Growing Inland Achievement

Category: News

  • Addressing FAFSA/CADAA Delays: Support Initiatives and Resources for Our Community

    Addressing FAFSA/CADAA Delays: Support Initiatives and Resources for Our Community

    Dear Partners, Colleagues and Community Members, 

    In recent weeks, the landscape of federal student aid has presented significant challenges, due to the delay in the FAFSA/CADAA rollout. This situation has understandably raised concerns among students, families, and educational institutions. The delay in distributing FAFSA/CADAA information to colleges until March, as noted by Education Undersecretary James Kvaal, marks a significant shift from traditional timelines, potentially affecting decision-making processes for countless students. 

    Amidst these developments, intermittent access issues following the “soft launch” of the simplified FAFSA/CADAA have further complicated the process. At GIA, we are acutely aware of the stress and uncertainty these delays have caused. It is in these moments that our commitment to supporting our community becomes even more critical. We are working alongside our partners and the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) to provide resources, guidance, and direct assistance to the region. 

    To support students, parents, and educators, we want to let you know about several initiatives: 

    • The launch of the Inland Empire Cash for College website in December 2023 serves as a helpful resource for navigating the financial aid process amidst these changes.
      https://iecashforcollege.org
    • Our schedule of over 100 financial aid workshops from January to March 2024 is designed to provide hands-on support for completing FAFSA/CADAA forms accurately and efficiently.
    • Weekly free office hours in collaboration with GIA’s Action Network Teams and CSAC offer a platform for personalized assistance, ensuring questions and concerns are addressed promptly. Upcoming office hours are open to educators, students, and parents.

    Please register below:

    Listen below to hear our Director of Network Engagement, Ida Hermosillo, share about the work being done in the Inland Empire:

    Thank you for your partnership, resilience, and unwavering support of our students and their futures. Together, we will navigate these challenges through our collective dedication to education and student success.

  • New Leadership and a Renewed Commitment to Inland Empire Educational and Economic Success

    New Leadership and a Renewed Commitment to Inland Empire Educational and Economic Success

    Dear Colleagues and Partners, 

    Happy New Year! I trust this message finds you well as we embark on a new year filled with promise and opportunities.  

    It is with great pleasure and honor that I reach out to you today as the new President and Chief Executive Officer of Growing Inland Achievement (GIA). The privilege of returning ‘home’ to the Inland Empire, where my roots run deep, fills me with profound enthusiasm and a sense of responsibility for the journey ahead. 

    GIA’s history in support of a shared vision of educational and economic success is inspiring and consequential. Rooted in the nation’s 12th-largest metropolitan area, with over 4.7 million residents and one million students, GIA has an unwavering commitment to cross-sector regional collaboration. Together, we are at the forefront of advancing equitable educational and economic success in California and across the nation. 

    I am deeply committed to serving and making a meaningful impact in our community and eager to contribute to your ongoing efforts to transform lives and elevate the Inland Empire. 

    Success relies on our collective ability to navigate challenges and complexity with unity and resilience through a seamless collaboration among education, government, nonprofits, and businesses to enhance opportunities for regional growth and prosperity. My experience in higher education and regional collaboration has taught me the power of a united network. I am confident that we will continue to achieve new milestones in educational and economic success together.  

    I look forward to meeting each of you, learning from your experiences, and collaborating closely throughout the upcoming year.  

    Warm regards, 

    Dr. Ashish K. Vaidya 
    President and CEO
    Growing Inland Achievement 
    ashish@gia.echofactory.dev

  • Growing Inland Achievement appoints Dr. Ashish Vaidya as President & CEO

    Growing Inland Achievement appoints Dr. Ashish Vaidya as President & CEO

    Ashish Vaidya will join Growing Inland Achievement (GIA) as its new President and Chief Executive Officer, following an extensive nationwide search process.

    INLAND EMPIRE, CA – GIA today announced Dr. Ashish K. Vaidya as the incoming President and CEO to further the organization’s mission of increasing educational attainment and economic success in the Inland Empire. His appointment will begin on January 10, 2024.

    Dr. Vaidya’s career includes serving as President of Northern Kentucky University and other key roles at California State University, Los Angeles, St. Cloud State University, and California State University, Channel Islands.

    Dr. Kim Wilcox, Board Chair of GIA and Chancellor of the University of California, Riverside, stated, “Dr. Vaidya has a proven track record of fostering regional economic development, enhancing student success, and building strong community partnerships. His extensive experience in higher education and commitment to regional collaboration make him an ideal leader for GIA.”

    As a Senior Fellow at the American Association of State Colleges & Universities (AASCU), Dr. Vaidya has been at the forefront of national initiatives, including leading a project focused on articulating why postsecondary institutions must be intentional about serving multiple communities in the regions where they are placed.

    Dr. Vaidya interacts with students at NKU. Photo provided by NKU.

    Dr. Vaidya’s appointment comes at a crucial time for GIA, as the organization supports major initiatives such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Intermediaries for Scale initiative, where GIA facilitates institutional self-assessments, guidance, and technical assistance for Inland Empire colleges.

    Ann Marie Sakrekoff, who has served as the interim President and CEO of GIA since May, expresses enthusiasm about Dr. Vaidya’s arrival, stating, “Dr. Vaidya’s rich background in higher education and experience with collective impact and leading regional initiatives perfectly aligns with our organizational needs and regional mission. I look forward to working collaboratively with him to build on regional successes and continue to drive equitable student success in the Inland Empire.”

    Dr. Vaidya, who holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Davis, is eager to take on the role, stating, “I am thrilled to join GIA and eager to support a bold agenda of accelerating educational and economic equity in the San Bernardino and Riverside region. My son was born in the city of Upland in San Bernardino County and we have strong ties to the Inland Empire. It is a privilege to return ‘home’ and be of service to this dynamic region. This consequential work takes a united network of leaders across sectors working collectively to improve outcomes. Together, we can be an example to the nation on how to advance regional educational and economic success.”

    Media Contact:

    Jake Poore

    jake@gia.echofactory.dev

    inlandempiregia.org

    Growing Inland Achievement (GIA) serves the Inland Empire region of Southern California—the 12th largest metropolitan statistical area in the U.S., including over 4.7 million residents and over one million students. GIA supports a regional cross-sector network of education, government, nonprofit, and business partners, collectively working to achieve a shared vision of educational and economic success. GIA’s shared vision is that by 2035, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties will be widely recognized for their educated workforce, thriving communities, and vibrant economy that creates prosperity for all.

  • Education Insight: Insights From the Toward a Shared Vision Summit

    Education Insight: Insights From the Toward a Shared Vision Summit

    About This Episode

    Season 3. Episode 11.

    In this episode of Education Insight, we delve into the highlights and key discussions of the recent Toward a Shared Vision Education Summit in Riverside. Over the course of two days, prominent figures in education, economics, and non-profit sectors converged to explore collaborative strategies for enhancing student success, both in school and beyond.

    Join us as we feature impactful moments and insights shared by a diverse range of speakers, from influential national thought leaders to resilient students who candidly discuss their journeys to graduation. Gain valuable perspectives on how educators, economists, and policymakers are coming together to chart a path towards greater collective support for student success in the Inland region.

    Featured Guests

    Diana Z Rodriguez

    Chancellor, San Bernardino Community College District

    Diana Z. Rodriguez is the 16th chancellor of the San Bernardino Community College District — a system that serves 20,000 students through Crafton Hills College, San Bernardino Valley College, a workforce training facility, and KVCR public radio and television station. As the chief executive officer, Chancellor Rodriguez leads the district’s educational enterprise that generates economic growth for the Inland Empire by adding more than $621 million annually to the regional economy. She is the only Latina chancellor of a community college district in Southern California upon assuming office in August 2021. Like many SBCCD students, Chancellor Rodriguez is the first in her family to achieve a college education. She is a proud graduate of Palo Verde College and a transfer student to California State University, San Bernardino, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing, a master’s degree in business administration, and another master’s degree in education. Chancellor Rodriguez previously served as president of San Bernardino Valley College from July 2016 through July 2021. During her tenure, SBVC faculty and staff spearheaded educational strategies to earn the campus the highest level of accreditation — among the best in California. Chancellor Rodriguez has a long and distinguished career of more than 30 years working in higher education as a faculty member and an administrator, advocating for student success and a strong connection to the community. Before leading San Bernardino Valley College, she served as Vice President of Student Services and Interim Vice President of Academic Services at Las Positas College in the Bay Area of California and Vice President of Student Services at Palo Verde College in Blythe. Her accomplishments have drawn several awards, including the 2018 Woman of the Year Award for the 47th Assembly District of California

    Dr. Victor Rios

    MacArthur Foundation Chair and Professor of Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara

    Professor Rios’s work analyzes the role of social control and education in determining the well-being of young people living in urban marginality; tracks the social consequences of the punitive state and punitive social control-across institutional settings; and examines young people’s resilience and responses to social marginalization.  He uses insight from his research to promote equitable policies and develop programs to improve the lives of marginalized youths. 

    Rios’s book Punished: Policing the Lives of Black and Latino Boys (NYU Press, 2011), analyzes how juvenile crime policies and criminalization affect the everyday lives of urban youth.  Punished is Winner of, the Oliver Cromwell Cox Book Award, American Sociological Association, Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities; Honorable Mention for Outstanding Book Award, American Sociological Association, Section on Inequality, Poverty, and Mobility; C. Wright Mills Book Award Finalist, Society for the Study of Social Problems; Distinguished Book Award, American Sociological Association, Section on Latina/o Sociology and Honorable Mention for the Eduardo Bonilla-Silva Book Award, Society for the Study of Social Problems.

    In his latest book Human Targets: Schools, Police, and the Criminalization of Latino Youth (University of Chicago Press, 2017) Rios finds the traditional good kid/bad kid, street kid/decent kid dichotomy is much too simplistic, arguing instead that authorities and institutions help create these identities—and that they can play an instrumental role in providing young people with the resources for shifting between roles.  He finds that to be a poor Latino youth is to be a human target—victimized and considered an enemy by others, viewed as a threat to law enforcement and schools, and burdened by stigma, disrepute, and punishment.  Human Targets was a selection for the LA Times Festival of Books in 2017.

    Rios has also published on juvenile justice, masculinity, and race and crime in scholarly journals such as The Annals of the Academy of Political and Social Sciences, The Annual Review of Sociology, Latino Studies, and Critical Criminology.  He is also the author of three trade books aimed at public audiences. 

    Professor Rios was awarded the 2017 Public Understanding of Sociology Award by the American Sociological Association.   The award is given to a “person or persons who have made exemplary contributions to advance the public understanding of sociology, sociological research, and scholarship among the general public.”  He is currently Chair of the Latina/o Sociology Section, American Sociological Association. 

    Rios engages in multiple public sociology projects.  One of his recent projects is an intervention with high school students that have been pushed-out.  A documentary film, funded by Sundance, The Ford Foundation, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, YouthBuild and other foundations, featuring his work is scheduled to premiere in Fall 2018 (thepushouts.com).  His Ted Talk “Help for the Kids the Education System Ignores” has garnered over 1.3 million views.

    In 2018 Rios was one of two nominees for Vice President of the American Sociological Association.

    Max Espinoza

    Senior Program Officer for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

    Max Espinoza is a senior program officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he focuses on building the political and public will for economic mobility and education reforms that close equity gaps in states across the United States. Max currently leads the foundation’s policy and advocacy efforts in California, and previously supported statewide foundation funded advocacy initiatives in Georgia and Kentucky.

    Prior to joining the Gates Foundation, Max was senior vice president of education programs and policy at Scholarship America, a national non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, MN, where he provided leadership for the organization’s education programs and established its policy, advocacy, and research agenda. Max began his career in California’s state capital, where he served for 14 years in various key roles, including as a senior advisor to legislative leadership and as an executive leader at the California Student Aid Commission. During his time at the California Student Aid Commission, Max successfully revamped the state agency’s support services to students and schools in the multi-billion-dollar Cal Grant program, implementing responsive and technology-enabled student-friendly services. In the California state legislature, Max worked as the principal consultant on higher education for the Assembly Budget Committee and was a policy advisor for multiple Assembly Speakers (Antonio R. Villaraigosa, Karen Bass and John A. Pérez), shaping state policy and fiscal priorities that advanced equity in postsecondary education access and attainment.

    A first-generation college graduate from a working-class immigrant family, Max holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from UCLA. At UCLA, Max was a campus and statewide student leader, twice elected by the undergraduate student body as the Academic Affairs Commissioner and serving as the UC Student Regent on the systemwide University of California Board of Regents.

    In addition to his service to the UCLA Latino Policy & Politics Institute, Max serves as an advisory council member for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. His past board service includes serving as secretary of the National Postsecondary Policy Institute Board of Directors, president of the Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project Board of Directors, and as a member of the UCLA Alumni Association Board of Directors.

    Interview Highlights

    3:57 – Adrienne describes dual enrollment and its benefits.

    7:15 – Adrienne speaks to how recent California mandates and initiatives may have influenced the growth of these new programs.

    8:34 – Adrienne explains what research shows about the impact of dual enrollment on a student’s academic achievements or even their future success.

    9:24 – Adrienne shares examples of dual enrollment activities that are taking place in our region and what is happening in the IE. 

    13:11 – Adrienne talks about strategies in place to make sure that equal opportunities are available for all students.

    20:18 – Jorge explains how dual enrollment aligns with his role at Riverside County Unified School District.

    21:28 – Jorge shares his experiences and thoughts on the current dual enrollment programs that are being offered at Riverside Unified School District.

    23:32 – Jorge gives insight into how dual enrollment makes students career ready.

    25:58 – Jorge describes what challenges students typically face in dual enrollment programs and how he addresses those issues. 

    32:43 – Jorge shares what he would like to see be the future of the dual enrollment program in his district and beyond. 

    36:31 – Special Feature: Avijeet Randhawa, 8th-Grader, Auburndale Intermediate School in the Corona Norco Unified School District.

    View our podcast page for more stories like this: https://gia.echofactory.dev/gia-podcasts/

    Education Insight tells the story of education in the Inland Empire through the diverse voices of those in and around the regional education community. The show is produced by Growing Inland Achievement, a collective impact organization in the Inland Empire with a mission to increase economic prosperity in the region by increasing educational attainment. Hosted by 30-year broadcast veteran Lacey Kendall, monthly shows explore topics ranging from education challenges and shortcomings to innovations and groundbreaking ideas that are driving student success.

  • Celebrating College Students on National First-Generation Day

    Celebrating College Students on National First-Generation Day

    Happy National First-Generation Day! Did you know that 57% of students at public postsecondary institutions in the Inland Empire are first-generation college students? It’s true!

    Join us in celebrating them this week by listening to our podcast Education Chat and Education Insight. Hear unique perspectives from first-generation college students that will inspire you and the work that you do.

    First-Gen Episodes:

    1. Education Chat: The Inspiring Journey of a First-Gen Latinx Graduate — In this episode, Mimi Jollie, a first-generation Latinx graduate student, shares the value of pursuing post-secondary education and how the environment you grew up in does not define your future. Mimi’s inspiring story of how she overcame the cycle of poverty is one you don’t want to miss!

    2. Education Chat: Hispanic Heritage Month Special — During this Hispanic Heritage Month special, Britney Villagran discusses everything from her Guatemalan culture and traditions, to insightful anecdotes from her past experiences with family and the pressures that come with being the first in the family to go to college.

    3. Education Chat: The Power of Leading by Example: Jessie’s Story — Jessie Alvarez, a first-generation student at the University of Redlands, discusses the value of pursuing a post-secondary education as an adult and what ultimately made her return back to higher education. As a parent, Jessie has expressed that it is of the utmost importance to lead by example for her daughters. In hopes that when the time comes, they will be more inclined to continue on to higher education.

    4. Education Chat: The Reality of Students in Foster Care: Kevon Lee’s Story — Kevon Lee, author, motivational speaker, and activist, sits down to share the unlikely story of how a child growing up in the foster system was able to turn everything around through hard work and perseverance. Today Kevon shares insight into his experience in the system, how it needs to improve, and inspires listeners to not give up, understand the power of their voice, and “Go Make a Difference.” 

    5. Education Chat: The Struggles and Successes of Student Parents — Adrianna Trobaugh, a first-time mother and first-gen student at Barstow Community College, sits down to tell her story about becoming a mother at a young age and navigating her way into post-secondary education. She shares insight into who parent learners are, why they turn to postsecondary education, and what they ultimately want for themselves and their families.

    6. Education Chat: A Conversation With an Adult Learner — Aurene Carey, a mother and current student at Barstow Community College, dives into the world of adult student learners and shares why she went back to school, what she experienced along the way, and the importance of fighting for her education despite the challenges she’s faced. 

    7. Education Chat: Graduation Special — In this graduation special, we hear from first-gen students Saul Romero and Katarina Vidana, as they discuss their own unique experiences of navigating college life, share their struggles, achievements, future goals, and tips on how they stayed motivated to cross the finish line.

    8. Education Insight: College Affordability and Access — In this episode of Education Insight, we learn about college affordability and access and gain a better understanding of student grants, loans and the billions that are available for students from all backgrounds to use for college. Our guest Catalina Cifuentes, a first-generation college graduate, has a passion for this work and shares what’s being done to make college affordable and accessible for residents of our region.

    9. Education Insight: The Value of a College Degree — In this episode, we hear from Dr. Kim Wilcox, the Chancellor of the University of California Riverside, and first-generation college student to discuss the value of a college degree. Is it worth it? What can you expect to make as a result? How much will it cost? How long until it pays off?

    10. Education Insight: How Community-Based Organizations are Supporting Student Success — Dr. Felix Melendez, Executive Director at Promise Scholars and a first-generation college student is finding success in helping kids do better in school and begin working for a successful education, career, and life.

    Education Insight tells the story of education in the Inland Empire through the diverse voices of those in and around the regional education community. Hosted by 30-year broadcast veteran Lacey Kendall, monthly shows explore topics ranging from education challenges and shortcomings to innovations and groundbreaking ideas that are driving student success.

    Education Chat tells the stories of students in the Inland Empire by cultivating meaningful discussions about lived experiences, successes, and opportunities for growth. Join GIA Interns Alysha Paulino and Alyssa Silva as they engage in candid conversations with students throughout the region.

    Education Chat and Education Insight are both produced by Growing Inland Achievement, a collective impact organization in the Inland Empire with a mission to increase economic prosperity in the region by increasing educational attainment.