Napa Valley College's Luis Alcaraz Completes Great Deans Program

NAPA, CA — Luis Alcazar, associate dean of MESA/STEM program services at Napa Valley College completed the Association of California Community College Administrator Great Deans Program, announced Oscar De Haro, asst. superintendent/vice president, student affairs, Napa Valley College.

MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) is an academic preparation program that assists economically disadvantaged community college students to succeed in math, science and engineering with a goal of transferring to four-year institutions and successfully attain degrees in these fields. In addition to serving MESA students, the MESA/STEM Center is the hub for the college’s STEM student community.

“The training provided me with the tools to better manage our program for the benefit of the students we serve, because the decisions we make as deans must be student-centered,” said Alcazar. “And the network we formed as a cohort of community college deans from across the state was invaluable. I will continue to collaborate with my colleagues, sharing ideas and resources, for many years to come.”

Alcazar was a student himself at Napa Valley College from 2000-2002 before transferring to UC Berkeley where he earned a BS in mechanical engineering. After working in engineering for several years, he decided to pursue a career in education with the ultimate goal of becoming an engineering professor at a community college. Alcazar worked in K-12 MESA programs at CSU East Bay, WSU Tri-cities and Columbia Basin College where he also oversaw the community college MESA program. He joined Napa Valley College as associate dean of MESA/STEM program services in 2018.

The ACCCA Great Deans Program is an annual program for newer college deans, working in student services or instruction, in the first five years of their career.

“My practice as a vice president has always been to support my managers who have the vision and ambition to improve their administrative skills through leadership and managerial trainings such as the Great Deans Program,” said Oscar De Haro. “These opportunities not only benefit the individual, but the institution as a whole.”

The program focuses on faculty relations, personnel management, evaluations, enrollment management and budget management. The competitive program selects 50 deans from across the state to participate each year, with sessions in July, October and November, and graduation in February.

“I found the Great Deans Program very valuable as a new dean,” said Dean Maria Villagomez M.A., M.A.Ed., who participated in the program when she was a new dean herself. “As a new administrator, I thought Luis could also benefit from the program’s curriculum.”

— Napa Valley College news release