San Mateo County Community College District to bring classes to the coastside

“Being in the community, living there day to day and seeing the need, I knew there was an opportunity for us to come back and be partners and have a sustainable future to really help the community and students realize their dreams,” Dr. Jennifer Taylor-Mendoza, president of the College of San Mateo, said.

More than 7,000 potential CSM students live on the coast, according to recent census data that looked at the number of residents with some high school and college experience, Dr. Micaela Ochoa, College of San Mateo’s vice president of Administrative Services, said. More than 50% of coastside residents have less than an associates degree and make less than the area median income of $100,000, she said.

The area is largely underserved by the district as well, despite it serving about 45,000 students across its three campuses — Skyline College in San Bruno, San Mateo’s College of San Mateo and Cañada College in Redwood City.

The new center would cut down the roughly 40-mile round trip students would have to take by leasing out a roughly 2,000-square-foot building in the center of Half Moon Bay. District staff are still working on finalizing the lease which will need to come back to the board for approval likely by the end of May.

Taylor-Mendoza said programming would include advanced and workforce contextualized English language courses, general education, career preparation and degree pathways in areas like marine biology or agriculture food systems. The space, split between two connecting units, would also be used to provide support services with matters like registration, counseling and financial aid.

Student Trustee Ashley Garcia lauded the program which she said will provide vital resources to students who are debating attending community college but are unlikely to travel to the busier end of the county in their free time.

“This is a great idea and a great form of outreach to students out there,” Garcia said.

Garcia and Trustee Lisa Petrides also shared their appreciation for the number of classes that could be held in the 35-person classroom throughout a given week. Petrides also committed herself to continuing to help develop the program that could eventually encourage students to “go over the hill” for additional courses.

“I have been delighted to be a part of this on the coast since the coast is also my home in Half Moon Bay,” Petrides said. “I’m just so excited about this opportunity.”

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