IVC kicked off the celebration of Black History Month in February with the introduction of the Black Student Success Scholars (BSSS) program. BSSS is a new program started by IVC Counselors Heather Johnson and Taliah Chatterfield. The mission of the program is to connect students from the African Diaspora to experience Black Excellence through a safe and welcoming environment.
Chatterfield explains, “The program will bring an African-centered education lens to support services, academic counseling, academic and cultural workshops, cultural enriching field trips, transfer planning, and tours of Historically Black Colleges and Universities.”
The BSSS program made its debut at the Black Literature and Culture Book Launch on February 1 at the IVC Library. On February 4, members of BSSS took a field trip to the 43rd Annual Orange County Black History Parade and Unity Festival in Anaheim.
As part of Black History Month, Chatterfield and Johnson hosted two workshops: Radical Self-Love and Body Liberation, and Unapologetic Self-Love and Self-Care.
Earlier this month, both Chatterfield and Johnson were featured in an article on Black History Month in the Precinct Reporter.
IVC will conclude the month-long celebration of Black History Month next week with a live recording of the iHeartRadio podcast "The BFF: Black, Fat, Femme" featuring Dr. Jonathan Higgins and Jordan Daniels. The podcast will take place on February 22 in the Performing Arts Center from noon to 1 pm. RSVP »
For more information on IVC's Black Student Success Scholars Program, contact IVC's Office of Student Equity.