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December 4, 2015
Vol. 2, Issue 13
Board of Trustees

Chairman of the Board
Anna U. Bustamante
District 3

Vice Chair
Dr. Yvonne Katz
District 7

Secretary
Joe Alderete, Jr.
District 1

Asst. Secretary
Clint Kingsbery
District 8

Denver McClendon
District 2

Marcelo S. Casillas
District 4

Roberto Zarate
District 5

Dr. Gene Sprague
District 6

James Rindfuss
District 9

Sami C. Adames
Student Trustee

Chancellor

Dr. Bruce Leslie
Alamo Colleges
Alamo Colleges' Work-Study Students Gain Experience
at Local Nonprofit Agencies  
Alamo Colleges - Palo Alto College
student Gladys Cabello tutoris students
at the Good Samaritan Center as part
of the Alamo Colleges' Experiential Learning program.


As part of the Alamo Colleges' new Experiential Learning program, 40 work-study student are employed this semester at local nonprofit organizations. This is the largest number of work-study students at nonprofits of any higher education institution in San Antonio.

"The students gain invaluable on-the-job experience which will increase their chances of employment after graduation, increase their awareness of community needs and resources and provide much-needed support to the local agencies which are always in need of more employees but have limited budgets for hiring," said Dr. Martha Trevino, Alamo Colleges' director of experiential learning.

The students are employed at the following agencies this fall and will be eligible to continue their employment for the spring semester: 
* Avance
* Cafécollege
* Christian Senior Services
* Communities in Schools New Braunfels
* Communities in Schools San Antonio
* City of Universal City
* City of Converse
* Daughters of Charity Service of San Antonio
* Eastside Empowerment Zone
* Esperanza Cultural Center
* Family Service Association
* Girls Inc.
* Good Samaritan Center
* Operation Homefront
* San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind
* San Antonio Council for Drug Abuse
* San Antonio Public Library
* South San Antonio Chamber of Commerce

According to Trevino, additional agencies also have requested students, enabling the program to benefit more students going  forward. For more about the Experiential Learning program, go to www.alamo.edu/experiential/


Alamo Colleges Launches "Managing My Money,"
a New Student-Driven Financial Literacy Program
The free CashCourse online financial education resource
is part of the Alamo Colleges new "Managing My Money"
student-driven financial literacy program.


This fall, Alamo Colleges is launching "Managing My Money," a new program designed to increase students' financial awareness and to empower the Alamo Colleges' diverse communities for financial success. This semester, the program is  introducing  CashCourse, a free online financial education resource designed specifically for college students created by the independently funded National Endowment for Financial Education.

In Spring 2016, the program will offer face-to-face presentations on financial topics, and work-study students will be available at each college to provide information on the program and help students use CashCourse.

The program originated when Alamo Colleges' students from the Student Leadership Institute attended a webinar about a successful financial literacy program at Syracuse University and wanted to bring this kind of program to the Alamo Colleges. A committee of students and staff then came together to create the program.

CashCourse covers six key areas of personal finance:
* Money 101
* Paying for education
* Shopping smart
* Working and earning
* Money and relationships
* Solving financial problems
For more information, click here.

Alamo Colleges - Palo Alto College student Brenda Diaz participated in NASA's Community College Aerospace Scholars program.

Alamo Colleges - Palo Alto College Student Chosen for NASA Scholars Program

Alamo Colleges - Palo Alto College sophomore Brenda Diaz was selected to travel to NASA's Johnson Space Center in October 2015 to participate in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) program. The NCAS program encourages students to complete a two-year degree or transfer to a four-year college or university and pursue a NASA-related field or career. Diaz was one of 160 community college students across the U.S. to be part of the NCAS program. 

Diaz is currently studying veterinary technology and biomedical engineering, with plans to transfer to Texas A&M University - College Station.  "I met actual NASA engineers," said Diaz. "It was challenging, but so exciting and I learned so much."

NCAS's five-week scholars program consists of a series of online workshops and tests. The intense program concludes with a four-day visit at the NASA Johnson Space Center, where Diaz attended a sequence of workshops, lectures, and events.

As part of the program Diaz and other students formed fictional companies interested in Mars exploration. Each team developed and tested a prototype rover and learned how to form company infrastructure, manage a budget, and develop communication outreach. Participants interacted one-on-one with NASA engineers and learned about careers and opportunities in science and engineering.


The Alamo Colleges mission is: empowering our diverse communities for success. Our vision is: the Alamo Colleges will be the best in the nation in student success and performance excellence. The Alamo Colleges is one district with five community colleges serving more than 90,000 students annually from Bexar County and seven other counties in our service area. We provide an affordable, quality college education that leads to associate degrees, certificates and transfers to four-year universities. Hundreds of thousands of Bexar County residents who have come through the Alamo Colleges education programs are major contributors to the economy and culture of Sa n Antonio.