience to its feet.
ALUMNI ANNOUNCEMENT

Pacific Oaks College Alum, Gabi Ilinetsky, recently had two beautiful twins, Yoel and Yael. Her children have been diagnosed with Canavan Disease, a highly progressive and rare genetic disorder which causes brain degeneration. The first 2 years is the important period to intervene. In order to have the opportunity to help her children, her family needs to raise $2 million by May 2019. There are two therapies that will give them a chance to live: NeuroMovement therapy in their daily lives and Gene Replacement Therapy to potentially cure the disease. Both are very costly. They need your help to raise the funds to save her twin babies and other families in crisis. 

Gabi has partnered with Chabad of Contra Costa County in order to make your donations tax deductible.

To learn more and support today, click here.


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