Golden Gate University

There is still time to grab a "seat" at today's conversation with Ron Glait. Click below to join us.

Happy Hug Your Favorite Ewok Day! #maythe4thbewithyou

Don't miss this great discussion hosted by Dean of Undergraduate Studies Marc Singer.

This feathered friend was spotted right next door to GGU. Wonder what species of bird it is? If you're in the neighborhood, you can also get your nature fix at Salesforce Park, Yerba Buena Gardens, or Rincon Park among many other options. One side benefit of Shelter in Place rules is more people spending time outside. Research shows that spending time in nature can help improve concentration, reduce stress, and protect against diseases including depression, diabetes, cance...r, and cardiovascular disease. According to research, our bodies physically become calmer while in nature. Our heart rate, muscle tension, and production of stress hormones reducemeaning we’re able feel more at ease. Hope you all are able to spend sometime outside this coming weekend. : : Ana Carolina Almeida

Congrats to recent graduate Dorothea Tolliver, MS Human Resources Management 2020! Dorothea came to GGU to pursue her passion: advocating for individuals like herself who are deaf. I wanted to earn a Master’s in Human Resources because I saw a lot of barriers preventing deaf and hard of hearing persons from working, explained Dorothea. As an individual who is deaf, I know the importance of an accessible workplace especially when it comes to communication. A lot of ti...mes deaf people will earn a degree and then learn that employers won’t hire them because they can’t answer the phone. I wanted to try and solve that problem. When Dorothea reached out to GGU’s Office of Disability Resources and Accommodations, she was impressed with the support that she received compared to the support available to persons with disabilities at other private schools. The provision of interpreters for deaf students at a small private university like Golden Gate University requires planning, budgeting and education, reflected Peter DeHaas, Director of Disability Resources & Academic Accommodations. DeHaas was able to implement a sustainable plan to make sure that interpreters were provided to Dorothea. Everyone at GGU rose to the occasion to make her integration into our community a success. Dorothea's dream is to one day found a large corporation for people with disabilities where their skills and talents are showcased alongside non-disabled coworkers. She wants to continue to advocate for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing through supporting them and reducing the barriers that exist in the workplace and to serve as a bridge between the hearing and deaf world. Read the story: http://ow.ly/eEfb50C4sg8

This summer, the Bay Area program of Genesys Works, a national nonprofit that provides pathways to college and career success for underserved students, teamed up with Salesforce and GGU to offer a unique training program. GGU provided students with training in business and data analytics, while Genesys Works provided training in soft skills needed to navigate a corporate office environmentall offered online and a large portion sponsored by Salesforce. Students who successfully completed the course gained college credits and a certificate that they can embed in their LinkedIn profiles. GGU is proud to partner with Genesys Works to #EmployChange in America, by opening our doors to diverse, talented students. Join us at genesysworks.org/employ-change.

GGU's Race and Justice Task Force is thrilled to welcome Adam Foss, the founder and executive director of Prosecutor Impact, for an engaging online talk and Q&A. PI develops innovative curriculum & training for prosecutors across the country to reduce the use of incarceration. It trains criminal prosecutors to employ data-informed, sustainable & safety-focused interventions to foster more equitable outcomes for the communities they serve. Adam Foss is a former Assistant D.A. ...in the Juvenile Division of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office in Boston, and a fierce advocate for criminal justice reform and the importance of the role of the prosecutor in ending mass incarceration. Adam believes that the profession of prosecution is ripe for a reinvention that requires better incentives and more measurable metrics for success beyond, simply, cases won. This led him to create Prosecutor Impact, a non-profit that develops training and curriculum for prosecutors to reframe their role in the criminal justice system. Most recently, Mr. Foss appeared in the critically-acclaimed CNN feature-length documentary American Jail. Welcoming Remarks: GGU Law Dean Eric Christiansen Speaker Introduction: Law Professor Jyoti Nanda Following Q&A led by: Amye Osakue, President, BLSA, Co-Chair of RJTF Subcommittee Alexis Pickins, BLSA Member, Co-Chair of RJTF Subcommittee THURSDAY, October 29, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Free tickets here: http://ow.ly/kckp50C1jSZ

View of GGU from the back. Remember walking through the back door off Jessie Street? The world looks pretty different depending on our vantage point. "Sometimes a change of perspective is all it takes to see the light." - Dan Brown Happy Friday, everyone.... Photo: Ana Carolina Almeida

Meet Alika Publico, BA ’19 What are you studying? Organizational Leadership and Human Skills Development in the School of Undergraduate Studies.... What is your profession? I work full-time as a fire prevention officer for the city of Monterey with the U.S. Army. Why did you choose GGU? As military service members, we face trials and tribulations. For 19 years I tried to complete my bachelor’s degree at other schools, but every time I hit a wall that would halt my progress. I chose GGU because here I don’t feel like a number. My enrollment counselor walked me through everything until I completed my application, and my tutors and professors are always available through emails and phone calls. My advisor is always in touch with me and has helped streamline the process so I get to that next step. How are you balancing work and school during COVID-19? The pandemic hit during my second semester, but thankfully GGU immediately transitioned to Zoom and my academic progress continued uninterrupted. I like Zoom classes because all the information is provided in an accessible way. As long as you communicate with your instructors when issues come up, they are always accommodating and flexible. During my first week, I was affected by the Dolan fire, which we could see from my office. My instructor understood and helped me get through the course while juggling that stressful situation. What advice do you have for prospective students? I believe it’s up to the student to put in the time and effort to learn. Take advantage of the instruction videos and all of the readings assigned. Make sure you plan out when you will write your posts for online discussion forums. And if you have any questions or issues, post them to the discussion thread or ask your instructors. They will find a way to help you succeed. What’s next for you? I’m graduating this fall and plan to apply for a master’s program in the spring.

On the next episode of Back to the Baysics with Marc Singer, Marc talks with Raj Gupta, CPA of Moss Adams and Stuart Hicks, CPA of Krohn Watters and Hicks LLP about tax consulting and how recent changes have affected their industry. That's next Wednesday October 28 at 11:30. Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/back-to-the-baysics-with-marc-

GGU in the sunlight. As we continue to face an uncertain future with COVID-19, GGU has decided that Spring term will be 100% online. We can’t predict the status of the pandemic in January, but we know we will likely be living with uncertainty regarding community health into 2021. Because of this, many students, faculty and staff members have expressed concerns about returning to the building and its busy shared spaces. We also know that local health restrictions would req...uire significant changes to our campus that might hinder the educational experience for allCOVID testing and PPE, frequent cleaning, social distancing, limitations on how many students could enter the building at once, and how they could use those spaces. Fortunately, GGU has a long history of online instruction that we are proud of, with faculty dedicated to making the experience as engaging as possible for students. We all want to see each other again and to feel the buzz of our university in-person. We look forward to that day when we can return safely to campus. Until then, we will continue to see you online. Thanks to everyone for your patience and understanding in these extraordinary times.

Election Day is less than 3 weeks away! Do you have a plan to vote by mail or at an in-person location? Make sure you're ready to cast your ballot safely in the upcoming election. : Alan Cleaver

GGU profile: Sheri Schatz is pursuing her MS in Business Analytics online and will graduate May 2021. Where do you live? Cumberland Gap area in Tennessee... How do you stay motivated and organized in online classes? Getting to do coursework on my own took some time management. Having the professors give you their email or cell phone number to reach them was really helpful. Even though you may feel like they’re out of your reach, they really aren’t. When I would start to panic I would call my professor and he would reassure me that what I was feeling was normal, encourage me to let that one line of code go, and move on. Every professor I’ve reached out to said I’m so glad you called me, I’m so glad you asked. That made me feel really good because I felt like I wasn’t bothering them. With GGU you are in constant communication and if you build that relationship with your professors, you start building that confidence within yourself. What is your favorite course so far? I learned so much in my Business Analytics course on R and Python with advanced statistics. To be honest, this course really scared me at first because I had never used R or Python before. But, I found out that if I dig deep and put in tons of time, I can figure it out. The digging and researching is what really makes a student understand the coursework. Out of all of the courses I have taken, this course is probably the one I put the most time into and it was so worth it! I have never felt so much pride in myself. I know that sounds so silly, but this is not an easy course. However, Professor Siamak Zadeh’s class prepared me both in R and Python and that’s such a great feeling. What’s next in your career? Recently, I got a promotion and I am now working as the Campus Bursar at Lincoln Memorial University. The people I was competing with for this job did not have the degree I am getting from GGU and I think that really put me in the running. #peopleofggu

Have you heard?! Our BnDA Club is hosting our introduction event for Fall 2020 today at 6PM Pacific. Not only can you meet our club officers, you can also get in on a raffle to win free coaching sessions with an executive coach! Register now: http://tinyurl.com/introBnDA

For #WorldMentalHealthDay, we celebrate GGU alums and students in our BA and MA Psychology programs who work hard to improve relationships, workplaces, and organizations across industries using research-validated tools. They help make the world happier and healthier. Priscilla Castro and Nadia Kwalick Evans are 2020's Outstanding Student Award Winners in, respectively, the MA I/O Psychology and Counseling Psychology programs. "My education at GGU has provided me with ...additional tools, resources and confidence to continue growing my career. Most of all, it has reaffirmed my interest and passion in studying and understanding human behavior in the workplace," says Priscilla Castro, MA I/O Psychology, 2020. Comments Nadia Kwalick Evans, MA Counseling Psychology 2020, I try to make work better for people. I’ve been told that I have a broad range of skillsI really see this as taking every opportunity I have to add value where I can and enjoying my work to the fullest. I try to use my skills to make life a little bit better for whoever it is that I’m interacting with. #peopleofggu

Happy Friday. We sure miss seeing students, faculty, and staff walking in and out those front doors. What do you miss most about being on campus? Hope everyone has a safe and peaceful weekend. While wildfires continue to burn throughout California, the Bay Area has clean air for now. Hope we all get some blue skies and fresh air soon. : Lorena De Benedittis