NEWSLETTER

FEBRUARY 2024

The Application for the 2024-2025 Cohort Will Open on March 1, 2024

Applications for the Fall 2024 Faculty Diversification Internships Cohort

Opening March 1, 2024

As of 2022, nearly 90% of program participants have successfully received offers for full-time/tenure track or part-time faculty positions in higher education. Are you ready to commence your journey as a faculty member in the community college?

For program consideration, applicants must submit the following documents as part of their online application:

A letter of interest specifying why you are interested in teaching students at Bakersfield College. The letter should also discuss how your educational experiences have prepared them to teach at a community college with a diverse student body, like Bakersfield College.
An updated curriculum vitae with at least three professional references with contact information listed. One of the references needs to be from a current or former supervisor.
College/university transcript (unofficial transcripts will be accepted), including all college units attempted.

Complete An Application Here: FDFP Internship Academic Year 2023-2024

For further information or questions regarding the program, contact Dr. Maria Wright at maria.wright2@bakersfieldcollege.edu.

Professional Development Opportunities

Monthly Event: Math Justice for Student Empowerment

Monthly Event: Counseling for Justice and Equity

The Art & Science of Healthy Pedagogy Program

Bakersfield College has been invited to participate in an upcoming FREE professional development opportunity hosted by UC-Riverside. The sessions will include topics covering everything from "Alternative or Authentic Assessments" to "Trauma-Aware Teaching." And you can participate synchronously or asynchronously.

Healthy Pedagogy seeks to positively impact the culture of teaching and learning through promotion of teaching strategies to support student wellness. This program is designed to integrate sincere mindfulness of the health and well-being students into course design and the craft of teaching. In creating a community of practice for instructors to enhance their courses and initiate discussions around evidence-based teaching and learning strategies that foster caring, creative, and inclusive participation in the classroom and beyond, both teachers and students can experience engaging communities of learning.

Please see below for opportunities to participate in Healthy Pedagogy initiatives over the Winter and Spring 2024 terms

Vision in Action Professional Development Edition — January 2024

FDPF alumni and current participants are invited to sign-up for California Community Colleges - Vision In Action website. Here a some highlights from their January 2024 newsletter.

The Vision Resource Center is your gateway to free professional development resources built and curated for California community college employees. Whether you're preparing for FLEX or looking to expand your knowledge, start the year off right and explore playlists in the Vision Resource Center.

Faculty Fellow Highlights

Money Ghimire

2024 Fellow

My name is Manish Ghimire and I go by Money. I was born in a small village in Nepal. I moved to the US in 2016 and I finished the last year of high school in Anaheim. I decided to go to community college afterward because direct to 4-year university was expensive. I attended Moreno Valley College in Riverside Community College District and after attaining my AA/AS, I attended CSU: San Bernardino for a BS in Kinesiology. I decided to pursue the Kinesiology field because I always had a passion for learning about the human body and how we can utilize different movements, exercises, and sports to improve physical and mental well-being.

Currently, I am attending CSU: Bakersfield for MS in Kinesiology focusing my research on cardiovascular physiology. Specifically, I am looking at different interventions and how they impact cardiovascular health. I am also planning to pursue further education by enrolling in a doctoral program and my end goal is to become a professor.

With the help of this program, I will be able to get insight into college teaching. Learn from my mentors on how to be an effective educator and apply the learned knowledge and skills in the near future.

Lead Faculty

Dr. Maria Wright

Professor of Education

Bakersfield College

(661)395-4607

Maria.Wright2@bakersfieldcollege.edu

Faculty Diversification Fellowship Program

Applied Leadership Program

Dr. Maria Wright and I am a faculty in the Education Department. Currently, I work closely on the Aspire Faculty Diversification Fellowship Program and the Applied Leadership Program.

Before taking on this role, I served as the Director of Academic Support Services for several years, where my work focused on centralizing efforts to provide wrap-around support for students. This work focused on enhancing the out-of-class academic experience for BC students. I have also served as the Advising Lead for the School of Business at a four-year institution and as an Educational Advisor at Bakersfield College.

I earned my doctoral degree from California State University, Fresno in Educational Leadership, my master’s degree in Educational Administration from California State University, Bakersfield, and my bachelor’s degree in Political Science from California State University, Long Beach.

As a first-generation graduate, I am deeply passionate about increasing equity, inclusion, and diversity in higher education institutions. More specifically, I seek to expand opportunities for students who have historically been excluded from social and educational opportunities.