Clipping Service Report
May 12, 2016
To: Dr. Kraft, Board of Trustees, campus
From: Doug Ernst, Public Information Office
Please review this monthly account of published articles and columns, plus pending news releases from Napa Valley College about Napa Valley College.
Table of Contents
Published articles about the college......Pages 1-29
NVC announces summer classes Register staff
One of the largest schedules of summer classes has been released by Napa Valley College in anticipation of
summer registration.
Summer classes begin as early as June 1, featuring credit classes starting at $46 per unit for residents.
Classes are free for high school students 15 years or older who are entering grades 10, 11 or 12 this fall,
provided they register in person, beginning Thursday.
Summer school sessions are five, six or eight weeks long and feature day and evening classes that help
students train for a variety of occupations, including emergency medical technicians, psychiatric technicians
and welders.
With an additional emphasis on courses that transfer to California State University and University of
California, the college is also offering an array of classes that can help families whose college-enrolled sons
and daughters may be coming home for the summer and need to complete a few more units before returning to
school.
At the Upper Valley Campus in St. Helena, students will have multiple opportunities to take a variety of
courses that satisfy various CSU transfer requirements.
Other classes help students who may be looking to advance to careers in business, accounting, computers,
speech, politics, criminal justice and hospitality.
NVC students this summer will also find a wide range of classes in the arts and humanities, science, math,
social and behavioral sciences, physical education and health sciences.
Five-week sessions begin June 1; six- and eight-week sessions start June 13.
A complete Summer 2016 Class Schedule, including registration information, is available at the college
Welcome Center, located in the north lobby of the 1300 Building. It is also available at
napavalley.edu/academics/schedule/pages/welcome.aspx.
The staff at the Upper Valley Campus in St. Helena is also available to assist students with registration, at 967-
2903 or [email protected].
Students can also enroll at NapaValley.edu.
The website also provides information about student services, including counseling, financial aid, fees and
child development center services.
For information, call the Office of Student Services at 256-7362.
Faces and Places, May 8
Submitted photo
Members of Beta Beta Sigma, the Napa Valley College chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society,
earned top honors for completing the 2015 honors program. The awards included a first-place award for
their academic research essay, “Borders and Boundaries Students Face When Pursuing Higher
Education.” Pictured, from left, are Olivia Flanagan, Tiffany Saelee, Tori Richardson, James Gonzalez,
adviser Kathy Gillis, Ervin Fike and Kelsey Hadfield.
Small Business
College helps restore man’s career path Editor’s note: This column was written by Doug Ernst, the Napa Valley College public information officer.
If age is a state of mind, Herbert Rice checks in at about 35. He’s in his third career, thanks to his second stint
at Napa Valley College.
The first time he took classes at NVC he was working in construction.
“For decades, I was one of the finest master craftsmen you could find anywhere,” said Herb.
In 2002, he began a second career as a photographer. About two and a half years ago, Herb’s wife Margaret
noticed Herb needed more from life.
“She told me, ‘You love learning, why not go back to school and find a new career.’ So I came back to Napa
Valley College – the second best thing that ever happened to me, after Margaret.”
He met Angie Moore in the Student Counseling Department, who introduced him to Reed Davis, a career
development counselor.
While he was learning about himself in Davis’s career development course, Angie introduced him to the
Digital Design & Graphics Technology (DDGT) program, suggesting it might be a perfect fit.
“Angie suggested that I meet Gary Strommen, the program coordinator of the DDGT lab,” said Herb. “When
we met, he sold me on the program.”
Because of the training in the DDGT program, Herb earned a professional certification in AutoCAD
(computer-aided drafting and design software), and is now on his way to professional certification in Inventor
and Revit as well.
“I can help the client see their dream house, with the materials they favor, in the colors they want, complete
with landscaping, placed in the neighborhood – looking like it had been photographed there. And yet it is all
virtual, with the bare lot untouched by the first shovel in the ground.”
He said he also has learned more than a few people skills throughout his life.
“Construction can be very hard on relationships, and I have learned to foresee problem areas in a project and
try to head them off. I have learned to be very level-headed and understanding in attempting to smooth over
the rough times in a project.
“When people ask me how old I am, I always say 19. It forces them to judge me for who I am, not slot me into
a pigeon hole that is based on other people my age. One’s mindset and attitude about life makes you who you
are. The younger I can be, the more things I can accomplish.
“I did it, but anybody can do it. I simply was connected to the people here who helped me to discover the
career path that best suited myself and my skill set.”
On May 27, Herb Rice will cross the Napa Valley College graduation stage in front of his classmates,
counselors and kin.
He’s already looking for a job with an architectural firm that might be seeking someone with a background in
construction, photography, and design. I think he’ll get one.
Mary Cervantes is the business services director for Napa Valley College Napa-Sonoma Small Business
Alimo named director of equity, inclusivity
at NVC
Jennifer Huffman
Dr. Craig John Alimo
Napa Valley College has hired Dr. Craig John Alimo, an educational consultant, as director of equity,
inclusivity.
A social justice educator for the past 19 years, Alimo recently served in UC Berkeley’s Division of Equity and
Inclusion.
“I’m really looking forward to working together with others at Napa Valley College on implementing the
equity plan on campus,” he said.
Originally from New Jersey, Alimo earned his B.A. in History and Philosophy from Rider College and M.S.
from Northeastern University in College Student Development and Counseling.
NVC police chief Arnold receives honor Napa Valley College Chief of Police Ken Arnold has been named Administrator/Confidential of the Year by
the Administrative Senate.
Arnold was selected for his ability to interact with all people, his organizational skills, behavior that positively
reflects on the college community and showing leadership and problem-solving skills, said a news release.
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He has been chief of police since 1991.
Arnold earned his bachelor's degree in management from Saint Mary's College and two associate degrees from
NVC.
Law Enforcement
Child prostitution not just a Third World problem. It's here, too
• Anne Ward Ernst [email protected] • Apr 13, 2016
• Anne Ward Ernst
Attendees to the Child Sex Trafficking Conference at Napa Valley College pour into the theater lobby during a break to talk to nonprofit organizations who work to help rescue girls from prostitution rings, or are involved in other areas of support.
She was 10 when she was first raped and soon after sold for sex. The nightmare she lived for two years of being trafficked didn’t stop until her 12-year-old little-girl body started to develop.
“The clients lost interest in me,” Lexie Smith told the woman in the audience when asked how she escaped the abuse.
Smith, 24, a survivor of sex trafficking, now lives in Nashville and travels to speak at conferences such as “Innocence Stolen: Protecting Our Children” held last Friday at Napa Valley College.
At 10, she was a product and the clients weren’t hers, they were customers of her trafficker, an older teenage boy, who was a neighbor. The night her trafficker first raped her, he raped her repeatedly. At least six times, Smith said.
And when she would try to fight or run away back to her family across the street he threatened to do the same to her sister.
The other times, he sold her for sex. Sometimes those rapes occurred in her own suburban Chicago home, or just across the street, always without her family’s knowledge.
Then the young man who was selling her went off to college. He was never prosecuted.
Speakers at the child sex trafficking conference included Gary Lieberstein, Napa County district attorney; Jane Anderson, attorney adviser for AEquitas – a prosecutor’s resource on violence against women; keynote speaker Kim Biddle, founder and executive director of Saving Innocence, and Brian Wo from Bay Area Anti-Trafficking Coalition.
The afternoon was filled with workshops on such topics as pornography’s link to sex trafficking, sex trafficking in your own backyard, true stories from survivors – both girls and boys — cybercrime, and more.
The workshop on social media and the Internet was presented by Napa Police Detective Todd Shulman and Napa County Sheriff’s Office Detective Nathalie Hurtado, who shared experiences from real cases in the county.
Worldwide dangers of the Web are close to home Cyberbullying is not just about kids getting picked on, it’s tied to sex trafficking, Shulman and Hurtado said. Predators know where to find kids on social media and hide in the shadows to watch a girl get bullied, then step in to be the hero, the one who tells her she’s beautiful and how all those bullies are jerks.
Predators are masters at building up a girl’s self-esteem only to break it down later and gain control, they said.
“They (the girls) are basing their self-worth and self-esteem on what (random people) on the Internet say” to or about them, Hurtado said.
Sexting – the practice of texting explicit messages or nude photos – among teens is growing, according to a survey that indicates 40 percent of teens have been involved in the practice, Shulman said. And since the survey to which he referred was taken two years ago, he surmised that number has grown.
In some cases, teens sext as a precursor to sex, or to show they are interested in entering into a relationship. Some do it out of peer pressure. They don’t realize that those images are considered under the law to be child pornography and even asking someone under the age of 18 to send a naked photo is a crime called soliciting child pornography.
Shulman, who has been with Napa Police for 16 years, and Hurtado, who has been with the Sheriff’s Office for six years, reviewed some of the most popular social media sites and how they and the Internet are used nefariously in the child sex trafficking world and how it happens in and around Napa County.
One teenage boy set up a fake Instagram account pretending to be a pretty teenage blonde girl whose identity he had stolen – including naked photos of the real girl, Shulman said. The boy used those photos to lure in other boys by asking the boys to share nude photos of themselves, which many did.
tisement Then the boy sold those photos to a child pornography ring. Police eventually caught up to him, but not before a horde of nude photos was spreading like a virus.
“You can pretend to be whoever you want,” Hurtado said. “You can be a creepy old guy pretending to be a cool skater kid.”
In an Instagram case in 2014, a teenage boy used nude photos his girlfriend had sent him and also collected nude photos of other girls, then shared them on “napahoezexxposed.” None of the girls consented, but even if they had, that act, carried out by a teen, amounts to child pornography, Shulman said.
In another example, Hurtado said a 31-year-old man cultivated a relationship with a 13-year-old girl for three years, eventually traveling from his out-of-state home to meet the girl at her high school when she was 16. He was “very sophisticated” in how he pursued the girl.
He learned what kind of music she liked, what movies she had seen, the television shows she watched, and he knew her insecurities – all learned through social media. The man used the information to become her friend by saying he liked the same games and bands, and gained her trust by manipulating her lack of confidence, Hurtado said.
In another example of how social media is misused, predators look for hashtags on Twitter that might reveal a frame of mind such as low self-esteem, loneliness, unhappiness, neediness, vulnerability, and those who appear less likely to tell about the abuse.
A lonely girl might use a hashtag such as #solo or #alone, and in a quick search of those words a predator can find a host of opportunities for future abuse. The predator “follows” the girl on the app, reading her posts and gathering information before he starts an online conversation, but by then he’s learned a lot about her and uses that information to later control her.
Once a photo or video is out on the Web, there is no getting it back, they said. Even when something is removed from a website or app, someone else may have already used a separate device to shoot the initial image, thus creating a whole new life for the photo or video.
In one case, Shulman said a drunk girl was sexually assaulted and the boy who assaulted her video-recorded the incident. He shared it through Snapchat, an app that deletes images after they have been viewed, giving the illusion of some form of privacy, but another boy recorded the first boy’s Snapchat video with a different phone and shared it from there.
“We charged 10 kids for child pornography,” Shulman said.
Now that Facebook is bursting with adults, kids have fled and sought other social media apps such as Snapchat, Kik, Catfish, TextNow and Whisper, Shulman and Hurtado said.
“Kids are very comfortable with technology,” Hurtado said, so it is important parents stay up to date on what’s new and available, and understand how it works.
What you can do Shulman and Hurtado offered tips on what parents can do to prevent their children from being victims of child prostitution.
— Educate yourself on what apps and websites kids are interested in and understand the nuances of what’s accessible. Don’t think that if your child doesn’t have a smartphone that they are sheltered. Learn all the ways how kids can get on the Web. They can connect with an iPad or video game, too.
— Get involved in your child’s life. Know who their friends are, and who their friends’ parents are. Take the time to meet everybody face-to-face and talk to them.
— Monitor your child’s Internet activity. Parents try too hard to not be nosy or mean, but done the right way, being nosy or mean can also mean protecting your child from falling into a bad situation. If your child has a computer, or other Internet-connected device, in his or her room, move it to an area where you can monitor their online activity, they advise. It’s not being nosy, it’s being a responsible parent.
— Educate your children on the dangers and consequences of sending and/or receiving sexually explicit messages or photos. Talk to your kids about what sexting is and how and why to avoid it.
Bay Area photographers at Napa Valley
College ‘PhotoEye’ April 21 Apr 13, 2016
Award-winning photographers and editors Geir and Kate Jordahl will bring their love of books and images to
the next PhotoEye presentation from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, April 21, at the Napa Valley College boardroom,
Building 1500.
Kate Jordahl is a professor of photography at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills. She and her husband, Geir
Jordahl, are directors of PhotoCentral, a community program and facility of the Hayward Area Recreation
District. The couple founded PhotoCentral in 1983, offering classes and workshops for photographers.
Both hold master’s degrees in photography from Ohio University and have been teaching photo classes for 32
years. Their photographs have been exhibited internationally in collections including the Bibliothèque
Nationale de France and the Yosemite Museum. They were artists-in-residence for Yosemite National Park in
1993. Both are represented by Modernbook Gallery of San Francisco.
Their projects have included “San Joaquin: River of Spirit,” “Searching for True North,” “Conversation
Series,” “Walking With Kandinsky,” “Afternoons With Ruth,” “Song Within” and the “one poem” books.
They are dedicated to melding traditional photography with new technologies.
Napa Valley College PhotoEye presentations are free and open to the public.
Community job fair planned at Napa
Valley College April 23 Register staff
Apr 14, 2016
A Spring Community Employment Expo is planned for Saturday, April 23.
Napa Valley College is hosting the free event that is expected to attract some 80 employers from a variety of
industries, and is sponsored by Workforce Napa, the Department of State Hospitals, and Assemblymember Bill
Dodd.
The job fair will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Napa Valley College's Library Quad, 2277 Napa-Vallejo
Highway.
There will be food and music.
NVC bond measure on hold until 2018 HOWARD YUNE [email protected]
Apr 15, 2016
Blocked twice at the ballot box, Napa Valley College will take the slow road toward its next bid to win more
funding from voters.
Trustees for the two-year community college agreed Thursday to wait until at least the June 2018 primary
elections before launching a bond issue to pay for campus upgrades. The decision not to rush a measure onto
this November’s ballot – in contrast to the 2014 bond measure swiftly drafted but rejected by voters – is meant
to give NVC time to assess what facilities and programs need the most urgent help, create a budget for
improvements, and win the support of faculty and students.
The two-year school has seen two funding measures founder on election night, in 2008 and two years ago.
Measure E, the college’s 2014 bond drive, sought to raise $198 million but succumbed to taxpayer activists’
complaints about vague benefits to students, weak oversight and the lack of an up-to-date master plan to guide
spending and priorities.
“Simply put, our needs are real, but one of our greatest needs is time to adequately integrate our plans and
clearly explain them to the community,” President Ron Kraft told the NVC board of trustees. “We need time to
listen and concentrate on working with the community to address our needs, fully develop their input and then
share our plan for moving forward.”
Kraft’s announcement was an admission that NVC was unlikely to build strong support for a bond drive within
a single campaign season.
Measure E’s language stated the money from a new bond issue would pay for new and renovated classrooms,
equipment and facilities, as well as an enlarged Veterans’ Center, newer in-classroom technology and an
expansion of career training facilities. School leaders called the upgrades necessary to serve a student body
expected to double in numbers over the next 10 to 20 years.
But NVC did not publish its ballot proposition until late July 2014 – less than four months before the election –
and the rushed publicity effort was marred by thin funding, poor preparation and weak performances in debates
and before editorial boards, according to a post-election report commissioned by the school.
Meanwhile, the Napa County Taxpayers Association quickly denounced the plan as short on specifics or
timelines, and unworkable without an overall plan for where and when to spend the bond revenue.
In November 2014, Measure E gained support from 53.8 percent of Napa County voters, short of the 55
percent minimum needed to approve new funding.
Taking those lessons to heart, Kraft declared NVC will take the time to update its facility, educational and
technology master plans, and to consult with professors, students and others to learn where future funds will be
needed the most. Trustees readily agreed.
“If we can’t show the need clearly and document it, and show how much money it will take to get to what we
need, then I don’t think we’ll be successful,” said trustee Rafael Rios.
Other board members argued that with less than six months remaining before Election Day, the college cannot
properly promote a funding measure to wary voters while also trying to buttress its winemaking education
program and expand services to student veterans.
“We’re definitely not ready now; hopefully we will be in 2018,” said trustee Amy Martenson. “Right now, the college has a lot on its plate.”
Even with NVC’s needs for more space and modernized technology, Martenson suggested the school might do
better to put off its bond measure later still, to 2020 – in part to take advantage of higher voter turnout in the
next presidential election year.
While the college’s decision to avoid this year’s elections puts off the chance of fresh money, several faculty
members supported the move, asking officials not to repeat past mistakes
“I feel like we are building momentum and moving forward. But if we tried to pass a bond this year it would
stifle that momentum, because we’d be rushing it,” said Chris Farmer, a research analyst in the college’s
science, technology, engineering and mathematics division.
“We might move glacially. But once a glacier has decided which way it’s going, nothing can get in its way.”
Pathway Home nears deal with Napa
Valley College HOWARD YUNE [email protected]
Apr 15, 2016
Since its founding nine years ago, The Pathway Home has partnered with veterans’ agencies, nonprofits and
donors to treat hundreds of military men suffering from war’s aftereffects. In the coming months, the therapy
program may gain the most important ally for its future: Napa Valley College.
Thursday night, Pathway formally offered to work with the two-year school to extend its program to the Napa
campus for future clients, who would study at NVC while staying at the home’s Yountville quarters. A full-
time psychologist supplied by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs would work with student veterans,
splitting time between Pathway and the college, and patients also would partake of NVC’s existing veterans’
support programs.
An alliance with the college would give Pathway’s mission of helping combat-damaged veterans a new
dimension – a way to ensure former soldiers stay on the path to schooling, jobs and stable lives, Dorothy
Salmon, the home’s board chairwoman, told college trustees.
“The way that veterans feel better about themselves is when they find their passion, when they have the
education and work that they love,” she said, urging the college to help create a program she hoped would
inspire other campus-based imitators. “What the VA hopes to do, what we hope to do, is to prove that the
model for helping our veterans today is to give them a hand-up, wraparound community love, an unconditional
love.”
The joint effort between therapists and educators gained a warm enough reception from NVC’s board of
trustees that Salmon predicted the home – which suspended operations last September amid funding
difficulties – could strike a deal with the school as early as May and accept 12 to 16 veterans in time for the
fall semester.
“There was a lot of interest (among Pathway residents) in taking classes at the college,” said trustee Kyle
Iverson, who recalled being “disheartened” when the program went on hiatus. “To take it to the next step is a
huge opportunity for the college; I wish there were a (motion) to act on tonight.”
“I’m very excited about the mental health services being provided on campus,” added trustee Amy Martenson.
“There is a therapist on campus, but one therapist to serve all the students is obviously not enough. To have
someone on campus just to serve the veterans is critical.”
Pathway leaders, and a committee drawn from college staff and veterans’ agencies, have sought a fresh
mission for the program, which opened in 2008 to provide intensive inpatient treatment to U.S. veterans of the
Iraq and Afghanistan wars coping with traumatic brain injuries or post-traumatic stress disorder.
While the home had relied on private donations to meet its annual expenses of $1.2 million, the lack of
coverage through the VA or the federal insurance program for military members gradually forced Pathway to
reduce the number of beds, and eventually to place itself on hold.
In February, Pathway announced it would turn its focus toward helping those leaving the armed forces and
going to school to cope with the difficulties of civilian life and pursuing careers.
“We found a large number of veterans were going to community colleges, so that became Pathway’s focus,”
Salmon told NVC trustees.
Under Pathway’s plan, its student-patients would take vans to NVC’s main campus from their living quarters
on the Veterans Home of California grounds in Yountville. A psychologist supplied by the VA’s San
Francisco branch would work with clients at both sites.
NVC staff have said Pathway patients may be eligible for other forms of aid, including housing stipends from
the GI Bill to pay for their nine-month Yountville stays or work-study reimbursements provided by the VA.
A combined NVC-Pathway effort would include 10 years of evaluation by the VA to track the success of
veterans during and after their stays, according to Salmon, who said the home eventually will create a
handbook to guide the creation of similar programs at other colleges.
“We’re almost there. And this is a model not only for California but for the nation, starting right now in your
backyard,” she said.
New Napa Valley College club for seniors
to host forum Register staff
Apr 16, 2016
A new Napa Valley College student club for senior citizens will hold a community event on April 29 to
address the effects of aging on brain health.
The forum is an initial project to engage Napa Valley students, residents and professionals to increase
awareness of issues facing the largest Napa County population group, senior citizens.
The Napa County Alliance for Senior Education (NCASE) hopes to help seniors become “lifelong learners” by
taking classes at the college that focus on physical fitness, wellness, nutrition/ diet, computer use, memory,
access to health care and other topics that could lead to longer, healthier lives, the college said in a news
release.
The new club of about 20 members is led by William Weddington, a retired forensic and clinical psychologist
who taught for 32 years at the college, and Christy Kling, who teaches Adaptive Physical Education at NVC.
The club includes a retired pastor, several retired teachers and nurses, dietitians, current and former
prosecutors and a landscape architect.
According to Kling, efforts are underway with Stanford University as well as local agencies and groups to
collaborate with Napa Valley College to focus on longevity.
The event, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at the NVC Performing Arts Center, will be “a coming-out project designed to
introduce the group to the community and the college,” Kling said.
The presentation will include a film, “Alive Inside,” a 2014 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award winner.
After the film is viewed, a Skype session will connect the audience with Michael Rosato-Bennett, the film’s
director.
“We are standing on the shoulders of all the seniors who built this community,” said Kling, a mother of three
who is caring for her own mother. “We can provide more opportunities, promote lifelong learning, and serve
our community in a new and different way.”
The event is free but seating is limited. For registration information call 251-8905 or email
The Napa County Commission on Aging is collaborating with the club to help stage a June 16 event at the
college designed to bring awareness of elder abuse. More information is available from Kling at 256-7647 or
Join a discussion: What's happening in my
brain? Betty Rhodes
Apr 15, 2016
Dear friends. Remember last week I promised you an invitation to a very fun event?
You may remember our discussion in a previous column about an organization that I am very proud to be a
part of. We call ourselves the Napa County Alliance for Senior Education. We would like to invite you to our
first community event at Napa Valley College Performing Arts Center.
Mark your calendar for April 29, 9 to 11:30 a.m. Our event is called “What’s Happening in my Brain?”
Let’s do a little rundown of what you can expect.
Registration is at 9 a.m., followed by introductions from Dr. William Weddington.
At 9:30 we’ll be viewing the film “Alive inside: A Story of Music and Memory,” which was the winner at the
2014 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award. A Skype session follows with film director Michael Rossato-
Bennett.
Next is a discussion of senior issues, education and college student connections.
From 11:05-11:30 there will be a reading of Ed Young’s “I, Doko.”
Because we don’t want you to miss any part of this, our first event, please make your reservations early as
seating is limited. Call 707-251-8905 or email [email protected].
We look forward to welcoming you to the event and having the pleasure of meeting you, and also for you to
get to know us and what our goals are.
We would also like for you to mark your calendar for the next event that Napa County Alliance for Senior
Education will be presenting. We will be honoring the month of July as Elder Abuse Awareness Month with a
symposium. Please save the date, July 16. More information will be coming closer to the event.
A few words about Dr. Weddington, chairman of the Napa County Alliance for Senior Education. Recently
retired from teaching, after 32 years, at Napa Valley College, Bill enjoys working out at the college, taking
Christy Kling’s adaptive physical education class.
I also enjoy taking Christy’s class. A few of us students were having a discussion one day about how, as we
get older, our memories were playing tricks on us, as when we temporarily forget the name of a good friend,
for instance; of course the name comes back to us later, but it’s quite embarrassing at the moment.
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Dr. Weddington, being a psychologist, suggested that we should challenge our minds, as that is a vital
component of mental health. He said that exercising the body and brain can produce positive results. “Staying
mentally active by taking classes, working puzzles, reading, writing and listening to music will help improve
our memories,” he said.
We gathered often to chat about taking care of our minds as well as our bodies as we get older. Dr.
Weddington would often lead these discussions. Soon there were several of us who liked his refreshing ideas
for possibly encouraging Napa Valley College to help get some workshops started, for not only the senior
students at the college, but seniors from the community, as well.
We were eager to start meeting formally on a regular basis, which we were soon doing.
I think of Dr. Weddington as our Pied Piper. We happily followed along with his exciting and practical ideas
because we agreed wholeheartedly with his whole concept. Being seniors and living longer than our ancestors,
we feel very strongly that we want to stay strong both physically and mentally for as long as we possibly can.
After we had been meeting for a few weeks, I asked Dr. Weddington why he was so enthusiastic about doing
this project of ours, and his short answer was: “Education lasts a lifetime, and is the key to longevity and
health.” Don’t you think that that’s a great answer? I certainly did.
We meet weekly. Our attendance averages around 20 members, growing all the time, and all attendees are
dedicated and enthusiastic, believing that we are in the process of helping build something very wonderful for
the seniors in Napa County.
So, come and get a closer look at us, and learn more about this exciting venture we are on. For the most part,
we are composed of a retired minister, several retirees from the teaching profession, a couple of dietitians,
nurses, a member of the district attorney’s office, a retired assistant district attorney, a landscape architect, and
several who are dedicated senior advocates still active in the community.
So, please come and see for yourself. Come and meet us, and we are eager to meet all of you.
I’ve come to believe that a busy mind is a happy mind. I’m wondering if the same that applies to our bodies
also applies to our brains — that if you don’t use it, you lose it. Let’s not take that chance.
As we always advocate, life is what we decide to make it. Let’s keep growing, keep doing things we have a
passion for, work hard at staying in good physical and mental shape. Let’s set a good example for those
coming up behind us.
Let’s celebrate these years.
Sending love and joy to all.
Drop me a line. I love hearing from you.
Write to me at betty [email protected].
April festival at the Upper Valley Campus TOM STOCKWELL [email protected]
Apr 18, 2016
Saturday’s Festival of Disciplines, held at the Upper Valley Campus of the Napa Valley College on Pope
Street, was an event designed to fulfill nearly everyone’s taste for art.
There were art exhibits, live theater and performance, art installations, digital media presentations, live
readings, a printmaking demonstration and – within the Culinary Arts Building – a chef demonstration, all free
of admission.
The event was part of the Arts Council Napa Valley‘s sixth annual “Arts in April Spotlight.”
Inside the North Hallway Gallery was an installation by photographer John Dotta. Fain Hancock displayed a
series of paintings in the East Hallway Gallery, while Jason Perry had a large installation of his work inside the
Art Studio of Room 8. Down in the computer lab, Gary Strommen also displayed digital design graphic
technology. Also of note was artist Nancy Willis’ live demonstration of printmaking in the Art Studio.
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Meanwhile, on the outdoor stage, an audience gathered to see a live presentation of “Pericles” directed by
Jennifer King, followed by live dance performances and readings of the literary works of Anna Baker, Iris
Dunkle, Lakin Khan and Angela Pneuman, representing the Napa Valley Writers’ Conference. This was
followed by an open mic reading.
Inside the Napa Valley Cooking School’s Culinary Arts Building, executive chef Barbara Alexander’s event
included a chef demonstration, followed by an open house and alumni get-together.
The Arts in April Spotlights features more than 75 events for visitors to explore and experience the art and
artists from American Canyon to Calistoga, with the intention, according to the Arts Council Napa Valley, of
“fostering the unique sense of place within the Napa Valley through locally produced and presented events
paired with Napa Valley’s wine and culinary offerings to increase cultural tourism.” For information and a list
of upcoming events visit VisitNapaValley.com/ArtsInApril.
Free screening of 'The Hunting Ground' Register staff
Apr 19, 2016
A free public showing of the film “The Hunting Ground” will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Napa Valley
College Little Theater, Building 1200.
An exposé of rape crimes on U.S. college campuses, their institutional cover-ups and the devastating toll they
take on students and their families, “The Hunting Ground” weaves footage and first-person testimonies of
several undergraduate assault survivors as they attempt to pursue – despite incredible criticism, harassment,
and traumatic aftermath – both their education and justice.
The showing is presented as part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, which highlights the topic of dating
violence.
Have you hugged a small business today? MARY CERVANTES
Apr 22, 2016
Every year since 1963, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) highlights the impact of small
businesses in cities across the nation through the designation of National Small Business Week.
This year, top SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet announced National Small Business Week will be
May 1-7, with the theme “Dream Big, Start Small.”
It’s a time to reflect on our local small businesses and their contribution to our community.
Most small business owners live and work in their local community. They contribute locally in terms of wages
and purchase local services to support their business.
Small businesses sponsor Little League teams, advertise in local media, hire locally, and even give to local
charities.
Napa Massage & Skin Care in downtown Napa is one example of a local business giving back to the
community.
After the fires in Lake County, Napa Massage & Skin Care held a fundraiser to give back money that would
help toward the rebuilding of the area.
“People in Napa are very supportive and come together in times of need,” said Kimberly McMaster, co-owner
of Napa Massage & Skin Care.
“We hold fundraisers to help out the community and also local community organizations. Every year, we raise
money to help support the Humane Society Napa County. Our clients are amazing.”
Napa is very supportive of their business start-ups too.
“Napa Valley has been the most ideal place to start my business,” said Sarita Lopez, local business owner and
SBDC NxLeveL graduate. “As one of the wealthiest and trendiest areas in the U.S., this is a clientele that isn’t
afraid to tell you what they want to buy and why.”
“I started with a farm and am now launching a product due to overwhelming feedback from selling at the local
farmers market.”
According to the SBA, for every dollar spent at a locally-owned business, on average, is three times more
economically beneficial for a local community than one dollar spent at a corporate-owned chain store.
Collectively, small businesses have been the single biggest job creators in the U.S. since the 1970s. Small
businesses have accounted for more than 63 percent of the new jobs created between 1993 and mid-2013.
Community colleges enhance and support small business growth locally. These colleges provide a community-
based and applied approach to engage small businesses.
At Napa Valley College, business and workforce development programs and customized training are available
to support local economic development in the county.
One such program is the Napa-Sonoma Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The SBDC works with
Napa Valley small businesses and entrepreneurs offering technical assistance in areas of business planning,
access to capital, marketing strategy, budgeting, government contracting and more.
Shopping at small businesses is promoting economic well-being locally. Therefore, next time you need to shop
for yourself or someone else, visit a local small business near you and give them a hug for all that they
contribute.
To make an appointment to meet with an SBDC Business Advisor, contact the Napa-Sonoma Small Business
Development Center at 707-256-7250, or check out napasonomasbdc.org to view a schedule of business
workshops and sign up for services.
Education
Construction career fair recruits next
generation JENNIFER HUFFMAN [email protected]
Apr 23, 2016
The sounds of hammering, drilling and other construction noise outside the Napa Valley College library on
Friday morning wasn’t the start of a campus addition or other project. It was the sound of the start of new
careers.
A career fair for anyone interested in becoming a mason, electrician, iron worker, painter, plumber, roofer, or
other such skilled worker was presented by the North Bay Apprenticeship Coordinators Association, Kaiser
Permanente, Carpenters Local 180 and Napa Solano Building Trades Council.
Vallejo resident J.J. Carnell, currently in the California Conservation Corps (CCC), said on Friday that he was
“most definitely” looking for a skilled trade job. Through the CCC, he’s been trained in landscaping, tree
removal, fire prevention and trail maintenance, among other skills.
“My ideal job would be in irrigation,” he said. The career fair is great, he said, “especially for people already
doing hands-on work” like in the CCC.
“I’m looking for a good trade and good-paying job” with benefits, said A.J. Williams of Vallejo. Also a CCC
member, Williams said outdoor work was best for him. “If I was in an office all day, I’d lose my mind.”
Justice Rhodes, a high school senior from Crockett, came to the career fair because she’s also interested in
working with her hands. She waited in line to use metal working equipment to build a small metal tool box
from scratch, including bending the metal, shaping the box and drilling a handle in place.
“This is really cool,” she said. Rhodes said her father is a welder, and she’d like to do the same, or perhaps be
an artist.
Rhodes said she’s not intimidated to work in a historically male industry. “I believe that all women should be
accepted into every trade.”
Eric Britton, a 12th grader from Vacaville, said he hoped to join a union doing iron working or heavy
machinery operation. He was visiting various booths at the fair “just testing the waters” about a possible future
career. Working outside is also important to him, he said, “not being cooped up in an office.”
“I’m excited to be here,” said Samantha Jeffers, 14, of Vacaville’s Will C. Wood high school. “I really like the
electricians,” she said. While many in that industry are men, “It shouldn’t make a difference if you’re a
woman,” she said.
Jose Barragan, college adviser and career coach at Fairfield’s Grange Middle School, brought a group of at-
risk youth to the career fair.
“We’re trying to motivate them to try out the trades,” he said.
While the group will also visit college campuses, “some aren’t going to a four-year (college) and trades are an
awesome career field.”
Jesus Peña, 13, made his own metal tool box at the fair.
“This is pretty cool,” he said. He was interested in learning more about a plasma cutter that was on display at
the fair. He’d consider a job using such a tool, he said.
“A lot of people are not as exposed to the trades as they used to be,” said Frank Cuneo, representing the Sheet
Metal Workers Local 104 and the Bay Area Industry Training Fund.
Many schools that used to have wood, metal or auto shops have eliminated or reduced such programs in favor
of computer skills and college preparation.
There still is a need for trade workers, he said.
Trade apprenticeships and training “can lead to great careers and good paying jobs,” Cuneo said. Union jobs
can range from $15 to more than $50 per hour, he said, plus benefit and retirement packages.
Many of the trade jobs can begin with a paid apprenticeship.
Tony Castillo, a representative with the Laborers Training and Retraining Trust Fund for Northern California,
was handing out flyers advertising apprenticeships starting at $17.90 per hour.
“If you’re unemployed and looking to get into a lifelong learning experience, apprenticeship is the way to go,”
said Castillo.
He’s recruiting for the next generation of laborers, said Castillo. “We want to make sure the unions have
enough applicants that are ready to perform for contractors.”
David Quintero, a regional gear specialist with Platt Electric Supply, was one vendor with a booth at the fair.
Staffers gave out bright green buckets to anyone who attended. Platt Electric is always recruiting new workers
for either sales or management jobs, said Quintero.
“The trades pay a lot better than people think,” he said.
Chris Perondi’s 'Stunt Dog Experience'
brings everyone's best friends to stage Register staff
On Mother’s Day, May 8, families will be planning gifts and cards, bouquets of flowers or special meals, all
traditional gifts for the annual celebration of moms.
This year, there’s a more distinctive and entertaining way to please Mom.
Nationally acclaimed dog trainer Chris Perondi is bringing his 12 talented “pound pups” to Napa for two
performances of his “Stunt Dog Experience” at the Napa Valley College.
Some of the pack’s most popular crowd-pleasers include comedy antics; the extreme canines’ triathlon;
dancing dogs; and the Golden Bone Showdown, a series of five separate challenges that will test each dog’s
intelligence, speed, accuracy and leaping ability. Shows also include interactive crowd participation.
Suitable for audiences of all ages, performances take place at 2 and 6 p.m. in the Napa Valley College
Performing Arts Center. One hour prior, free kids’ arts activities are offered in the theater lobby. For tickets
and information, visit EandMPresents.Eventbrite.com or call 707-224-4353.
Originally from Stockton, Perondi lives in the nearby farming community of French Camp. The family’s 2
acres provide just the right ambience and open space for the pups to run, play and train. His wife, Suhey, and
stepson Anthony Ortiz have also joined in on the act together with additional trainers and performers.
On tour, Perondi reports that all the dogs get along well. “There is no secret,” he said, “other than just being
the pack leader and teaching them good manners on what is allowed and not allowed. They all live in the house
together, travel well and play together.”
Perondi started training dogs as a hobby in 1996 inspired by his childhood love of pets. The legacy, however,
began with the rescue of his first celebrity dog star, named Extreme Pepper, a border collie/Australian cattle
dog mix — the dog Perondi credits for changing his life.
In 1999, he created the world’s first stunt dog show and has since produced thousands of shows for theme and
wildlife parks, zoos, state fairs, and festivals and sporting events, among others. Perondi and his capable
canines have been featured on TV shows including “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” “The Tonight Show with
Jay Leno,” Animal Planet’s “Pet Star!” and Fox Sports’ “You Gotta See This!”
All Perondi’s shows feature these talented rescue dogs who love to show off their drive, intelligence and
athleticism. And each show includes a message of pet adoption and responsible pet ownership, while using
positive training methods.
Neither age nor size matters when teaching dogs new tricks.
“Dogs can learn and be taught at any age,” said Perondi. “It’s all about taking the time and having the patience.
Our smallest dog is Crazy Confetti, about 7 years old (a terrier/cattle dog mix), and she is only about 20
pounds. Our largest is a Belgian Malinois named Flying Harley who weighs about 67 pounds. As Yoda would
say, ‘size matters not.’”
For information, visit StuntDogShow.com.
Tickets to “Stunt Dog Experience” have been donated to underserved Napa Valley families thanks to the
support of the Gasser Foundation, Mechanics Bank, Napa Pediatric Dentistry, Mechanics Bank, The Doctors
Company and Silicon Valley Bank.
Students host ‘smashing’ fundraiser at NVC
JENNIFER HUFFMAN [email protected]
Directing their characters to dodge bolts of lightning, flying balls of water, bullet
“climaxes” and using special moves such as the “Witch Twist,” nearly 40 Napa Valley
College students participated in a video game contest fundraiser on Thursday.
Five students, led by Alexander Redman, 22, hosted the event at the Student Activities
Center as part of their Small Group Communications class project assigned by teacher
Christina Trujillo.
The money raised – contestants and spectators were charged $5 per person – will go to
Child’s Play, a national charity that helps hospitalized kids.
The lightning bolts and other weapons were waged by characters from the Nintendo
game Super Smash Bros. Players compete to knock opponents off a “stage” and
advance to further rounds.
The winner of Thursday’s event would take home a $60 GameStop gift card.
Spectators also played other video games, ate snacks and drank bottled water donated
to the party. Redman’s student partners included Reeyannah Quinto, Chris Daniel,
Gabby Elayda and Aezioni Fuller.
“I had always been a fan of Super Smash Bros.,” said Redman. When asked to produce
a fundraiser for the class, he suggested the group organize “a friendly” Smash Bros.
tournament where everyone plays together for a good cause.
Redman said he was pleased with the turnout on Thursday. “It’s very exciting.”
Julius Fontanilla, 18, waited his turn to start a match. He likes playing the game with a
big group of people.
“It’s a good set-up,” he said, looking around the former cafeteria space. “I like the
couches. It feels right at home.”
He had this advice for other Super Smash Bros. players: “Don’t get carried away with
attacks and all the animation.” Play smart and safe, he said.
During the competition on Thursday, the players were intent on the action. As each duo
battled on the screen, a small crowd watched their moves carefully.
“Ooooooh,” the crowd exclaimed loudly, as a player was knocked off of a green platform
during a fight.
“Somebody died,” announced Redman.
Each player has two lives per round, he explained. If your character is knocked off the
platform, it’s over.
The goal is to have students take an active role in their educational experience and
practice what they are learning, Trujillo wrote in an email.
“This type of active involvement in the learning process empowers students to engage
and apply their course work while connecting with their community.”
In addition to the Smash tournament, another team is producing a wellness workshop at
Voices in Napa. One group completed a dine and donate event and another will host a
performance showcase to raise awareness and funding for the Queen of the Valley
mental health department. Another is raising money for the Special Olympics.
Uriel Valentin, 22, said he came to the event “just to see how far I’m going to get.”
Valentine said he usually plays the game online but joining a group was fun. “I heard
people cheering my name” after he won, he said. “It felt great.”
Eli Cendejas, 20, isn’t a gamer but she visited the Super Smash contest because she’s
also in the same Small Group Communication class. Her group is working on the
Special Olympics project, said Cendejas.
“They’re really into this,” she said, looking around at the room of players, mostly guys.
“I’m not a gamer but I enjoy watching others who know what they are doing,” she said.
“It’s pretty cool.”
Natalie Medina, 18, said that she hadn’t planned on going to the fundraiser. But when
she heard about it, her friends chipped in to help pay her $5 entry fee.
“It’s better to play with a group,” she said. That way “you can see how good you are
against others.”
Medina said she usually plays with a character called “Cloud” because of his strong
abilities and powerful attack moves. He also uses a giant sword, she noted. Each
character has his own variety of skills, she said. “Some are difficult to master.”
“At first, I was pretty skeptical” about doing a video-game fundraiser, said team member
Aezioni Fuller, 21. “I didn’t know how well this would turn out.”
Looking around, “I’m really happy we did this. Everyone is having fun.”
Hosting a fundraiser is a new experience Fuller. “I never thought I could do something
like this but now I’m confident I could.”
She said she was proud of her group. “We work well together,” she said.
“I couldn’t be more proud of these tenacious and determined students,” Trujillo said.
