The Role of Colleges in the Age of Globalization
Diverse Cultures in a College Enable Peace
After the Irvine Valley College President Glenn Roquemore, Pacifica Institute Los Angeles hosted another great college’s president in Southern California. The Superintendent President Dr Chui L. Tsang made a keynote speech of the role of his college for better understanding not only in Santa Monica, and presented the video clip of the Communication Department’s experience and hard work in South Africa.
Dr. Chui L. Tsang was appointed Superintendent/President of Santa Monica College by the Santa Monica Community College District Board of Trustees in December 2005 and began in his position in February 2006. Santa Monica College is a premier public community college with approximately 30,000 students.
During his tenure, Dr. Tsang has made a major impact on Santa Monica College, bringing fiscal stability to the institution; fostering cordial relations among all constituencies at the college; establishing an open and inclusive management style; and building excellent relations with Santa Monica City Hall, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and other local and regional organizations. Active in the community, he serves on the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce Board and The Madison Project Board (a nonprofit serving the SMC Performing Arts Center), among others, and has been a speaker at the UCLA Anderson School of Management and the USC Rossier School of Education.
Prior to coming to Santa Monica College, Dr. Tsang served as President of San Jose City College for nearly nine years.
Dr. Tsang, who started his higher education at a community college and went on to earn a doctorate in linguistics from Stanford University, has had a long and distinguished career in education, workforce training, economic development and nonprofits.
While at San Jose, Tsang led the college on a $200 million-plus construction boom, funded primarily by voter-approved bonds in 1998 and 2004. Under his leadership, a strategic planning model was developed and the college’s transfer mission was reinforced.
Prior to his post at San Jose, he served as a dean at the City College of San Francisco and as Executive Director of Career Resources Development Center, a vocational training and employment agency approved by the California State Department of Education.
Dr Tsang stated that Santa Monica College is among the top three colleges in the United States and mentioned that last year 600 students alone transferred to UCLA and other Californian private and public universities.
Dr Tsang also said that a group of students from the College went to South Africa to take part in volunteering efforts and one student from East LA even sold his car to compensate the round trip ticket and his expenses there. But he added it is not enough. In order for the college to make a difference in the community, no less than one thousand students should participate in these tours to get to know one another.
The diverse cultures and nationalities studying in the college help the students understand one another better and the president hopes that when these students coming from over 100 countries return their homeland be the agents of peace for a better future.
The speech came to end with the self-served lunch. The guests enjoyed the meal and the conversation that ensued afterwards.