2025
June 16-18, 2025
Long Beach, CA

The Missing Link In Distance Education: The Need for the Comprehensive Integration of Student Services

(unscheduled)
 
Track
Audience
 
 
Effective Practices
All Audiences
 

Presented by:

  • Bonnie Peters, Chief Student Services Officer/Director of Student Experience, CVC
  • Jessica Hurtado, Program Supervisor- Online Student Experience, CVC
  • Tom Vitzelio, Dean of Student Success and Academic Support, Moreno Valley College
  • Christopher Sweeten, Vice President of Student Services, Moreno Valley College
  • Angela Cardinale, Online Education Coordinator, Chaffey College
  • Adriana Arce, Instructional Technologist, Chaffey College

Speaker Bios:

  • As of 2014 Bonnie Peters has been serving as the Chief Student Services Officer/ Director of Student Experience for the California Virtual Campus- Online Education Initiative (CVC-OEI), providing programmatic and operational leadership in online student services systemwide. Prior to 2014, Ms. Peters spent fifteen (15) years at San Diego City College in various student services administrative leadership positions focusing on development and coordination of both on campus and online student service programs.
    Bonnie is a trained distance-counseling professional and holds an M.S. in Counseling as well as a M.A in Teaching and Learning with Technology. To date her professional endeavors have been focused on working with and encouraging colleges to intentionally provide support services as an integral and mainstreamed part of a college’s strategic distance education planning.
  • Jessica Hurtado currently serves as the Program Supervisor – Online Student Experience for the California Virtual Campus- Online Education Initiatives (CVC-OEI). With over 11 years of experience in Higher Education she provides strategic leadership for statewide development of online student support services while ensuring successful integration of emerging technologies. Hurtado has developed and supported efforts in the areas of Online Health and Wellness, Online Tutoring, Online Counseling, and Online Student Equity.
  • Tom Vitzelio joined Moreno Valley College (MVC) as Dean of Student Success and Academic Support in 2019 after more than 15 years of community college service as both a faculty member and an administrator. Prior to arriving at MVC, he was the Director of the Academic Support and Achievement Center at Mt. San Antonio College. In addition he was a Faculty, Instructional Specialist for the Chaffey College Chino Success Center. There he coordinated the college’s Student Learning Outcomes program and led the college’s Faculty Inquiry Team (FIT) focusing on First Generation College students. Tom earned a B.A. and M.A. in History from California State University Fullerton and a MBA in Finance and Strategic Management from the University of La Verne. In his spare time, Tom is an avid road bike cyclist and also enjoys restoring his 1968 Chevy Camaro and working on his BMW.
  • Christopher Sweeten is an innovative leader with over 10 years of administrative and leadership experience in the community college system. He currently serves as the vice president of Moreno Valley College’s student services, providing vision and support to implement and sustain strategies that impact student success. In his position, he is responsible for the leadership of the college’s comprehensive student services division, emphasizing student-focused experiences that are inclusive to all identities. His administrative positions have included dean of student services at West Los Angeles College, dean of pathways and student affairs at Los Angeles Trade-Tech College, director of student affairs at the University of Riverside; School of Medicine, and student services supervisor for Upward Bound at Mt. San Antonio College. He has dedicated much of his professional career working with underserved and underprepared populations, focusing on increasing access and opportunities through equity-based practices. He is recognized for developing innovative programs and systems, leveraging traditional and alternative resources through collaborative and integrated efforts to support student achievement. Being the first in his family to attend college, he holds a B.A. in ethnic studies from the University of California, San Diego, an M.A. in education from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a doctoral candidate in educational leadership and organizational change from the University of Southern California.
  • Angela Cardinale serves as the Distance Education Coordinator at Chaffey College, where she provides leadership, training, and support in online teaching, learning, innovation, and student support. She has also taught English online at Chaffey for sixteen years.
  • Adriana serves as an Instructional Technologist at Chaffey College. Driven by her passion for online education and student support, she earned a Master of Science in Instructional Design and Technology from California State, Fullerton. She has extensive knowledge of systems and processes related to online instruction, learning, and support. At Chaffey, Adriana is a key coordinator between instructional and non-instructional areas to help build environments that support student-centric ecosystems.

Session Info:

As higher education prepares for a post-pandemic return to classes, colleges are reflecting on the innovative methods they utilized to create authentic engagement with their students online. As a result there is a genuine need for Distance Ed Coordinators and College Leadership to build capacity and infrastructure for sustaining online student support services. This discussion will provide insight into how and why it is necessary for online student services to become an institutionalized component of a college’s DE programming. Join us and investigate where your missing link is in your DE program.

Session Outcome:

  • Stimulate a discussion regarding the need for student services in distance ed planning.
  • Identify tools and resources to assist colleges with integration of student services in DE.
  • Provide strategies for successful integration of online student services.

Session Resources:

The Missing Link in Distance Education- 6-30-22- PETERS

View the Recorded Session

Copyright 2024 - Online Teaching Conference. All Rights Reserved.