Cesar Cerna-Philmon

Creating the right environment will help employees find the students’ answers. This will result in caring employees with intelligent hearts who pay more attention to students and work toward the ultimate goal of the institution.

Positive thoughts not only energize us, they even keep us healthier. Since negativity is more powerful than the positive, if you don't work at it, the chances in your natural state are to go into being negative. I know this is very true since I am a very positive person but it is difficult to keep up sometimes. I do this to ensure that my… >>>

Educating students should be a conscious, deliberate act resulting from thoughtful decision making about what to teach and how students can learn best. This is something I feel about everything you do. Everything one does should be conscious and deliberate which shows more effort in realizing whatever goal one has to complete. 

Add humor to your interactions. If you are having fun, the students will be more likely to have fun and pay attention. I like to add humor to ensure I am creating a welcoming environment but I must do it while reading the room because there are times… >>>

People will rise to the expectations of the people they look up to. Expect the best of the students you work with. Expect them to do well and make sure they know it. This will keep them motivated and strive to do their best because they know someone is looking at them and expecting something of them. 

If we are modeling, mentoring, and monitoring for our students every day, then we are coaching them toward success. All school employees need to see themselves as a model, mentor, and monitor with an intelligent heart, all working together to graduate every single student.

Career Services plays a huge part in retention due to all the support they provide for the students. This goes beyond resume building and this does wonders for the student's preparation when done correctly.

Administrators can focus on student academic involvement by offering everything possible to ensure student success. This includes study halls, student services to meet student needs, and videos of classes so students can review difficult parts of the course or "attend" classes they may have missed. These are some things we can do to ensure we provide the best experience to our students.

Orientations are best when held in a relaxed environment. They should be fun and provide for a variety of activities that offer time for students to talk with each other, express their concerns, and learn ways to address them. Orientations continue the positive environment created during the admissions process. Orientations set the tone for the classroom and school experience.

Ensuring the orientation process works best for the students is high priority as this can make or break their experience with our institution. The better we cater our orientation to meet our students needs we can then make it more successful for them.

If we built a strong orientation then the students will already be a little familiar with each other and the instructor. Build on that foundation by providing continued interaction. If we didn't have time to build in a student introduction component to orientation, the first day is an excellent time to start building the connection for the student in the first week.

The underlying message that we project to the students needs to be I'm here to help you succeed. This is the key role we play in our institution and the sole purpose of my role. This is what drives me to be in this position with my institution.