TYour Monthly Update for August 2025

• Student Assistant Workshop & Lunch | August 27
• De-Stress With the Mini Horses | August 27
• 2025-26 Program Review Planning Framework Presentation | August 27
• Roots Art Show & Visual & Performing Arts Centennial Celebration | August 28
• 100 Year VC Football Game | September 6
• Professional Development | Visit our website for details

Join the VC Executive Team as they discuss their program review planning framework for the year. During this session, the College President and Executive Team will discuss the factors they will take into account as they are making final decisions about program review resource request allocations.

Wednesday, August 27 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. | Guthrie Hall

Ventura College Visual & Performing Arts Centennial Celebration

"Roots – 100 Years of Artistic Excellence at Ventura College" Art Show

Join us on Thursday, August 28, for a special evening honoring 100 years of artistic excellence as part of Ventura College’s Centennial Celebration. The Roots Art Show opening reception showcases the work of influential Ventura County artists connected to the VC Art and Music departments. We'll also officially unveil the 100th Anniversary Mural, which was designed by VC Alumni Andrew Rodriguez.

Evening Highlights:

• Opening reception of the "Roots" art exhibition
• Live performance by Danza Azteca Xochipilli
• Mural unveiling
• Music by the VC Student Jazz Combo
• Refreshments

This is just one of many exciting events celebrating 100 years of creativity at Ventura College. Free admission and free parking in north & west lots. Open to the public

Thursday, August 28 | 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. | VC Galleries

Gallery Hours: Monday - Thursday | 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. | Exhibit on view through October 2

100th Anniversary Football Game. Save the Date - September 6

Not only is Ventura College celebrating its Centennial this year, our VC Football Program also turns 100! Celebrate with us and cheer on our 2025 VC Pirates Football Team. Tailgate starts at 4:30 p.m. with kickoff at 6 p.m. Free rally towels while supplies last. Wear black and orange and show your team spirit. Free for all staff and students with student I.D. Invite your friends and family!

Saturday, September 6 | Kick Off at 6 p.m. | VC Sportsplex

Set Sail Saturday Success

Thanks to everyone who participated in our Set Sail Saturday. This high-impact day of service supports new and returning students. This collaborative event provides personalized assistance with admissions, counseling, and registration all in one central location. By bringing key services together, Set Sail ensures that students feel welcomed, informed, and well-prepared for success.

Career Center Update

Career Closet Update: Thanks to everyone who has donated to our Career Closet. Currently, we're accepting sizes 10+. We helped more than 40 students last semester.

Workshop for Student Assistants: The Career Center will host a “How to be Successful in Your Role” for student assistants to help them prepare for on-campus jobs.

Gaining Career Competencies with Career Spots: The Career Ready Guide on Career Spots is a 4-hour interactive, online micro-course, based on the 8 NACE career readiness competencies that empower students to self-reflect, develop, and articulate the soft skills valued by employers. This program has been launched district-wide. One Ventura College student said, “I am more confident about applying and trying to get out into the workforce since I now have an idea of what questions I am going to be asked and what I should be prepared to say, how to act, and how I present myself.” Contact the VC Career Center to gain access to this course.

Save the Date for our Part-Time Job & Internship Fair on October 7.

Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) Update

The EOPS program has successfully onboarded 83 new students for Fall 2025. The program’s orientation is designed to provide a comprehensive overview of services, expectations, and resources, while also fostering early connections between students and EOPS counselors. These orientations are facilitated by counselors who begin establishing strong, supportive relationships. This intentional early engagement not only equips students with the knowledge and confidence to access academic, counseling, and financial support services, but also cultivates a deeper sense of belonging.

Financial Aid Workshop Update

During the previous academic year, the Financial Aid Office held 43 workshops, served 1,678 students through in-person sessions, and provided critical guidance on applying for financial aid and understanding award letters.

Our success is due in large part to strong cross-departmental collaboration and cross-training. We worked closely with Outreach, Admissions & Records, and First Year Experience to plan and execute these sessions. We've already hosted eight workshops since July 1 and have 50+ workshops tentatively scheduled for the academic year. This includes district-wide events and Cash for College.

Admissions & Records Update

Admissions & Records continues to see a rise in fraudulent and spam applications, requiring a significant increase in manual reviews by staff. Post-COVID, the college typically receives approximately 8,000 applications each fall and over 4,000 each spring, but Spring 2025 saw an extraordinary surge that resulted in 42.3% of all applications being manually reviewed to protect the integrity of student records and enrollment data.

• For Fall 2025, the college has received 4,724 applications to date, with 34.5% manually reviewed to verify authenticity. This is consistent with the increase in review efforts seen in prior years:
• Fall 2024: 8,179 applications (35.3% manually reviewed)
• Fall 2023: 7,589 applications (34.0% manually reviewed)
• Fall 2019 (pre-pandemic): 7,529 applications (25.4% manually reviewed)

The implementation of enhanced fraud-prevention measures, including manual verification of flagged applications, collaboration with District IT and the Chancellor’s Office, and targeted follow-up with students, continues to safeguard enrollment processes while ensuring legitimate applicants can register without delay.

Tutor Training Program Update

This summer we strengthened the onboarding and alignment between in-person and online modalities for the Tutor Training Program. It now features biweekly in-person professional development, guest speakers, and academic content-specific sessions. Summer projects included outreach elevator pitches for classroom visits, asynchronous tutoring for online paper feedback, and preparation for a robust fall semester with over 70 tutors hired thus far.

Kicking off the new semester together! All College Day brings our amazing staff together for connection, inspiration, and a shared purpose. 

Fall Professional Development Planning

Throughout July, the Professional Development team worked hard preparing for Fall Flex Days and All College Day. Highlights included an engaging keynote on Artificial Intelligence and a series of informative panels designed to showcase student services that support success both in and out of the classroom. Hope you enjoyed all the opportunities to learn!

Student Professional Development Series

In collaboration with Student Affairs and ASVC, the Division is launching a new series focused on leadership, career readiness, and essential skills.

Drop for Non-Payment Campaign Results

In preparation for the Drop for Non-Payment deadline, two training sessions were conducted to equip staff, administrators, and student workers with tools to support our students. These sessions were led by Alma Rodriguez from the Financial Aid Office and Gaby Asamsama-Acuna from Admissions and Records. A total of 55 employee participants took part in this coordinated outreach effort.

The campaign resulted in 1,331 phone calls to students with an answer rate of 31.18%. This outreach played a crucial role in supporting students in resolving account issues before the deadline.

On July 15, Ventura College dropped 533 students for non-payment. This outcome reflects the proactive efforts of the campaign, which helped many students take timely action. This initiative was championed by Dr. Luca Lewis, Vice President of Student Affairs, with the full backing of the executive team. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Upgrade to LRC Space & FREE Computers Donated to Students

The Learning Resource Center has freed up space for tutoring sessions, workshops, and community-building by donating some of our computers. We currently have 150 computers available for use at the center, but 250 decommissioned desktop computers were distributed to students for FREE at both VC and VCEC!

This highly successful PC Giveaway Program aimed at closing the digital divide and supporting student success. Through a collaborative effort between VC IT, VC Basic Needs, VCEC, and VC Marketing, the program provided fully equipped personal computers—monitors, keyboards, and accessories included- to students enrolled in Summer 2025 courses at Ventura College. The response was extraordinary: 223 students received PCs within two days, exhausting our entire summer inventory. This overwhelming demand demonstrates the critical need for access to technology among our student population, especially those in rural or underserved areas. In addition to improving equity, this initiative supports our sustainability goals. Rather than allowing functional PCs to contribute to electronic waste, the IT Department refurbished and repurposed devices for student use—extending the life of valuable equipment and reducing the college’s environmental impact.

A second round of PC giveaways is already being planned for Fall 2025, further reinforcing our commitment to student access, cross-campus collaboration, and environmental stewardship.

Ventura College is Delivering a Strong Return on Student Investments!

We’re honored to be ranked in the top 25 community and career colleges in California for delivering a fast, strong return on investment (ROI). Most of our graduates earn back their total college costs within six months of completing their program or degree according to the Golden Returns report released by the College Futures Foundation in partnership with Michael Itzkowitz of the HEA Group.

ICE Training and Preparation for the VC Community

In light of recent immigration developments affecting our community, Ventura College hosted specialized training sessions for faculty and staff during FLEX Days. These sessions equipped our team with clear guidance on how to respond should immigration officials come to campus. This initiative reflects VC’s steadfast commitment to safeguarding our students and ensuring that our campus remains a welcoming and supportive environment for all. To learn more and access resources, please review our "Know What To Do" document.

The Testing Center Will Be Open Fridays and Saturdays this Fall

To increase access for students and community members with traditional weekday work schedules, the Testing Center will now offer proctored exams on Fridays and Saturdays.

NextUp is Ready to Help Our Students

NextUp is here and ready to support current and former foster youth! NextUp provides wraparound services for students who were in foster care after the age of 13. As of May the program was fully staffed, and the new Program Coordinator and Student Success and Support Specialist have hit the ground running to have services in place by the Fall semester. Some benefits for eligible students include unmet need grants, textbook vouchers, laptop loans, grocery vouchers, 1:1 tutoring, academic counseling, field trips and more! Please refer any potentially eligible students our way! Thank you to all of our partners who have been critical in helping us implement the program on campus. We are excited to continue building the program to support current and former foster youth at Ventura College.

NextUp Crew From left to right: Christina Hanna, Student Success and Support Specialist II, Luz Borjon, Academic Counselor, and Xilen Ramirez, Program Coordinator II

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