Values Statement
The college's Values Statement Task Force, established by College Council and composed of faculty, classified professional, administrator and student representatives, drafted an updated values statement for the college in alignment with the mission statement. The review and updating of De Anza's stated values was a collegewide activity scheduled as part of the Six-Year Planning and Assessment Cycle.
The Task Force requested public feedback through
• governance and constituency groups agendizing the values statement
• the webpage developed for the project
• an email emailed to all employees on May 6, 2013 and May 23, 2013
The deadline for submitting comments was 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 28, where the feedback was included in the final document by the Values Statement Task Force. College Council is scheduled to review and approve the values statement at its meeting of June 13.
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Final Draft - De Anza College Values Statement
May 30, 2013
De Anza values and is committed to:
Integrity
We embrace honesty, credibility, clear communication and acting on our stated values.
We strive
to acknowledge and address issues that may be difficult to broach. The college’s ability
to fulfill its mission depends on a college community in which everyone feels included,
respected and safe.
Innovation
In all of our many roles, we will continuously and purposefully reflect in order to
innovate and improve. We work to ensure our physical space is welcoming, conducive
to learning and environmentally sustainable. We are committed to being innovative
in our daily work, curriculum
and use of technology. We work with our students to be creative, flexible, imaginative
and inventive, and to prepare to contribute to a world that will demand skills and
competencies not yet in view.
Equity
We welcome students of all ages and backgrounds and connect with them, in their range
of unique circumstances, to help them fulfill their dreams. We strive to design classes
and services to the needs of those we serve. We value and embrace the intellectual
contributions of a diverse spectrum of people and cultures. We strive for a diverse
workforce that honors the contributions of all who work here.
Developing the human capacity of all students
We will provide support in six key factors of student success. Our students will be:
- Directed, with a goal and the knowledge of how to achieve it.
- Focused, staying on track to achieve that goal.
- Nurtured, feeling that we want to, and do, help them to succeed.
- Engaged, actively participating in class and extracurricular activities.
- Connected, feeling that they are part of the college community.
- Valued, with their skills, talents and abilities recognized, and with opportunities to contribute on campus and feel that their contributions are appreciated.*
Institutional Core Competencies
Our students will be able to demonstrate knowledge, skills and attitudes in the following
five areas:
- Communication and Expression
- Information Literacy
- Physical/Mental Wellness and Personal Responsibility
- Global, Cultural, Social, and Environmental Awareness
- Critical Thinking
Civic engagement for social justice
We provide students with opportunities to enhance their potential for purposeful and
productive lives.
As a public institution, we contribute to the development of our local, state, national
and global communities. We view our students and ourselves as agents of change, responsible
for building
the world in which all people are able to realize their dreams in ways that are environmentally
sustainable and in alignment with the United Nations' Declaration of Human Rights.
**
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*From "Student Support (Re)defined," a report of the Research & Planning (RP) Group
of California Community Colleges, January 2013. Report and Brief
**Adopted 1948.
