Opinion: Early college high school programs in San Joaquin Valley a smart path to success

BY DON SHALVEY Published in the Modesto Bee JANUARY 16, 2021 11:11 AM As we near the end of one of the most challenging and unique periods of many of our lives, we must begin to push ourselves to envision a brighter future: to a set of post-Covid-19 innovations that might benefit our youth and the economy of our region. We must start by acknowledging the impact of this pandemic on every aspect of our lives. We have lost friends, family and loved ones. We have lost businesses and jobs. We must deal with a virus that has challenged us in every way. But there are signs of hope – with vaccines being administered as we speak – that sometime in 2021 and into 2022 we will emerge into the light at the end of a long tunnel. The question is what will the light reveal, and what can we do to shape that world with the work we do now? Does it look like what we were doing before this happened or can we create a better future – one more aware of our vulnerabilities, and better prepared to provide our young people with more meaningful career opportunities and a more durable future? At San Joaquin A+, we recently held a webinar with business leaders in our region titled “How to Build Ladders to [...]

2021-01-20T19:22:44+00:00January 20th, 2021|News, Opinion|
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San Joaquin A+ Announces $650K in Planning Grants for Three New Early College High School Programs

Grant awards will fuel partnerships involving San Joaquin County Office of Education, San Joaquin Delta College, Stanislaus County Office of Education, Modesto Junior College, and Aspire Vanguard School San Joaquin A+ (SJA+) is announcing the award of three planning grants, totaling $650,000 to local partners with plans to start early college high school programs. The grantees include San Joaquin County Office of Education in a partnership with SJ Delta College for a school focused on teacher preparation; a partnership between Stanislaus County Office of Education and Modesto Junior College to start an agricultural-focused program; and Aspire Vanguard School and Modesto Junior College to plan an early college high school focused on health career pathways. The Early college high school model was established in 2002 in order to increase the opportunity for traditionally underrepresented youth to earn a postsecondary degree and/or credential by beginning their college credits while still in high school. The benefits are well-documented. “We are extremely grateful for the opportunity to work with this group of local leaders and respected institutions to support their exciting plans” shared Don Shalvey, CEO of San Joaquin A+. “It is critical that we align Stockton’s education programming with the good jobs that not only can serve as an anchor for our economy going forward, but also will provide meaningful work and a family sustaining income for young [...]

2021-01-18T15:50:08+00:00January 18th, 2021|Announcements, News|
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San Joaquin A+ Brings Together Leaders to Discuss How to Create Better Economic Future for Region

“Building Ladders to Good Jobs” Panel Featured Leaders in Education, Agriculture, Healthcare, and Other Industries Crucial to San Joaquin County Economy Stockton, CA [12/16/20] - Recently, leaders from San Joaquin County’s university, business, healthcare, and agriculture communities joined Don Shalvey, Executive Director of San Joaquin A+, for a discussion about the future of the region’s economy. Panelists included Donald J. Wiley, President and CEO of Dignity Health St. Joseph's Medical Center; Jeff Manassero, Co-Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Rivet School; Kevin Phillips, Vice President of Operations at Phillips Farms and Michael David Winery; Thomas Pogue of the University of the Pacific’s Center for Business and Policy Research; Jeff Michael, Executive Director of the University of Pacific’s Center for Business and Policy Research; and Jessica Kaczmarek, Senior Program Officer at the James Irvine Foundation. “We were grateful for the active participation of our panelists, and feel lucky to bring this great group of industry leaders together to discuss the future of San Joaquin County’s economy,” Don Shalvey said. “It’s critical that we align Stockton’s education programming with the good jobs that not only can serve as an anchor for our economy going forward, but also will provide meaningful work and a family sustaining income for young people growing up across our region.” The panelists discussed a new report by researchers at the University [...]

2020-12-18T17:00:25+00:00December 18th, 2020|A+ Speaker Series, News|
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3 Organizations Collaborate on Creating Hub for Community Nonprofits

See this story in the Stockton Record! STOCKTON – Three nonprofit organizations that serve various segments of San Joaquin County – charity, education and business – have co-located into a common headquarters and are collaborating to make space available as a hub and meeting place for other community-based nonprofits. Community Foundation of San Joaquin, San Joaquin A+ and the Business Council San Joaquin County are all operating out of offices at 6731 Herndon Place in northwest Stockton, west of Interstate 5 and north of West Benjamin Holt Drive. “We are excited about this partnership, because we believe we are a better philanthropic organization when we are engaged with organizations directly serving our community,” said Moses Zapien, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of San Joaquin. “With San Joaquin A+’s focus on working with local organizations to improve education, and the Business Council’s focus on supporting business and innovation, we believe this space will create organic collaborative opportunities that enhance philanthropic support and investments across our region,” Zapien said. The hub that the three organizations are creating will be available for use by other nonprofits to conduct meetings and strategic planning when restrictions for COVID-19 are removed. The organizations hope to create a place where professionals, philanthropy, community members and business leaders can come together for a “brighter future” in San Joaquin County. “I’m most [...]

2020-10-12T14:11:22+00:00October 12th, 2020|News|
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San Joaquin A+ CEO, Don Shalvey, interviewed about the challenges facing students in the Central Valley as schools re-open

Our CEO, Don Shalvey, and Stockton Unified Interim Superintendent, Brian Biedermann, were recently invited by EdSource to participate on a podcast discussing the multiple challenges facing the Central Valley as school re-opens for the fall.

2020-08-26T22:23:37+00:00August 26th, 2020|News|
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Veteran educator returns to his roots to lead Central Valley organization

After more than 50 years in public education, veteran educator Don Shalvey is returning to his early stomping grounds in education to head an organization dedicated to improving the education outcomes of students in California’s Central Valley. Shalvey will become executive director of San Joaquin A+, a nonprofit organization based in Stockton that was founded in 1996, and is devoted to improving education and workplace outcomes for students in the region.

2020-08-26T22:21:53+00:00July 7th, 2020|News|
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