Today we’d like to introduce you to Office of Community Engagement at SDSU Pre-College Institute.
Thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
The Office of Community Engagement (OCE) is a newly formed unit in the Pre-College Institute at SDSU, which was founded in 1983. Alongside the other PCI offices, it promotes college access and completion for underserved students using a Collective Impact Model and undergirded by social capital theory. The Pre-College Institute values compassionate leadership, student-centered and community-centered approaches, being data driven, change-ready, and strategic.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The biggest challenges that the OCE staff face stem from systemic issues in America and their psychological impacts on people that make our work relevant in the first place. There are a number of challenges present for underserved communities in navigating the educational system in the US, from the early years of childhood all the way through post-secondary access and completion, into career. Men of color face increased challenges in our schools and in our society. OCE staff continuously advocate on behalf of youth, and because of our position in both the university and in our schools and surrounding communities, we have an opportunity to make impact within multiple systems. We believe that access to higher education is only part of improving educational equity. Higher education institutions and employers must also continue to develop their capacity to recognize, value, and include the knowledge and contributions of marginalized communities. The student is always at the center of our work. So though students are impacted by large systems at play, we work with them first and foremost as the individuals they are with their own individual hopes, circumstances, and challenges.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
OCE identifies in-school youth and so-called “disconnected youth” (those not enrolled in education, employment, or training) and supports them on their path to college through our Talent Search program. We offer holistic services for students and their families including leadership development, personal growth, connections to early work experience and apprenticeships, and competitive academic and scholarship opportunities. Our office leverages collective expertise with school leaders, university faculty and administration, and community-based organizations to positively impact the San Diego region. As a multicultural professional staff – many of us also attended schools in underserved communities, were first-generation to college in our own families, were children of immigrants or immigrants ourselves – we approach our work with authenticity, understanding, and care.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://education.sdsu.edu/pci
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sdsutalentsearch/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SDSUTalentSearch/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/sdsuts
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChZ06ZmsTdsCORXEssrwLVg
- Other: https://pcitalentsearch.wixsite.com/pcistudent
Image Credits
Jessica Sandoval
I Am Possible Mural by Channin Fulton
