Tiny Home : Laney Prototype to House Students

Laney College’s Carpentry Department has created its latest model of its tiny home project.

In 2016, the department was awarded an $80,000 grant from the City of Oakland to create a prototype for mass production. The latest model, Pocket House Model M, is being housed at the Westside Missionary Baptist Church in West Oakland.

The church is working with Laney to select two unhoused students to live in the tiny home beginning this spring semester. Residents of the tiny home may be able to receive a stipend for watching over the parking lot, which is currently a safe car-park zone. The home will have both water and electricity. 
Rev. Ken Chambers believes this is a model that can be replicated across Oakland churches.

The Interfaith Council has over 200 members who, Chambers said, support this project.

Accredited : Laney reaffirmed by commission

Laney President Tammeil Gilkerson announced Jan. 26 that the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) has changed the college’s official status from “Warning” to “Reaffirmed.”

“My gratitude to the countless individuals across the college who rallied together to address the outstanding recommendations,” Gilkerson said in an email to the Tower.

The Laney president said that the college will not have another accredidation visit from the ACCJC until the spring of 2021, when Laney will undergo a comprehensive review. In the meantime, Gilkerson said that the college is working on its midterm report to the ACCJC.

The report is due March 15.

Forums : Peralta Considers Candidates

Laney College held an open forum Jan. 25 for two candidates seeking to become the college’s next Vice President of Administrative Services. The candidates are Dr. Derek Pinto and Connie Willis.

A former teacher and principal, Pinto is the current chief business official in Contra Costa county. His teaching experiences brought him to Japan, where he taught for several years. “I think that was important to my personal development,” Pinto said. “I was resilient and became a little more independent.”

Willis, a Peralta District veteran, was a chief financial officer at three Peralta campuses. She began her career in banking. Currently retired, Willis decided she would rather work again in the Peralta District. “When I started with Peralta Community Colleges, things were good,” she said. “I had to start from scratch.”

According to Laney College Public Information, Willis has managed $50 million in college budgets in past jobs.