With a focus on SMC’s major initiatives – ranging from basic skills to global citizenship – Opening Day will be held 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 26 with an energizing back-to-school opening session and an afternoon of workshops designed to prepare employees for the year ahead.

All of the Opening Day activities will be held at The Broad Stage and classrooms at the adjacent Performing Arts Campus on Santa Monica Boulevard at 11th Street.

“We have found from previous Opening Days that faculty and other employees discover they are not only prepared for the year ahead, but also often inspired,” said Judith Douglas, chair of the Professional Development Committee, which organizes the day’s events. “And they feel part of a larger whole.”

The day will begin at 8 a.m. with morning refreshments, followed by an opening session in The Broad Stage from 8:30 a.m. to 9:15 a.m., featuring SMC President Dr. Chui L. Tsang and Academic Senate President Eric Oifer; the introduction of new full-time, tenure-track faculty; and the announcement of this year’s winners of chairs of excellence.

An inclusivity training session will be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon, followed by lunch and afternoon workshops, which will cover a wide range of topics including virtual classrooms, global education-related issues, strategies for engaging students, emergency preparedness and more.

With a theme of “Food for Thought,” which echoes the Global Council’s food theme for 2010-11, the day’s activities will also include a lunch designed as a learning activity, with natural foods from several countries being served. In addition, several food- and nutrition-related workshops are scheduled for the afternoon.

“And don’t forget, we have great raffle prizes that will be awarded at the end of the day,” Douglas said.

Attendance at the day’s activities is required for all full-time faculty members. For further information, go to the Professional Development Committee website or call ext. 4856.