Vasconcello's education odyssey

Making the choice of going to college shouldn't be struggle. But for Tina Vasconcellos Ph.D., Dean of Matriculation and Student Support Services at Laney College the challenge of being female, half Latina and a first generation college student made the decision difficult to explain within her family circle. The cultural focus was on getting a "good" job by working hard, not by obtaining a good education. However, today Vasconcellos has her doctorate and a great job. The road wasn't always smooth, but with hard work and determination, she reached her educational goals.

Vasconcellos' educational journey is one that is inspirational to other community college students. Like many Laney students, Vasconcellos worked throughout her college years. Even as she pursued her master's and doctorate degrees, she worked full-time. While pursuing her doctorate program she faced the additional challenge of being the best parent she could be for her three-year-old son.

Vasconcellos began at the community college level and progressed to obtaining her bachelor's degree in Psychology and Cultural Consciousness. From there she received her master's in Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University and her Ph. D. from Colorado State University with a focus on community college leadership.

Her desire to be surrounded with a diverse community of students made the Peralta Community College arena an ideal match for her career objectives. Regarding the diversity of Berkeley City College and Laney College, Vasconcellos said, "I love the richness that this diverse group of students brings to the college. I have gained a lot from my students over the years.

"When looking at where I wanted to make the move into administration, I knew that I wanted a diverse community of educators as well as students. For me, it is this diverseness of thought, socioeconomic background, and ability that fosters innovation and creativity."

Here at Laney College, Vasconcellos' duties include management and support of several students services, including veteran's affairs, transfer center, EOPS and CARE, student activities, assessment and orientation, student employment, articulation, counseling discipline, and student discipline. She is also responsible for supervision of graduation and the awards banquet. Active on several college-wide committees, she is overseeing the student center building project, which is still in the planning phase.

Professionally, Vasconcellos has focused on education since the beginning of her career. In 1990 she started as a vocational evaluator for special education high school students in the Hayward Unified School District. Her work with adults students began at the Eden Area Regional Occupational Program where she wrote several grants and partnered with community based organizations to serve adults seeking vocational training.

In 1997 she worked at as a counselor in private practice where she saw individuals, couples, families and facilitated a group for women with chronic illnesses, while at the same time working as a counselor at Chabot College. She also worked in EOPS and CalWORKS and provided mental health counseling while at Chabot College.

Prior to coming to Laney in November 2008, Vasconcellos spent several years at Berkeley City College (formerly Vista College) in various counseling positions. In 2001 she started at Vista College as a CalWORKS Counselor/Coordinator and then EOPS Counselor. During her tenure at Berkeley City College, she authored approximately 20 courses in Human Services, which led to Social Services Paraprofessional and Community Health Worker programs. She continued to write grants at both Chabot College and Berkeley City College, focused on integrating student services and instructional programs to provide holistic programs for students. She was also the Student Learning Outcomes and Assessment Coordinator at BCC.

Said Vasconcellos: "Having the opportunity as Department Chair of Counseling and Program Chair of the Social Services Program allowed me to span both student services and instruction--one of my main goals in working in education is breaking down the silos of instruction and student services and developing integrated systems that support and foster student success."

The biggest challenge Vasconcellos has faced since starting at Laney College has been supporting students through the recent financial aid crisis that affected the entire district. While Laney was proactive in providing emergency loans for students, many faced the dire consequences of possible eviction, loss of utilities and a host of other financial problems.

Secondary to the financial aid challenge, Vasconcellos finds it an exciting challenge to learn Laney's culture which encompasses the relationships that all constituencies have including students, faculty, staff, and administrators.

Vasconcellos advises students to "Connect with someone on campus. It does not matter whether it is a staff person, instructor, counselor, administrator, or other students but students who connect to someone on campus are more likely to be successful.

"Feeling connected to your learning environment is essential--get involved. This may look very different for students as some may want to be involved in the newspaper, student government, clubs, tutoring, student ambassador.

"Creating relationships on campus leads to a stronger connection to your learning environment and you as a learner."

It's also important to remember that we all have "our time," Vasconcellos said. Since everyone has a different set of circumstances in life, it's vital to remember that we all develop at different rates. A student may find it necessary to stop and come back to their education and that is perfectly fine. That's the defining role of the community college--equal access to all.