by Jill Scofield

Kirsten DuBray was a college student in San Diego with a passion for community involvement when she first heard about Hands Across America. The year was 1986, and the massive nationwide event was taking place to raise money for hunger and homelessness through unconventional means-a continuous line of nearly 6 million people holding hands from New York to Los Angeles.

The event created a media spectacle of unparalleled proportions, benefiting from the involvement of hundreds of celebrities who helped build excitement. DuBray was one of the millions of participants eager to get involved, convincing some of her college friends to take a short road trip to L.A. to take part in the historic event with her.

What started as a fun weekend among friends ended as one of the most meaningful and powerful events in which DuBray ever participated. "My friends weren't especially excited about the idea, but they came along anyway. They didn't realize how significant it was until people literally started coming out of the woodwork and got in line. Their jaws dropped when the line started forming."

The final moments of the event were a testament to the power of community, and the shared sense of camaraderie that resonated throughout the nation is something that DuBray has carried with her to this day.

Twenty-five years later, DuBray is still passionate about giving back, and is now paid to do so. As executive director of the American River College Foundation in Sacramento, DuBray's job is to garner support for the important cause of a community college education. And because her organization is part of the California Community College system, her work over the next few months will involve engaging her community in another history-making event in much the same way she did as an idealistic college student.

Standing up for an Important Cause
Slated for Sunday, April 17, Hands Across California is taking place just one month prior to the 25th anniversary of the nationwide event that gained so much attention in the spring of '86. While it is a similar concept to Hands Across America (and will even benefit from the expertise of Ken Kragen, the very man who made it a reality), the cause is a bit different.

Like the nationwide event 25 years ago, Hands Across California promises to be an awe-inspiring, once-in-a-generation event that will bring millions of people together in support of a common cause. In this case, the cause is the California Community Colleges, the largest system of higher education in the nation with nearly 3 million students enrolled in a given year.

Money raised from the April 17 event will directly support the California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment, a permanent scholarship fund that provides $1,000 scholarships every year to thousands of students who need them most. The scholarships help fund the ever-increasing cost of an education for these students, who in turn contribute to an educated workforce.

Hands Across California couldn't come at a more critical time for community colleges and their students. The colleges, and higher education in general, continue to face a brutal fiscal reality. Just days after being sworn in as Governor, Jerry Brown proposed a tough budget that nearly every facet of the state is feeling-especially higher education. The new budget proposes a $400 million budget reduction to California Community Colleges and a 38 percent raise in student fees. For California Community Colleges students, 90 percent of whom already struggle to pay for their education, this means difficult times ahead.

The continued divestment in public higher education is certainly a cause for alarm. But it also underscores the need for efforts like Hands Across California, which will benefit students by raising private dollars that won't be impacted by future budget cuts.

The very California Community College students who will ultimately benefit from this effort will be a big part of its success. Students throughout the state have been working hard to mobilize their communities for the April 17 event through their own creative methods. Plans are in the works for concerts, performances, and barbecues on individual college campuses to get people in line on April 17.

Aside from the excitement of the event itself, students are passionate about this project because it is a cause they believe in. Rebecca Hernandez, a member of the Associated Students at Butte College, is eager to see Hands Across California bring a new awareness to the importance of community colleges.

Community College students across the state are poised and ready to advocate for the colleges, higher education, and their fellow students. The excitement generated last year by the 13,000-person March in March that the Student Senate for California Community Colleges organized in Sacramento continued long after the March 22 event was over. Hands Across California is a positive and timely event in the midst of the proposed devastating budget cuts and fee increases.

"Setting aside the much-needed scholarships [this event will support], this event will bring national attention to community colleges," says Hernandez, citing education as the critical factor in building a nation of innovators and leaders. "Taking the opportunity to better yourself as an individual and a leader or worker is worth the time and energy. I tell my kids, 'higher education gives you higher opportunity, starting at community colleges and continuing.'"

Reid Milburn, a former president of the SSCCC who has joined the event team as campus and community relations manager, says this same passion is echoed in the conversations she has with students.

"In light of the horrible budget cuts and proposed fee increases the colleges and students are facing this year, students are delighted to be able to mobilize for an event like this," says Milburn. "They are realizing more and more that they have to power to act-to protect higher education, to promote the colleges that serve them, and to advocate for their fellow students. I hear again and again from students, 'my community college saved my life and now I have the opportunity to do something to promote the colleges in return.'"

Making the Impossible a Reality
It's no secret that it will take a massive effort involving every community college to pull off the event. The physical line itself is estimated to be between 1,500 and 2,000 miles, stretching from San Diego through the Central Valley to above Sacramento, over to San Francisco and down the coast through Los Angeles and Orange County, and back to San Diego to complete the loop. In the remaining months leading up to the event, it will take a tremendous amount of manpower and planning, all led by the Foundation for California Community Colleges in partnership with Kragen.

To the veteran producer and manager, who was also the architect of "We Are the World" and "NetAid," the event is destined for success. Kragen has cited the sheer size of the system, the growing appreciation of community colleges, and the passion already exhibited by students as key reasons why Hands Across California is "just impossible enough to be possible"-a key phrase he uses to motivate those involved in the effort.

In the coming weeks, the project team will formally unveil sponsors and celebrity endorsers through a massive media and publicity effort. The goal is to create enough buzz to get nearly 2 million people to participate on April 17.

"We have four key objectives in holding this event," Kragen recently reminded the project team. "Our overall goal is to fill the line, which will lead to everything else. We then need to raise money for student scholarships, call widespread attention to the largest system of higher education in the nation, and finally, have a lot of fun doing it."

For those within the California Community College system, Hands Across California is also sparking excitement for what is to come. "Whenever you do something that is out of the ordinary, you're bound to attract attention," says DuBray. "This will be a really unique event, and now is the right time for it."

If all goes as planned, Hands Across California could very well be a once-in-a-lifetime event for those who participate, leaving an indelible impact on generations of California Community College students.