³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ

It began easily enough. A group of ³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ students had gathered on Zoom last summer to participate in an improvement program. The single parents were all recharging their batteries before the fall semester.

Do you become a leader with the right job title?Or does the universe anoint you when your talent and skill combine to demand it?LaDenta Smith, Andrea Garibay, Sabrina Frias and Tzitzijank Jazmin Serrano all fit one or both of those descriptions in their daily work at ³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ. They all deserve the spotlight.

Taylor Brown has wanted to serve as an elected official since she was in elementary school.Something about watching her mother Christie bring history to life, reading books about Booker T. Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. and other historical figures, has filled her with the hunger to chase public office.

³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ has for years offered programs to specifically reach and nurture Black students, Latino students, disabled students, students who are military veterans, foster youth, homeless or anyone struggling academically.

In linguistic terms, "Umoja" is a Kiswahili word that means unity. In ³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ terms, "Umoja" is the name of a program that has been coming to life in 2021-22.

Sara Friedman completed 22 units this past semester to finish her B.A. in Psychology at Fresno State.Taking on 22 units in one semester might seem insane for anyone, but not for a U.S. Coast Guard veteran, former chef, ³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ alumnus, 40-year-old, single mother of two. Right?

³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ students needn't go hungry.That's not a goal. That is the uplifting truth behind the student food pantry, which came to campus full time in 2017.

From customer service and conflict resolution to crafting cocktails, local students can learn all the skills they need for jobs in hotels, restaurants and more through ³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ's Hospitality Career Academy. The free, 12-week program kicks off with an event at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 31 at the Mainzer in downtown Merced.

Community members and dignitaries gathered at ³Ô¹ÏÍ·Ìõ on Thursday to celebrate a major milestone in the construction of the college's new Raj Kahlon Agriculture and Industrial Technology Complex.

When this year began, our society was still reeling from the first year of COVID-19. We were still working from home and students were still figuring out how to learn in online environments, and it was easy to slip into a mode of pining for whatever we had one considered "normal."