As the new semester approaches, Skyline College can expect more construction, new parking spaces and efforts to include students by now included those who need to be supported.

Last semester, the news was released that a new parking lot near the Pacific Heights building would be rebuilt in effort to give students the space to come to school. Although there was a minor setback of the construction end date being delayed by a few days, the new Pacific Heights parking lot was done by December instead of November.

Cheri Colin, Director of Community Relations & Marketing had said that the construction that Skyline is going under is to be done in phases in order to make the experience of education convenient for students. Last semester parking was limited even though improvised was made available on other parts of the campus so students did not have to feel discouraged to not come to school due to the temporary parking issue. Now that that reconstruction is done, the campus can now focus on the construction of the newest building, building 12 which would be called the new Environmental Science Building which would include the view of the Pacific. The ground breaking ceremony for the project began in fall 2017 and is due to be done by December 2018. With the $40,000 budget at hand, it will be used also for, “The lecture halls will be able to host private seminars when not scheduled for academic use, classrooms will double as event spaces, and the gallery with its expansive views of the sea and coastline will support community and enterprise functions as well as student art displays.”

After that is done, building 1 is to be under construction where it is to be torn down and fully rebuilt since the current building one is not up to code.

President Regina Stanback Stroud of Skyline had said through email that more improvements were underway such as new programs called Meta Majors & Guided Pathways which has been in the works for at least a few semesters.

“The Meta Majors & Guided Pathways work is well underway to transform the student experience at the college,” Stroud said. “This is a campus-wide effort which includes the work of administration, faculty and staff all coming together to redesign the curriculum, the delivery of student services with the end result being increased student success.”

According to Colin, this program is enhance the process for students to get through their experience at Skyline College. As stated on the Meta Majors & Guided Pathways official webpage, there are set goals on what the program is supposed to accomplish as well.

Overall, both projects are well intended to create a better learning environment for the community through construction of new buildings and a more effective plan to get students to graduate faster and acquire units that can count toward their degree.