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Revision as of 02:56, 22 February 2014 by Mark W. Rocha (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Dr. Mark W. Rocha is the Superintendent-President of Pasadena City College
| Dr. Mark W. Rocha | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1953-08-29) August 29, 1953 (age 71) Bronx, New York |
| Alma mater | Bachelors, Villanova University Master degree, California State University, Fullerton Ph.D., University of Southern California |
| Occupation(s) | President/Superintendent Pasadena City College |
| Spouse | Nancy Rocha |
Mark W. Rocha (born August 29, 1953) in the Bronx, New York. Rocha, is a past recipient of the J. William Fulbright Fellowship, an English teacher, and Literature aficionado. He is the Superintendent-President of Pasadena City College.
Early life and Career
Rocha was raised in the Bronx, New York. He is one of three brothers. His father, William, a native of Columbia, was the first in his family to receive a college degree. Rocha earned his bachelors degree in English from Villanova University in 1975, his master's degree from California State University, Fullerton, and Ph.D in English from the University of Southern California. In 1994, Rocha was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship and taught for a year in Caracas, Venezuela at the Universidad Simon Bolivar. His scholarly work focused on American Theater, including playwrights such as August Wilson and Tennessee Williams.
During the early 2000's, Rocha had the opportunity to work in the community college system, serving as president of West Los Angeles College. Under his leadership, West Los Angeles College was recognized by the Chronicle of Higher Education as one of the nation's "Great Colleges to Work For." In addition, West Los Angeles College had a majority minority, the largest minority of African-Americans in the California Community College system, and was one of the top transfer feeder schools to the Cal State system.
At Pasadena City College, Rocha positioned the college as a global community college for the 21st century. Under his leadership, PCC was recently recognized for its efforts to close the achievement gap, winning the 2012 State Chancellor's Award for Student Success for its innovation. Of the 2,000 community colleges in the United States, Pasadena City College is in the top 100 in every category. It is in the top 10 community colleges in California and the top 100 in the United States for degrees awarded and transfers. The number of transfers to private institutions has increased during his tenure, specifically, PCC's partnership with the University of Southern California to "create universal access to the very best college education in the world." The College is ranked eighth in the nation as a "Veterans Friendly College" among all community colleges. The PCC Foundation has raised over $7 million in private donations for student scholarships and has awarded over $26 million in external grants. Associate degrees in the STEM fields have doubled and the college completed a state of the art facility, the PCC Center for the Arts, the capstone project of a $175 million bond construction program.
PCC has a rich history of social action. innovation, transforming the lives of students. Under Rocha's guidance, PCC continues it's tradition of admitting the "top 100 percent." "We take Everybody who shows up and help them on their way.". Rocha publicly spoke out against Proposition 187 which restricted the rights of undocumented individuals to get an education. As a result, undocumented students are allowed to take community college courses.
In 2012, the PACCD Board of Trustees extended Rocha's contract as PCC's Superintendent-President, through the end of the 2016 academic year.Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page)..
In January 2012, Rocha was interviewed by Brad Pomerance on a HLN special edition broadcast.
Personal life
Rocha resides in Pasadena with his wife Nancy and they have two adult sons. An avid runner, Rocha has completed 11 marathons, including the inaugural Pasadena Marathon in 2009.
References
- High Beam
- ^ Mark Rocha, President, Pasadena City College,A Passion For Universal Access to Education, Hispanic Outlook (PDF)
- University of Southern California Alumni
- Bloomberg Businessweek
- First Year Experience Pathways Program
- ^ Rossier Futures Magazine" (PDF)
- PCC Foundation
- Dr. Mark W. Rocha on HLN. Firstpost.com