College hosts Senior Day

Jim Carnett

Nearly 4,000 high school juniors and seniors are expected to gather

on Orange Coast College’s campus March 22 for OCC’s 22nd annual High

School Senior Day.

Activities will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free, and

the event is open to the community.

Every senior in attendance will receive early registration

materials for fall 2005 classes. Counseling, orientation and

financial-aid materials will be available. Information about OCC’s

transfer program and occupational programs will be distributed.

Campus and departmental tours will be conducted for interested

students.

Orange Coast College preview sessions will be held at 11:15 a.m.,

11:45 a.m., 12:15 p.m. and 1 p.m. in the Robert B. Moore Theatre.

Each student attending a session will receive a free Senior Day

T-shirt.

Students attending High School Senior Day will be served a free

barbecue lunch. Campus clubs will offer demonstrations and will

sponsor food booths. Musical entertainment will be provided. The

college’s national champion cheer and dance squads will perform.

OCC’s SOAR (English and mathematics) placement tests will be

administered between 2 and 5 p.m. for interested students.

For Senior Day information, call (714) 432-5726.

FIFTH ANNUAL SCIENCE NIGHT SET FOR FRIDAY

More than 3,000 elementary children and their parents will take

part in OCC’s fifth Community Science Night on Friday.

Admission is free, and activities will run from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.

The event is sponsored by OCC and Project Tomorrow, a nonprofit

Orange County organization dedicated to enhancing K-12 science

education in county schools.

The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) is a

co-sponsor.

Friday’s “Community Science Night” will be the largest in the

five-year history of the event. Last year, 2,500 elementary students

and their parents turned out.

This year’s event will include children from the Newport-Mesa

Unified School District, Fountain Valley Unified School District,

Huntington Beach City School District, Ocean View School District and

Westminster School District.

Science labs, staffed by OCC professors and students, will offer

displays and demonstrations throughout the evening. Elementary school

students and their parents will view demonstrations representing such

departments as anatomy and physiology, astronomy, archaeology,

aviation technology, biology, cardiovascular technology, chemistry,

computer information systems, construction technology, dental

assisting, geography, geology, machine technology, marine science,

microbiology, nutrition, physical anthropology, physics, respiratory

science, textiles, woodworking and zoology.

Three short NASA presentations will be offered. The programs will

introduce attendees to the solar system and outer space. OCC

Astronomy Department telescopes will be set up for viewing. The

college’s Marine Science Lab and large aquariums will also be open.

A free barbecue meal, with hot dogs, chips and drinks, will be

served to all attendees.

SECOND TUSKEGEE

AIRMEN LUNCHEON FRIDAY

OCC will host its second Tuskegee Airmen of World War II Tribute

Luncheon on Friday.

The luncheon begins at noon at the Captain’s Table. Proceeds will

be used to establish a scholarship for OCC aviation students in the

name of the Tuskegee Airmen. Proceeds will also support the Aviation

Explorers, a program at Compton Airport for youngsters.

The Tuskegee Airmen were dedicated and determined young black men

who enlisted in the military during World War II to become America’s

first black military airmen. They trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field

in Tuskegee, Ala., and served their country with distinction.

The special honored guest will be Lt. Col. Lee Archer, who flew

169 combat missions for the Tuskegee Airmen over Europe from 1943 to

1945. A member of the 332nd Fighter Group, Archer shot down five

enemy fighters. He brought down a German ME-262 jet while flying a

piston-engine P-51 Mustang. The New Rochelle, N.Y., resident was

awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and 12 Air Medals.

For information about the luncheon, call (714) 432-5707.

JORGE SANCHEZ IS OCC’S NEW TECHNOLOGY DEAN

Jorge R. Sanchez is the new dean of OCC’s Technology Division.

Sanchez, 48, has served 20 years with the Coast Community College

District, most recently as the administrative director of educational

services.

As dean of the Technology Division, Sanchez is responsible for

managing a dozen instructional programs, including aviation

maintenance technology, electronics technology, machine technology

and welding technology. More than 4,500 students enroll in the

division’s courses each semester.

* JIM CARNETT is senior director of community relations at Orange

Coast College. He writes the biweekly On Campus at OCC Column. Reach

him at [email protected] or by calling (714) 432-5725.