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Roundup A FIRST AMENDMENT PUBLICATION
Woodland Hills, California Volume 124 - Issue 7
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
One copy free, each additional copy $1.00
$2.2 million returned to district Enrollment numbers fall below president’s expected projection RANDI LOVE rlove.roundupnews@gmail.com
TIFFANY BERWAGER tberwager.roundupnews@gmail.com
Enrollment failed to meet the seven percent projected growth, resulting in the school needing to give back $2.2 million to the district, according to Pierce College President Kathleen Burke. Burke said projected growth in August was seven percent, then lowered to five. After a meeting with a district representative the percent was lowered to three, which is about two percent higher than the state average. Due to the projection lowering four percent the school must return $2.2 million to the district. To meet three percent growth, the college is borrowing 400 hours from summer, which will put the school 400 hours behind to start in the Fall of 2016. “Our growth statewide is flattening out, in fact there’s no way I think we could hit seven percent, even if we took all of summer,” Burke said. “Spring enrollment was flat, in fact it dipped a little bit. Some of that could be because we added classes to the winter.” Burke explained that the the college receives money from the district up front, and must repay it when they do not match the growth projections. “We had already come down from seven percent to five, and refunded $1.1 million to the district,” Burke said. “Our most recent meeting with the district representatives from attendance accounting, we needed to drop down to three percent, that is still growth, just not as much growth as we projected. We will be returning another $1.1 million to the district from our original budget because we’re not going to make the growth we projected.” Vice President of Academic Affairs Sheri Berger said that there is new legislation called the Dual Enrollment Bill, that could help bring more high school students into community colleges. “The new legislation passed allows for dual enrollment and this is one way we can increase enrollment,” Berger said. “There is a smaller population of high school
graduates, which means there are fewer students coming to us.” Berger said that hours are allocated, and department chairs are to schedule to meet the needs of students. The school is currently working closely with the Ruffalo Noel Levitz organization, who will come in May to assess the FETS generation, and look into factors that may be impacting growth. The organization will look at Pierce’s service area demographic, andperform a cursory look at some of the marketing efforts and different factors that go into the overall scheduling including how big our sections are, according to Berger. Courses that are considered electives in many departments have been archived due to the realignment several years ago, according to Academic Senate Treasurer Angela Belden. “Sometimes, those courses that get students excited about taking other things are the things that we are not offering as frequently anymore due to the realignment several years ago,” Belden said. Belden questioned why the seven percent growth was established by administration, and if Pierce requires consultation on the efficiency of classes. “While I think it’s a really good idea to examine why we didn’t meet our growth goal. I think that we need to be doing it in-house as well,” Belden said. “I don’t necessarily think that it is something we should be hiring a consultant about, especially when we haven’t really looked at our campus committees to try and have them answer some of the questions first.” “That seven percent goal was not a goal that was decided on in a shared government sort of way. We just heard from the administration, ‘We will grow by seven percent and this is what we’re going to do,’ and that itself wasn’t done by a shared governance committee,” Belden said. Wayne Skip Perkins, instructor of music, said that we have been flat for the last four or five years without adding new classes. “My concern is that even if we do grow in students, we are not adding classes to facilitate any kind of growth in the departments,” Perkins said.
Family fun at Goatchella 2016 Pre-Vet students Pornpimol Hayward and Jeff Broaderick show Natalie Lahiji and her three children Sarah, Hana and Ethan, how to pet and feed the young goats at Pierce College’s Open House/Beyond Farmwalk on April 17, 2016 in Woodland Hills, Calif. Photo: Calvin B. Alagot / Roundup [See Grand Farmland , pg. 6]
Farm goes beyond its fences College adds Open House to its marquee event
DANIELA TORRES Staff dtorres.roundupnews@gmail.com
Pierce College hosted the first Beyond Farmwalk/Open House Sunday to offer the community a chance to learn more about the campus and its different programs and departments. The Open House was held on the main campus while the Farmwalk was held on the 225 farm on the west side of campus. “I think the [open house/beyond farmwalk] is very successful. All you have to do is look at the parking lot, and you’ll see it’s full,” Kathleen Burke, President of Pierce College said. This was the first time that open house and farmwalk were combined into one event. “We always wanted to have something broad. Not just the farm, but the entire college as an outreach to the community,” Burke said. We wanted an opportunity to really showcase the entire college, including the farm.”
Many departments and programs had booths set up where visitors could stop by and talk to students and staff who have knowledge and experience regarding their respective booths. “Today’s event lets prospective students and families come out and learn about the school,” said Kimberly Castillo, member of Outreach and Recruitment. “They’ll get tours, and they get to go to each table to get stamps. At the end, they get entered into a raffle for a chance to win prizes.” Doreen Clay, public relations manager, said the budget for marketing was $27,000 and was satisfied with the turnout of the event. “I spent $21,000 on radio advertising, on the number one station in the Los Angeles market for the student age group, KIIS-FM 102.7,” Clay said. “I bought three weeks of solid ads about 15 times a day leading up to the event.” With two events on one day, Clay expected to see more people than the previous years.
Addiction Studies pioneer dies James Crossen founded Addiction Studies program in 1976 and brought it to Pierce in 1999 “Helping people discover their MAX SULLIVAN News Editor msullivan.roundupnews@gmail.com James Crossen, the professor who brought Addiction Studies to Pierce College in 1999 died April 2 from Pneumonia. He was 80. Crossen was a registered nurse, documentary filmmaker, poet, anarchist and pioneer in Addiction Studies. He went to the Gaza Strip six times and created a recovery program for women in Iran, according to Allen Glass, director of Addiction Studies. Glass said he will be best remembered for the impact he had on those he met.
true passion and voice and mind was probably his greatest achievement,” Glass said. “He did that hundreds of times.” Crossen was a pioneer in his field and created the Addictions Study Program Jan 15 1976 at the Medical Center of North Hollywood where he taught a class, according to Glass. He brought the program to Los Angeles Mission College in 1990 before coming to Pierce in 1999. “Going back to the 70s, he had this influence on people that was quite rare,” Glass said. “He would change people’s lives and they would never be the same after having a class with him.” Judy Davis, adjunct professor
File photo courtesy of Allen Glass
James Crossen founded the Addiction Studies program at Pierce College in 1999.. of addiction studies, said Crossen encompassed everything the department could have asked for.
“Students were enraptured by him and his brilliance,” Davis said. “He knew all of his students by
“I also put ads in the LA Daily farm. News and Valley News Group on “Everyone really loves the the front page and online for three goats, especially the kids,” Peck weeks,” Clay said. “And had the said. “The petting zoo is probably Daily News do email blasts to the biggest attraction on this side.” 100,000 people, Northridge Toyota joined Pierce “I also made up to 20,000 College and offered different postcards that students took prizes to visitors. Prizes included a out into the community,” Clay chance to be entered into a raffle said. “Not to mention, the free for a $500 Best Buy gift card to promotion of the Pierce facebook, those who received 40 stamps on Twitter, home page news and street their passport. A $300 Amazon gift electronic marquee.” card was also offered to whoever Visitors were given passports earned the most “likes” on a social when entering the event. The media post that involved the Open passports were being stamped at House/Beyond Farmwalk. each booth and attraction they Diana Montenegro, Business visited. major, brought her daughter to the “We want people to know that event in hopes for her to attend we do have a program. If they Pierce in the future. have family or friends that want to “This is where I go. This is study here they can apply,” Abigail home,” Montenegro said. Watson, director of International “All the employees that I’ve Students, said. spoken to have said that it’s been a It was the first time The really great event,” Burke said. We International Students Program had an opportunity to showcase the joined the Open House. students work.” Chanéra Peck, pre-veterinary medicine major, was helping out at [For more photos visit the Goatchella petting zoo on the theroundupnews.com] first name. He was very supportive of their personal growth and very excited to build on their expertise and knowledge base.” Glass said Crossen was a brilliant man with a small frame who was always dressed “dapper”, wearing belts that often matched his hats and shoes. Sometimes he would even match his car. “As soon as you met him he was like a whirlwind of energy,” Glass said. “Really quite brilliant and unlike anybody you had ever met.” Greg Schafer, retired Addiction Studies professor and drug and alcohol counselor, said Crossen was an eccentric renaissance man who he considers to be his mentor. Crossen hired Schafer in 1984. “The man put me on a beautiful course of life,” Schafer said. “If it wasn’t for him I never would have been in the field I’m sure. He would be my mentor, you could say that, definitely.” Crossen was was traveled, well informed and an advocate for social justice, who lived a full life. “When Nelson Mandela was released from prison, he was right there video taping it,” Glass said.
Crossen will be remembered for regularly saying and instilling that “Everything is Everything.” “‘Everything is Everything,’ It was a purpose and a meaning to all that life had to offer and it was ours to explore,” Davis said. “Our worlds our touched by many people and many things, to find value and meaning in everything.” Crossen is survived by his wife, Lola LaValle. Crossen will be honored at the Addiction Studies graduation ceremony on May 27 at noon in the Great Hall. A memorial this summer is being planned, but has not been finalized yet.
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