El Camino College Participates in Statewide Black Student Success Week With the Grand Opening of its Black Student Success Center

By El Camino College April 24, 2023 Torrance, CA

TORRANCE—El Camino College proudly joins other community colleges across California as we participate in the annual Black Student Success Week, beginning today, April 24 through Friday, April 28. This year's theme is "Vision to Action: Building Systems and Structures for Black Student Success,” with a week-long focus on successful educational approaches to ensure Black and African American students succeed at California community colleges.

El Camino College will celebrate this year’s Black Student Success Week with the grand opening of our Black Student Success Center, on Wednesday, April 26 at noon on the first floor of the Communications Building, across from the Student Services Building on campus. Created from the advocacy work of El Camino’s Black Student Union leadership and other members of the Associated Students Organization (ASO), the Black Student Success Center (BSSC) is a safe space that promotes the personal, professional, and academic development of El Camino College Black and African American students. The purpose of the BSSC is to acknowledge the educational barriers within the African American community and commit to expanding sustainable resources, while creating a place of refuge for students to express themselves and succeed. The Black Student Success Center is one of the many branches of equitable support developed through the efforts of the Student Equity and Achievement Department. Services provided include:

Community Building
Writing and Mathematics Academic Mentoring
Laptop Use
Calculator Loan Program (via SEA Center)
Dedicated Counselors
Cultural Activities and Events
Warrior Cupboard
Leadership Opportunities
Personal & Professional Development
Black Student Union Club

Each day throughout Black Student Success Week, California community colleges, including El Camino College, will host both virtual and on-campus activities that include the following:

Daily webinars hosted from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m., called The Black Hour
Daily small group discussion forums from 1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m., called The After Party. The After Party's Zoom links will be provided each day at the conclusion of The Black Hour Webinars.
A virtual advocacy day on Thursday, April 27, 2023, called The BlackOut. This Advocacy Day is intended to bring stakeholders from across the California Community College system into spaces with their local elected officials and key higher education policymakers to share our priorities for Black student success. This year, we invited students, faculty, trustees, staff, CEOs, and system partners from across California to advocate for policies that intentionally support Black and African American students in reaching their educational goals.
Daily webinars hosted from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., called The Student Hour