2024-25 Academic Year
We're proud of all our students, faculty members and classified professionals at De Anza College. Here are some examples of what makes De Anza "simply the best."
James Beard Semifinalists
Two former De Anza students are semifinalists for a James Beard Award in the category of Outstanding Restaurateur. Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski are the owners of several restaurants in San Francisco, including the Anchovy Bar, State Bird Provisions and The Progress. State Bird Provisions and The Progress each have a Michelin star. Stuart and Nicole are a husband-and-wife team who grew up in Cupertino and Los Gatos. They met 30 years ago when they were both art students at De Anza.
Phi Beta Lambda Wins at Conference
De Anza's Phi Beta Lambda chapter won three awards at the California FBLA Business Leadership Conference in November. Alan Dang, Zain Darwish, Van Loc Nguyen and Allison Trinh won first place in the financial case competition. Javin Ku won second place in the impromptu speaking category. Addy Hu, Hanspreet (Neal) Singhphi-beta-, Rushil Vaswani and Chris Wu won third place in the marketing and sales case competition.
De Anza Honored for English and Math Success
De Anza received two Excellence in Placement awards in November from the nonprofit Campaign for College Opportunity. The awards recognize colleges that have the highest percentages of students who successfully complete transfer-level English and Math courses within one year of enrollment in the course.
- According to the group’s research, De Anza had an 81.2% rate of success in transfer-level English during the 2022-23 academic year. That was the second highest in the state after Skyline College in San Bruno, which had a rate of 81.7%.
- De Anza had an 81.4% success rate in transfer-level Math. That ranked second in the state after Foothill College’s rate of 82.3%.
Flea Market Earns Honors
The De Anza Flea Market earned second place in the annual “Best of Silicon Valley” rankings by readers of the Metro Silicon Valley. The news site asked its readers to choose their favorite places for shopping, dining and entertainment. The Flea Market is open from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. on the first Saturday of every month – rain or shine.
Football Team Undefeated in Regular Season
De Anza’s football team finished its best regular season in recent history this November, after three consecutive comeback victories. The Mountain Lions ended the season with a 10-0 record, after defeating Chabot College at home Nov. 23, in a 26-24 game that was decided on the final play. They will go on to meet Monterey Peninsula College on Dec. 7, in the Northern California Football Conference American Division championship.
On Sunday, Coach Joe D’Agostino was voted PAC-7 Coach of the Year by his peers in the region. Under D’Agostino’s leadership, the football team produced 16 all-league student-athletes – including Offensive Most Valuable Player sophomore quarterback Antevious Jackson.
Instructor Headed for Senegal Seminar
Miloni Gandhi, instructor in Global Studies, was selected by the Council of American Overseas Research Centers to attend an overseas faculty development seminar on “West Africa and the Diaspora – Continuities and Transformations” in Senegal this January.
Only 27 faculty members from across the country were selected for this cohort, which is supported by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Three Student Teams Win at StartUpPalooza
Eight teams of De Anza students competed for cash prizes as they pitched ideas for innovative and socially responsible new businesses at “StartUpPalooza” on Oct. 29, 2024. The teams took turns presenting ideas for new ventures in health care, financial services, sustainability and public safety. The event was the culmination of a monthlong “Startup Boot Camp" organized by the Business Department’s Innovation Center and instructor Rowland Chen.
- Students Hugh Nguyen and Luca Paliska won first place and $500 for ShortType, an AI-driven typing autocompletion tool for specific subject areas that enables people with motor disabilities to type faster.
- Ryan Nguyen and Donavan Yip won the second place prize of $150 for Drunk No Drive, a smart steering wheel that uses multiple sensors to detect intoxication and prevent drunk driving.
- Aidai Boobekova won the third place prize of $100 for InSCOUT, an autonomous drone that determines the locations of victims, detects toxic gasses and creates real-time 3D mapping of structures for first responders.
La Voz Staff Win Journalism Awards
De Anza journalism students took home 27 awards from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges annual NorCal Regional Conference, held on Saturday, Oct. 26, at San Francisco State University.
The honors included 25 awards for work published during the 2023-24 school year, plus two awards earned by Carolyn Zhao and Frank Meyers for work produced in on-the-spot competitions during the conference. Here is a complete list of award winners:
Click for Award Winners
- Brooklyn Coyle - First place for informational graphic
- Frank Meyers - First place for photo story essay
- Frank Meyers - First place for online photo story essay
- Nello Puelles - First place for podcast
- La Voz Editorial Board - First place for editorial
- La Voz News - General excellence for print edition
- La Voz News - General excellence for online edition
- Anna Bhogra - Second place for sports story
- Anthony Politi and Alex Stoev - Second place for podcast
- Pierre Whitney - Second place for sports action photo
- Xitlaly Martinez - Third place for opinion
- Ann Penalosa - Third place for informational graphic
- Ann Penalosa - Third place for photo story essay
- Katrina Bui - Fourth place for illustration
- Mackenzie Jardine - Fourth place for feature photo
- Eric Kindred - Fourth place for sports story
- Yumeno Matsuo and Kritika Sharma - Fourth place for news story
- Marcela Leticia Borges - Meritorious award for multimedia package
- Nello Puelles - Two meritorious awards for multimedia packages
- Katrina Bui - Honorable mention for editorial cartoon
- Katrina Bui - Honorable mention for opinion
- Amit Cohen - Honorable mention for column
- Ingrid Lu - Honorable mention for critical review
- Ann Penalosa - Honorable mention for critical review
- Frank Meyers - Honorable mention for feature photo – on-the-spot competition
- Carolyn Zhao - Honorable mention for news writing – on-the-spot competition
De Anza Receives Democracy Award
De Anza received a bronze campus award this fall from the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge for reaching a 20-29% student voting rate in the last Congressional mid-term elections, according to the National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement report from Tufts University.
Special thanks to the Democratic Engagement Action Plan leadership team members Cynthia Kaufman, director of Vasconcellos Institute for Democracy in Action (VIDA), and Mallory Newell, director of Institutional Research and Planning.
Journalism Students Share Knowledge
De Anza journalism students shared their knowledge with hundreds of high school students from around the state during the annual NorCal Media Day on Sept. 28, sponsored by the Journalism Education Association of Northern California and held at Palo Alto High School recently. Staffers from La Voz News helped run two workshops to demonstrate techniques for interviewing public officials and candidates, which they demonstrated with Congressional candidate Sam Liccardo and a campaign representative for candidate Evan Low.
Catalyst Awards for Pride Center, HEFAS
De Anza’s Pride Center received a “Catalyst Award” in September from the National Association of Higher Education Systems or NASH, extending an earlier grant provided to the HEFAS program.
This award provides grant funds that can be used to support paid student positions at the Pride Center, through the Foothill-De Anza Foundation, under a fellowship model pioneered by the HEFAS program to enable hiring students who might be ineligible for other paid jobs due to their citizenship status. This will provide students with an opportunity to earn money for college AND gain valuable work experience in a space that recognizes and affirms their identities.
IMPACT AAPI Featured in Equity Report
De Anza's IMPACT AAPI Learning Community was featured in a new report published in July 2024 that highlights effective strategies for supporting students from Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander backgrounds. The report
describes IMPACT AAPI as a “model program” for combining embedded counseling, peer support and professional development.
IMPACT AAPI is one of several Learning Communities at De Anza that focus on supporting students from population groups that have historically been underserved in higher education. The new report was published by the Campaign for College Opportunity, which advocates for equity in access to higher education.
Real Estate Instructor In USA Today
Faculty member Mark Sherby was quoted by USA Today in an online feature about the nationwide housing market, published in July 2024.
Sherby was one of four experts who shared their insights in the article about housing affordability and related economic trends in all 50 states. Sherby, who is chair of De Anza’s Real Estate Department, also teaches courses in Computer Science and Information Systems.
VIDA Featured in "Restoring Public Purpose"
De Anza's Vasconcellos Institute for Democracy in Action was featured in a June 2024 report on ways that colleges and universities can make
meaningful contributions in their local communities. The report, "Restoring the Public Purpose of America’s Urban Universities," was published by the Netter Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Pennsylvania.
A chapter of the report focuses on VIDA’s work in preparing students to become agents of change in their communities – and beyond – through internships that emphasize social justice, community organizing and leadership development. The chapter was authored by Angélica Esquivel, program coordinator at VIDA, Brenda Romero Carrillo, program coordinator for the California Youth Leadership Corps, and Cynthia Kaufman, faculty director at VIDA.