History

APASS Center is the culmination of volunteer work by a committee of students, counselors, instructors, administrators and staff led by faculty member, Laura Wu McClain in 2003-2004.  The startling statistic shows that approximately 40 percent of the students on academic probation at City College of San Francisco are Asian and Pacific Islander students, prompted the formation of McClain’s committee.

The committee met with focus groups of Burmese, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Indonesian, Pacific Islander and Vietnamese students for the purpose of gathering information about their experience at the College and to determine how the district could help them achieve academic success.  The committee then drafted a proposal to provide a special location on the Ocean campus where students could attend workshops, meet with counselors, and participate in study groups, all with the intention of improving academic achievement.  With the strong support of the College’s Board, Chancellor Phillip Day, Vice-Chancellor Don Griffin, former Vice-Chancellor Frances Lee, and the College’s Budget and Planning Committee, plans were made to launch the APASS Center by the fall semester, 2004.  Space was located at Batmale Hall on the Ocean campus, architectural drawings were completed in early 2004, and construction began soon after.  The beautiful, spacious APASS Center, with computers, comfortable desks and chairs, a conference room, and several offices, was formally opened on October 15, 2004.