Julia Lyles

Like my class mate said we have come to the end of the road.  I have compleated all the required Quizes, and most of the required homework assignments applied to the class studies.  Was not felling well yesterday but today I like to think our Instructor, Mrs B for the patiences she had with her senior student.  This class was a big help to me in understanding the workings of the computer.  Now I do beleive I can keep up with the best of them who are on line and  typing the required letters that I need to send out for my personal life and a few needed for my church.  Now that I have an extra skill I can apply to my Resume.   Thank you so much Mrs Sandra Balderrama and Dr.

Julia Lyles

Now that the class has come to an end, I just can't say thank you enough to all envoled in the setting up of the Computer Class.  Thank you Mrs. Balderrama.   Thank you Ms. Gracia.   Also Thank you President Arturo Frias of Local 132.  Thank you all.

CIT 100 CLASS

Mrs. Balderrama has so helpful during this class. I now know more enhancements on Microsoft Word which will help me when creating word documents at work.  I knew Excel before but I used it on Excel documents that others had created. Now I feel very confident in creating an Excel document from scratch. And the same thing applies to Power Point. I have used it before, but not created one from scratch. And now I can create a power point, and add all the enhancements necessary such as Transitions, Animations, Sound, and duration.
I had not used Microsoft Access before, but after this class, I now know what Access is used for, and now I can use it with confidence. 
I would like to thank local 132 for this opportunity, and ask the National Union to consider another grant to our local union in the future, because I for one would definitely take advantage of this opportunity again to expand my knowledge. 

Thank you,
John Albright

End of the road...

Well, it's only been a semester but it feels like much longer. Over these past few months I have come to meet and network with all you fellow students, Mrs. B and of course the ever-diligent Michele. We were all fortunate enough to be eligible for this amazing program, but it was a one-in-a-million chance that we fell under the umbrella of protection afforded to us by Michele.

Firstly, allow me to say that I have worked for the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, State of California, Humboldt State University and been a private SCUBA instructor. Never in all my working life have I been offered the opportunity to take college courses for free. This union-sponsored program is surely an anomaly in the professional world. Although registering for this class guaranteed me many hours of homework-based frustration I have come out the other end a better person for the experience. The lessons learned have applications in both my professional and personal life. I can apply this class to my Gas Company career because I am now up to date with the latest database management and word processing software. If I can manage to get promoted out of my current position, Part Time Meter Reader-Transitional, I know that my contributions to the organizations will grow exponentially. I can also manage to transform seemingly meaningless facts from my personal life into useful data: spending habits, bills, to-do lists and even my route times for my meter reading routes. With the tools that this class has sharpened, all this information can easily be transformed with the click of a mouse into check-lists, graphs, spread-sheets and databases.

Mrs. Sandra Balderrama, the instructor I always wanted in my B.S. program, was also a delight. She managed to customize our syllabus and course-load to our unique circumstances. She understood we are all thoroughly exhausted from our shifts of answering customer service calls, processing mountains of payments, dealing with delinquent customer accounts and scrambling to meet the seemingly impossible bench-mark of "Route-Time". Mrs. B customized our material and most importantly her teaching style to meet our needs and energy-levels. If only more of my university-level instructors were as understanding and flexible as her I might not have spent so many sleepless nights cramming for exams.

Michele Gracia, if there ever was a real-life superwoman surely it would be her. From the beginning Michele managed to gather all us union brothers and sisters into one place and effectively conduct an orientation. Speaking as a witness, it was not an easy task. Going above and beyond, Michele managed to register every single member in attendance with the California Community College central website. My memory of Michele will surely be of her waiting patiently for me in the college parking lot one our first day and taking me to get my textbook and parking permit. Later Michele managed to lobby for us to receive our software package just to make life easier for us when we worked on our homework. I would be at fault if I did not mention her ever-present text messages to remind us of the latest updates for class. All in all I am overwhelmed by level of effort demonstrated by Ms. Gracia, she truly is a dedicated professional unmatched by any mentor or case-worker I have ever met.

My only regret is that I will not be able to attend further union sponsored classes next year. I will be sure to keep my eyes open and my back pack ready if ever the opportunity again arises. Thank you all for your time, friendship, camaraderie and humor I could not have done this without all of you.

-Alfonso Campa

Julia Lyles

This is the last week of the computer class.  I am so thankful to my local 132, for considering the full time employees to be added to this class.  Thank you President Art for fighting for us to receive the Grant.  This class will take us far in life.  We will be able to take this knowledge a long way.  Now that I am more knowledgable of blogging and sending and receiving E mail.  I would also like to thank our Instructor  Mrs. Sandra Balderrama for her knowledge of computers and kindness and patiance for working with this senior citizen.  At one time I though about giving up the class, but was encouraged to hang in there.  I am so glad I did.  Pleas consider re-offering the class again.   Thank you so much all who were involved.

********

So its the last week of class and it has been a very good and learning experience. I wasnt computer eliterate when I started but I didnt know as much as i know now about word, excel, access, and power point. Yes some sections were harder then others and at times you just wanna give up a lil but everytime I get that feeling of giving up our amazing teacher is there to break it down and help me understand it. I believe that is one of the reasons why I didnt miss class and actually enjoyed learning. If anyone is thinking about taking this class i would highly recommend taking it. You will learn alot of good stuff and how to use these programs.

Local 132 Privileges

This class has been very beneficial. Some of the simplest things that we've learn can go a long way. We have all been been very privileged to have a Union and a Union worker such as Michele who has done an amazing job as she has helped this class to run as smoothly as possible, and for taking care of all of our registrations, books, parking, flash drives, and software. Mrs. B has also been very cooperative with all of our busy and scattered schedules. In a regular college class the teacher would not be as lenient anjd willing to change their plans and schedule to benefit the students. We as students would have to make time and find any way possible to get the homework finished. So I personally am very greatful for our Local 132 and the opportunities they present there members.

-Christian Bernal

Julia Lyles

Now that class will be over soon.  We were informed that we will be the last class sponcered by this program.  ACCORD Community First.  Yet I fell thankful that I was able to get in.  The help that was applied by Michele Garcia was the best.  She made sure her students has the required measures to attend also the supplies that were needed to attend.   From registration to books to  parking passes.  I know for sure if left to do it all on my own I would have forgot something.  If at any time in the near future a class is offered again, I would be one of the first to encourage others to jump to it. 

CIT 100 Ofelia

Yes I agree....We got spoiled by Michele but really appreciate everything she did to get this class going and making it so easy for us to take the class and getting us all the materials that we needed for class. Thank you Mrs. B for making it so easy to understand the material. I definitely learned a lot. When the class first started I didn't think I needed to take this class I thought I pretty much knew how to get what I needed done... Even in the programs I thought I knew how to work there was still more to learn!!  So I'm definitely glad I was able to stick to it even thought it was hard making to class sometimes!!! I'm definitely going to apply what I learned here to any computer projects that come up !!! So now we're able to make fancy projects by using power point, we're able to make graphs to keep track of budgets and how to create date sheets.
Thank you again Michele and Mrs. Balderrama

Julia Lyles

Even thou the class was moving a little fast for us senior citizens, I found it very informing and helpful.   Now I will be able to keep up with my grandkids.  My granddaugther told me it was about time I came into the twenty first century.  I was able to keep up with the other students.

Julia Lyles

I am so glad this class was offered to full time enployees.  I started this class knowing very little on the difference of turning on the computer and posting a blog, or even just opening and answering an E-mail.  I have a lap top at home.   We would only use it to play games and look at some E-mail from family.  note my husband would be the one on it.

CIT 100-Class-Mrs. B.

Class, it’s been a privilege and a great joy to teach such an enthusiastic bunch!  To think back to the first day of class when you were apprehensive and probably wondering “oh no, what did I get myself into?”  Now we are approaching the end of the semester and you’ve learned Word 2010, Access 2010, Excel 2010 and PowerPoint 2010. Now your opportunities are endless. This truly is a new beginning.  Education is key to your success.

This program is awesome! We couldn’t have done it without Michelle Gracia the Case Manager, who put in endless hours making phone calls, registering students, getting textbooks and software to ensure a smooth process. I was impressed that students were prepared and ready to work on the first day. Also the SBVC Dean of Mathematics, Business and Computer Technology, Dr. Haragewen Kinde’s persistence allowed this program to succeed. We truly thank and appreciate you!

Offering more programs like this would allow students to upgrade their skills, prepare for the future job advancement, and become more employable.   

CIT 100 Chris Almada

Our class has been such a great experience, starting from the point where Michele Gracia did so much front work to insure that registration and parking pass acquisition, acquiring the books, software, and all materials necessary for the class, went as smoothly and painless and easy as possible. All the work she put in made all the work we had to put in very minimal and problem free.  She always went the extra mile to insure that we had everything we needed to succeed in the class, and to insure that she had removed any obstacles that might surface that would in any way hinder our progress and ultimate successful completion of the course.
I cannot express how thankful I am to have had her as a partner during the entire process.  She was a great ally and cheerleader for us all, and we couldn't have done it without her.  Thank you so very much, Michele, for your hard work and dedication.
Our professor Mrs. Balderrama was also excellent, always willing to provide extra help for clarification, and she had a great deal of patience with the class and our many challenges.  She made the learning fun as well as challenging, and made it feel like we had a partnerhip for success.  Thank you Mrs. B. for your dedication, patience, and hard work.
It was also great meeting the awesome classmates from the Gas Company who I shared the experience with.  I will miss Michele, Mrs. Balderrama, and my classmates at the conclusion of the course.  Good luck to all my new friends.  

CIT 100 CLASS, John Albright

Class is nearing the end. Michele was great.  Mrs. B you were very helpful.  You guys are great co-workers.  Please keep in touch. I am in the company e-mail thru outlook.  Thank you everyone!!!

So since we are the first class to get Mrs. B's picture on the college website I think we should all get A+'s for the class...anyone else agree?

-AC

Oh and Drew says he's having a blast in this class!!!

Alright guys less then 5 weeks to go!! I can't believe less then 10 of us left! We all have to stick it out now. This class looks so good on my resume, and I have learned so much more then I imagined. Can't wait to start PowerPoint.

Half way done

Hello Everyone,
Thank you to those who have participated in the blog and for adding a better look to the blog.  I was really glad to hear the feedback you all gave to the interviewer regarding your experience so far.  It was nice to hear that you are finding the class more beneficial than you thought it would be and that you have been able to apply it to your jobs.  I was also pleased to hear that some of you are considering continuing with more classes once this class ends.  Keep up the good work and keep blogging.


Michele

     To my fellow classmates. I want to cogratulate you all on making it this far. We are just about halfway through the semester and as a few of us are dropping out, the remaining few are working hard to learn this new material and earn our union certificate. You can do it! It is never too late to learn. Who knows this could be a new beginning for another page in our lives. Keep up the good work!

From the younger student....

CUB

Good Luck Everyone

Good Luck Everyone as the class gets tougher, and
we get into the subjects we are probably less familier
with.
John

New look

I added a new look to the blog page. It looked boring so i changed it :D

Heres a dark Picture of our Class :D


_Anntoinette Pardo_ :)

Profile

Hey Everybody,

This is Alfonso Campa. I just updated the profile image to the corporate logo. I really couldn't think of anything else to change it to. If anybody else can think of a better profile picture, please feel free to change it up.

So...I'm really new to this blogging thing. I always tried to avoid it like the "hipster epidemic" that it has become. But I think I will give it a shot...for the sake of the class.

I know my way around Office 2007, well Word and Excel mainly. I'm learning all the many intricacies of 2010 and the subtle improvements. As always it isn't a complete overhaul of the software, just enough of a difference to drive sales of the new package with a few new bells and whistles thrown in.

In college I relied pretty heavily on Excel and Word to get me through some tough classes, mainly Fish Physiology, General Linear Modeling, Biometrics and Genetics. All of those classes were "Upper Division" requisites of my major, which translates to 300, 400 and 500 level classes that were required for me to get my little degree. So with the help...rather heavy dependence on Word, Excel and "R"(statistical software, totally unrelated to our class) I managed to stumble through my bachelor's degree.

Not to go on about myself too much, but I am really looking forward to learning this new updated software package. I know that many of us think that Office is just for typing letters, flyers, envelopes and labels. But with Excel you can do some really gnarly stuff. Linear regressions, biometric modeling, genetic probability and statistical analysis are just a FEW of the awesome things I feel we should all know. This seems like a load of BS but these are the things that upper management with MBA degrees do for six figure salaries.

The possibilites of this class should not be underestimated. With the elementary skills we will each acquire through this course we can do amazing things. For example many cutting-edge medical journal articles can be easily produced using JUST Word and Excel. Most, if not all, business reports can also be accomplished with the same tools.

I am really hoping to get a well-rounded tour of the ENTIRE Office suite. I know the amazing things that can be accomplished with the two applications I am familiar with and I can only imagine the possibilities posed by the rest of the suite.

Welcome

Hi Everyone,
This is your official blog for your computer class.  Please take the time to keep us informed about your progress in the class.  Things that we are interested in is how you are applying the training at work or in other areas of your life, how has the training been helpful, whether or not the training will help with career advancement and overall feedback on the instruction and customer service you are receiving.  It's been a pleasure working with all of you and I know you will have a successful experience in the class.  Best of luck to you all at the gas company.

Michele