Skyline College: Social Science Unwrapped Speaker Series Inspiring 21st Century Toolbelts

Press release from Skyline College:

Becky Threewit

January 28, 2022

Speakers talked about their paths to social science, social science research experiences, and specific 21st century toolbelt skills that impacted their professional journey. The inaugural speaker Geography Professor, Rachel Cunningham, discussed her research on Public Perceptions of Levees and Risk which investigated human perception and behavior around levee failure risk in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta region of California. She specifically described the importance of the 21st century skill of ”emotional intelligence” and her discussion of empathy left a lasting impression on students as did her willingness to try so many new and unfamiliar opportunities and network through those experiences on her journey to her dream job – Professor of Geography.

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Dr. Shaun Perisho shared his research on Fractal Scaling in Bottlenose Dolphin Echolocation and his fascinating path from English -> Physics -> Music -> Marine Science -> Psychology. He connected the 21st century skill of ”collaboration” to his work, inspiring one student to reflect:

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“Dr. Perisho never thought that his expertise in Physics would land him a job in Marine life. That is where the importance of collaboration is so important. It comes full circle like he mentioned. An area of expertise you have on a subject can create further developments, leaps and bounds (over) what a single person can do…”

Dr. Rika Yonemura-Fabian impressed students with her ability to put words into action. She shared her understanding that 21st century skills are taught in school and was also emphatic that this learning is enhanced and reinforced when implemented in real life. She encouraged students to think about the 21st century skill of “communication”, inspiring one attendee to present Dr. Yonemura-Fabian the perfect opportunity to describe the impact of student communication on teaching and learning with this question:

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“Was there ever a comment a student made or a perspective a student shared that changed or influenced your view/opinion on a topic/social movement/theory?”

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This press release was produced by Skyline College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.