Over the years that I have taken classes at De Anza College, among the most helpful have been those offered by Computer Application and Office Systems department. As a student, the CAOS classes have been invaluable. Word, Excel, PowerPoint and 10-Key have helped me both academically and professionally. You can only imagine my shock and surprise that this valuable resource is being closed due to budget cuts. The CAOS department does not, apparently, meet De Anza’s core mission. 

I beg to differ. 

Closing CAOS is penny wise and pound foolish because CAOS classes have helped thousands of De Anza students and are a great resource for the community to pick up valuable new skills. The Word courses alone have been beneficial to me as a freelance writer.

While working at De Anza’s bookstore I have noticed that CAOS material is at the top the list for many students, most of whom are international, low-income or returning. They take CAOS classes to acquire new skills or bring themselves up to date for the modern job market. Frequently, CAOS classes are taken in conjunction with such classes as business law or medical office management.

Without the CAOS department, these students would be forced to take courses elsewhere, such as community centers as short courses or in a for-profit school, where classes are taught on a compressed time frame. 

Have you ever tried to learn Excel in four days? 

The average person does not have eight hours four days in row to learn Excel; the breadth of material alone guarantees low knowledge retention.

CAOS courses are self-paced and allow you to learn at your own speed. While some people can fly through a CAOS class in a week flat, others will use the whole quarter. But both will come out with a thorough understanding of the subject.

Closing CAOS denies a valuable resource to the community. Students can balance their class load learning about Chaucer one day, then Word to write the term paper on him the next. Members of the community can take PowerPoint, Access or Intro to Filing and be better prepared for today’s workforce. One of the goals of De Anza is to provide an enriched learning experience available to all members of the community. Closing CAOS denies our community that learning experience.