El Camino College recently hosted the second annual Men of Color Leadership Conference - a day of academic, personal, and professional development. Hundreds of students from more than 15 different colleges attended the event on the ECC campus that featured workshops on leadership, mindfulness, financial and spiritual wellness and networking opportunities. A collaborative project between El Camino College, Santa Monica College, Long Beach City College, Compton College, and Pasadena City College, the event's theme, "A Holistic Approach to Healing Men of Color," was developed to promote wellness, while giving attendees strategies for empowerment and ideas for positive social change.
Event workshops focused on topics such as leadership, financial and spiritual wellness, managing relationships, and building mentorships and networking opportunities. Keynote speakers were El Camino College counselor, professor and author Dr. Yamonte Cooper, and Dr. Brad Elliott Stone, professor and director of the philosophy master's program at Loyola Marymount University. Additional featured speakers included Manuel Diaz, assistant dean of students at Pomona College; Jose Gutierrez, counselor at Long Beach City College; Analu Kameeiamoku Cruze-Josephides, ECC reference services librarian; and Jonathan Ng, Pasadena City College professor and counselor.