President's Office

Reports to the Board of Trustees

Jan. 12, 2026, Board Meeting

Each month, President Kristina Whalen gives a report on college activities, honors, and achievements during the regular meeting of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees.

View Board Reports Archive

Awards & Achievements

Foothill’s AI Fellows Announced Dec. 17

Purpose of the AI Fellowship

The AI Fellowship Program is designed to position Foothill College at the forefront of thoughtful AI adoption in higher education, building on efforts such as the AI Learning Community and the Emerging Technologies Institute. Fellows will collaborate to increase AI literacy, surface and address equity and privacy concerns, and design approaches that align emerging technologies with Foothill’s mission and values.

Guided by Dean Zach Cembellin and with the executive support of Vice President of Instruction Dr. Stacy Gleixner, and in alignment with the college’s Blueprint for Success, our 2026 AI fellows team will contribute to districtwide AI planning, institutional policy recommendations, and campuswide engagement.

• Anthony Cervantes, Dean, Enrollment Services 
• Ben Stefonik, Faculty, Psychology 
• Catalina Rodriguez, Dean, Student Affairs and Activities  
• Daniel Kauffman, Faculty, Computer Science 
• Itamar Zohar, Student, Math/Philosophy major, Activities Events Director on the ASFC Activities Board 
• Jonatas Secco, Student, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science major, ETI AI Lab lead 
• Josh Pelletier, Supervisor, Student Outreach and CTE Transition 
• Kennedy Bui, Supervisor, Enrollment Services, Communication Systems & Technology 
• Kirk McKinley, Faculty, Radiation Technology 
• Krish Sangani, Student, Computer Science major, ASFC Senator and MIPC affinity group student representative  
• Laurence Lew, Faculty, Business 
• Lené Whitley-Putz, Dean, Online Learning 
• Nolan Colton, Student, Electrical Engineering major, Media Coordinator on the ASFC ICC Board 
• Sally Baldwin, Faculty, Health Sciences 
• Sophia Kim, Supervisor, Science Learning Institute/MESA 
• Stephanie Crosby, Dean, Disability Resource Center/Veterans Resource Center 
• Yasmine Malboubi, Library Technician, Learning Resource Center

Throughout Winter and Spring 2026, AI Fellowship activities and impact will include:

• Host equity-minded community forums to foster dialogue, build trust, and surface concerns related to AI impact on teaching and learning, privacy, and our planet.
• Contribute to the development of a Foothill–De Anza AI Plan/Framework with ethical principles rooted in equity and student success.
• Support technology implementation and testing, including pathways for integrating tools such as Google Gemini in instruction and services.
• Curate, develop, and share AI literacy and CAP specific skills and resources to help prepare all for an AI-transformed workforce.

Foothill College extends a warm congratulations to the 2026 AI Fellows and gratitude for their leadership in this transformative work. This cohort’s efforts will help ensure that Foothill remains a statewide leader in innovative, student-centered, and ethically grounded uses of artificial intelligence.

Thank you to Stacy Gleixner, Zach Cembellin, Kayla Nguyen, Maria Blaze, and Vanessa Santillan-Neito for helping to form the 2026 AI Fellows team.

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Foothill College in the News

Foothill Physics Show

The famous Foothill College Physics Show is now in its 20th year with over 240,000 children having seen this fun and exciting introduction to the laws of physics. The December shows were well covered in the media with newspaper and TV coverage. Proceeds from the public shows pay for Foothill to bring thousands of children from Title I schools to enjoy the shows at Foothill.

Watch the KPIX CBS News Bay Area story Foothill College's Physics Show puts the fun in science fundamentals.

Events

Foothill Presents on AI at the Leadership Palo Alto January Retreat  • January 8

President Whalen, STEM Dean Zach Cembellin, and Emerging Technologies Institute (ETI) Coordinator Konstantin Kalaitzidis discussed Foothill College’s engagement with AI at the recent Leadership Palo Alto event. More than 25 local business, non-profit, and civic leaders learned about the Foothill AI Fellowship and the work of the ETI. They then used Foothill’s example to discuss how they could engage more with AI in their professions. 

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Decades-Theme Holiday Breakfast  • December 10

Foothill College’s senior leadership team served brunch to more than 100 staff and faculty from the college and Central Services. It was wonderful to see so many colleagues enjoying this time together.

Strategic Updates

Advancing and Innovating Credit for Prior Learning 

Foothill was recognized in the Fall 2025 California Community Colleges Chancellor Office WEDD Quarterly Newsletter

Read the story here:

APPRENTICESHIP SUCCESS STORY—FOOTHILL COLLEGE  
Expanding Apprenticeship Through Credit For Prior Learning

Foothill College is advancing apprenticeship pathways by embedding Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) directly into its building trades programs through the Apprenticeship Pathways Demonstration Project. This innovation allows apprentices to earn up to 24 units of general education credit while completing technical training. Eight hundred and fifty apprentices have benefited across multiple trades. Foothill is creating clear, credit-bearing pathways that accelerate degree completion and strengthen the bridge between industry training and higher education. 

Invitations to the Board

Winter Convocation: The Power of Poetry in Community • January 27

When poetry is placed within a community, it does more than reinforce that community, it empowers us to take agency over our lives. It pushes us to listen and absorb in a world filled with so much noise.
– Marvin Flores Hernandez

Please join us on Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 12:15 –2 p.m. in Appreciation Hall to officially recognize Marvin Hernandez Flores as Foothill College’s first Poet Laureate, at this special campus event to be in community with each other and with poetry—during a time when poetic expression matters more than ever.

EVENT AGENDA

12:15 p.m.:  Join us in the Smithwick Courtyard for light refreshments

1–2 p.m.: Opening remarks and poetry performance by Foothill Student Poet Laureate, Marvin Hernandez, joined by special guest musicians in Appreciation Hall (1501).

For more information about our Foothill Poet Laureate program, including poetry by Marvin, visit our Student Poet Laureate page.

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Blueprint for Success Launch Party • January 28

Join us Wednesday, Jan. 28 at Noon–1:30 p.m. in the Dining Hall as we officially launch Foothill College 2030: Blueprint for Success, our comprehensive strategic framework guiding the college’s vision for student success, equity, teaching and learning excellence, community engagement, and institutional sustainability.

This celebratory event is an opportunity to come together as a campus community, learn more about the Blueprint’s goals and priorities, and reflect on how our collective work aligns to support all students. Stop by for light refreshments, connection with colleagues, and a shared commitment to the decade ahead.