President's Message

Sierra College Offers More Opportunities Than Ever

At Sierra College we know why we are here — to serve the evolving needs of the individuals and businesses throughout our diverse region. We are community-based, lifelong learning center, with a focus on student learning and high quality teaching. Sierra College students benefit from a curriculum that is parallel to the first two years at Stanford, Harvard, Berkeley or any other four-year university for a fraction of the cost ($20 per unit). Not to mention the fact that the learning experience at Sierra often surpasses that of a university and is assuredly more personal.

Many of our students successfully transfer to major universities and colleges. In fact, overall our transfer students outperform those who began their college education at four-year institutions. The University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU) systems recognize this quality and equivalency by endorsing the Transfer Guarantee Program. This means no SAT scores, no admission tests — upon successful completion of their prescribed coursework, our students are guaranteed admission to many universities in the CSU and UC systems!

But that isn't all we offer. The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor has indicated that in today's market, “more than a third of workers have a Bachelor's Degree or higher. But many others require two-year Associate Degrees (A.A./A.S.), industry-standard certifications, or on-the-job training. Skilled trades are more vital than ever.” In Northern California, technology-based employers, as well as local small and medium-sized businesses and organizations search for highly skilled employees with Associate Degrees. Through our vocational and technological programs you'll learn skills that will serve you for years to come. And by the way, Sierra was recently chosen as a national "Top 100 Community College", ranked 13th for Associate degrees awarded (First in California).

Finally, access to Sierra College is available to anyone 18 years and older or to high school students/minors with some conditions. Sierra has something for students of all ages. You can select from day, evening and weekend classes spread over a full semester, a few weeks or even just one weekend. Sierra's classes are close to where you live and work in Grass Valley, Rocklin, Roseville and Truckee. And by the way, we even have online computer courses and live TV courses in many subjects that you can take from the comfort of your own home!

If you want high-quality, low-cost opportunities to improve your life, I hope will you consider enrolling at Sierra College. Whether you want to begin your baccalaureate degree, achieve occupational improvement through an associate degree or certificate program, or just have a passion for lifelong learning, Sierra has something for you. Our mission is
To Facilitate Learning, Inspire Change and Build Community.

For more information please call 916-781-0430.

Dr. Leo E. Chavez
Superintendent / President
Sierra College

President's Bulletin

A recap of Sierra College news and events from the desk of the president.

• July 2008 (.pdf)
• June 2008 (.pdf)
• May 2008 (.pdf)
• April 2008 (.pdf)

(The Bulletin is in Adobe® Reader™ .pdf format. If you need the free Acrobat Reader, go here.)

Open Forum With the President

Wednesday, July 30, 2008, 8-9 a.m., in the Fireside Room.