The holiday season has traditionally been the time when many show their gratitude by helping others in need. At Southwestern College, that gratitude has been shown all year long, thanks to the generosity of our employees and community partners.
Even before the pandemic exposed the economic and food insecurities faced by our students and their families, our front-line employees recognized the signs and found innovative ways to help students in real time. That was how the Jag Kitchen Food Pantry was created three years ago, and soon after, an emergency grant that has distributed tens of thousands of dollars to students to keep them from dropping out of school.
Named SWC Cares, this umbrella support system has expanded to include Supplies for Success, which distributes basic school supplies to students at the beginning of each semester, and Hugs and Bags, which distributes warm meals, basic medical services and personal hygiene accessories. All the efforts have been grassroots, initiated by our employees.
With grateful hearts, we acknowledge Patie Bartow, director of center operations at our San Ysidro campus, Patti Larkin, retired financial aid director, and professors Trishana Norquist and Jacqueline Penhos, respectively, for the leadership they have provided to launching each of these SWC Cares initiatives at Southwestern College.
Because we know that our students’ needs don’t take a holiday, we are grateful to our Governing Board and college leadership for their investment in hiring a full-time Basic Needs Coordinator. This full-time person, who was hired last month, will serve as the hub for all our holistic support efforts. We are hopeful that with this additional resource we will be able to greatly expand the services we provide and the number of students we serve.
Of course, we are able to provide these services because of the financial support we have received from federal and local sources. Federal pandemic funding afforded us the opportunity to purchase computers for students who would otherwise be unable to complete their classes online. Our instructional technology department and college police department helped create an area on the Chula Vista campus where students could log into the college’s free Wifi network. Together, these actions are helping bridge the digital divide for many of our students.
Supplementing the SWC Cares efforts and other financial opportunities for our students has been the Southwestern College Foundation. Through one of its most successful fundraising efforts, the Foundation raised $26,000 for the College’s birthday giving month in September–thanks to a matching donation from The Village at Escaya. The Foundation also distributed nearly $200,000 in fall scholarships to students on Sat. Nov. 21. We are so grateful to the community members who have donated to our birthday and scholarship funds, and to the dozens of employees who make a monthly donation from their paychecks to the foundation.
Expect to see more “out of the box” thinking in the upcoming semester as our student services and food services departments continue pairing up to provide free groceries to our students. Just before Thanksgiving, we distributed nearly 1,000 holiday-themed grocery boxes to students at all of our campuses. Because of a change in Assembly Bill 2884, community colleges are able to use a portion of their lottery funds to address student economic insecurities. As a result, Southwestern College is creating a monthly grocery box distribution for students.
Community colleges have long been the educational safety net for students of all ages. That safety net has grown larger and stronger because of the generous contributions of our entire community. In this season of giving, we are so grateful for your ongoing generosity.
