Benefits of Career Services for Faculty
- Integrate hands-on, work-related learning in academic instruction
- Prepare students to meet in-demand needs of labor market
- Grow the number of students who complete a certificate/degree, obtain sustainable employment with a livable wage, and/or transfer
- Promote faculty interaction with industry
- Support students in defining career goals, develop their motivation to learn, and enhance retention and academic success
By offering or encouraging WBL, faculty support students in defining career goals, develop their motivation to learn, and enhance retention and academic success. Students participate in Work-Based Learning Activities in order to discover potential career opportunities that align with their interests, skills, and values. Students ensure they are moving along the right career path by interacting with professionals to get first-hand knowledge of companies, workplace sites, employment expectations, and preparation requirements! Below are some examples of the activities and events that WBL organizes:
- Career Field Trips
- Informational Interviews
- Job Shadowing
- Mentoring
- Guest Speaker / Industry Panels
- Research Project
- Student-Run Enterprises
Interested in offering career & WBL activities to your students inside or outside your classroom? Fill out the presentation request form or email the Career Services Team (mesacareer@sdccd.edu) or the Work-Based Learning Coordinators below to connect you with employers and support in coordinating WBL activities for your department/area:
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Katlin Choi (kchoi@sdccd.edu) - Arts & Languages, Humanities, Math & Natural Sciences, Exercise Science, Dance, Health Education & Athletics, Social/Behavioral Sciences & Multicultural Studies, DEBER, Honors, and STEM Center
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Shawn Fawcett (sfawcett@sdccd.edu) – Business & Technology, Health Sciences & Public Service, Student Development
Classroom Presentations
If you are a faculty or staff member and would like to request a presentation from Career Services, please fill out our presentation request form. We ask that you complete this form three weeks prior to your event.
For questions connect with the Career Center with your name and CSID # by phone (619-388-2777), email at mesacareer@sdccd.edu, or by visiting us on the 3rd floor of the Student Services building (I4-306).
Work-Based Learning Faculty Liaisons
Mesa College Work-Based Learning (WBL) is launching our next iteration of WBL at Mesa College with the hiring of Faculty Liaisons within seven instructional schools. The WBL team is thrilled to continue its work of supporting, implementing, and incorporating WBL. This work will support Mesa 2030, specifically including our goals of increasing Pathways & Partnerships in support of equity and excellence.
- Shawn Fawcett - Work-Based Learning Coordinator (sfawcett@sdccd.edu) for the Business & Technology, Health Sciences & Public Service, Student Development
- Katlin Choi - Work-Based Learning Coordinator (kchoi@sdccd.edu) for the Arts & Languages, Humanities, Math & Natural Sciences, Exercise Science, Dance, Health Education & Athletics, Social/Behavioral Sciences & Multicultural Studies, DEBER, Honors, and STEM Center
- Pegah Moltaleb - (pmotaleb@sdccd.edu) for the School of Arts and Languages
- Liese Hoffmire - (lhoffmire@sdccd.edu) for the School of Business and Technology
- Todd Curran - (tcurran@sdccd.edu) for the School of Exercise Science, Health Education, Dance, and Athletics
- Holly Jagielinski - (hjagielinski@sdccd.edu) for the School of Health Sciences and Public Service
- Wendy Smith - (wsmith@sdccd.edu) for the School of Humanities
- Phuong Truong - (ptruong001@sdccd.edu) for the School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
- Michelle Rodriguez - (mrodrigu@sdccd.edu) for the School of Social/Behavioral Sciences & Multicultural Studies
Mesa Career Services Champions
Career Services Champions is a monthly recognition program re-starting in February 2024. Champions are faculty, staff, administrators, or other partners who lead and foster work-based learning and/or career readiness for students. Interested in nominating a colleague or partner? Please reach out to Alex Berry (aberry@sdccd.edu) and Olivia Picolla (opicolla@sdccd.edu).
Congratulations to our Career Services Champions:
- 2023-2024:
- Uriel Ornelas - Professor & Program Lead - French Department
- Jordan Agricula - Administrative Technician - Veterans & Records Department
- 2024-2025:
- Erica (Patty) Garcia - Director, Administrative Services - Business Services
- Victoria (Vicki) Miller - Dean - Student Affair
- Alondra Gomez – Adjunct Counselor – CalWORKS
- Thuan Le, Denise Serrano, Deeana Therese Castro – STAR TRIO Team
- Mesa Business Services Team
- Howard Eskew - Faculty – BusinessTechnology
- Kirsten Pogue-Cely – Counselor - Counseling
Become a MIP Campus Mentor
The Mesa Impactship Program (MIP) supports students with exploring careers, developing professional skills, and compensating hands-on industry experiences through internships, volunteering, or Directed Clinical Practice (DCP). The MIP team is seeking Mesa College and SDCCD employees (faculty/staff/admin) to serve as MIP Mentors to student interns in your department or program.
MIP Mentors Support Students By:
- Identifying valuable training opportunities to develop student professional skills
- Providing ongoing support & work direction
- Nurturing student career exploration
- Participating in evaluation of student work performance, project completion & professional skills
What is Service Learning
Service Learning is for all students and faculty and can be incorporated into any discipline. It is an experiential learning strategy that integrates classroom learning with meaningful community service through critical reflection. Faculty can create a greater level of engagement and participation within the classroom through reflection activities and discussions on the students' service experiences and learning moments. Students gain hands-on experience in the real world, learn new skills, and explore career options.
How to Incorporate Service Learning in your Class:
Fill out the WBL faculty online participation request or contact the Work-Based Learning Team to support you in integrating Service Learning to your class.
Most faculty incorporate service learning in the following ways.
- Course Requirement- A student is required to perform a service project in order to complete the course. All students are involved in service projects which can create in-depth classroom dialogue and a sense of community.
- Course Option- A student selects service learning from a variety of assignment options and empowers students to make critical decisions about their own learning process.
- Extra Credit- A student earns extra credit for completing a service activity. The assignment may be a one-time project or require a set number of hours.
- Honors Credit- A student and faculty design a service learning component to augment regular course requirements for honors credit.
Possible classroom reflection activities for service learning include a journal, short papers, field notes, e-mail correspondence, web postings, portfolio pieces, video, or classroom discussions.
