Advisory Board

Board Structure

Entrepreneurship
The Diamante Scholars’ chief focus is enabling the overlooked students who have potential, to find a successful path through a complete educational experience – whether that’s completion of a four year degree, or vocational program. This should ultimately support each scholar in a fulfilling career. Personal entrepreneurship enables successful completion of these educational goals by teaching students to be adaptive thinkers to changing conditions – proactive problem solvers who are willing and able to advocate for their own best interests. We seek advisory board members who will help develop internship opportunities for the development of these skills.

Education
This program is ultimately about the educational experience our Scholars have, as well as ensuring the long term sustainability of the program. We seek to add advisory board members who have relevant experience in academic success along with experience building and growing programs within educational institutions.

Fundraising and Development
Ensuring the long term sustainability and impact of the program will rely on securing sources of corporate and philanthropic funding, as well as alignment with the strategic direction of DVC. We seek to have a member of the DVC Program Office on the Advisory Board to ensure funding stability and alignment.

Vocational Careers
The Diamante Scholars program helps students find their career path and there are many students who will find tremendous satisfaction with a career in a vocation. We seek advisory board members who have experience in vocational roles and who can help shape the program to ensure students who pursue vocational careers are supported.

Data Collection and Evaluation
Our program impacts multiple stakeholders, and we believe that it is important to our long term success to intentionally address the informational needs of each of those stakeholders to best serve our students, and the whole community that we are working within. To that end, our advisory board includes members with expertise in whole life cycle data collection and evaluation. This includes developing, organizing, describing, and evaluating meaningful data oriented to informing our understanding of how, and how well we are meeting our goals.

Emotional Resilience
Generally speaking it is only with hindsight that career paths can be seen, and frequently they span a wide range of unexpected shifts along the way – change, setbacks, and frequent opportunities for emotional development. Our advisory board contains members who bring experiences and skillsets to our Scholars that help them develop their emotional self, to be resilient in the face of change.

Student Representative
The advisory board will also contain a student representative who can reflect the needs and perspective of the Diamante Scholar experience.

Board Charter

The Diamante Scholars Advisory Board serves to provide guidance and advice – within matters of their expertise – to the Diamante Scholars Executive Office on the structure, operations, and curriculum of the Diamante Scholars.

The Executive Office is composed of the Diamante Scholars founder, Peter Zaballos, and the Dean of Student Engagement and Equity at DVC, Rosa Armendariz.

The Advisory Board has a minimum of eight (8) members and a maximum of eleven (11) members, including the members of the Executive Office.

ROLE
The expectation of members of the Diamante Scholars Advisory Board are expected to:

  • Prepare for and attend 3-4 Advisory Board meetings per year.
  • Devote 30 hours per quarter on Diamante Scholars activities and initiatives.
  • Stay attentive and informed in the Diamante Scholars program and its development.
  • Provide their experience, expertise, and in some cases their network connections where relevant to the Diamante Scholars program, program development and operations
  • Specific roles on the Advisory Board require certain areas of operational or executive experience, as outlined below:
    • Entrepreneurship: This member should have experience starting or running successful businesses at an executive level. Their network should present the Program with potential guest speakers and student internship opportunities.
    • Education: This member should be a current faculty member who has a strong interest in helping students find their paths to career success, regardless of area of study. Fundraising and Development: this member should be the current Director of College Advancement at DVC.
    • Vocational careers: This member should have experience in a vocation and have a strong interest in helping students find their path to a vocation if that is their objective. This member’s network should present the Program with potential guest speakers and student internship opportunities.
    • Data Collection and Evaluation: This member should have deep experience with statistical methods, survey development, and rigorous data analysis to ensure the Program can test and articulate the beneficial outcomes of the Program.
    • Emotional Resilience: This member should be a practicing consultant or counselor with experience in helping groups and individuals to effectively identify and resolve conflicts, engage in productive, constructive communication, and manage self-care and develop a strong internal locus of control.

TERM
The term is 2 years with automatic biannual renewal; either party can terminate at
any time and for any reason with 30-days written notice. The Faculty and Student members can serve terms of one-year, at their request.