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Summary: Plans
to establish a satellite community college campus offering general
education, transfer and occupational training programs on the site of
the old Van de Kamp bakery in Glassell Park have, temporarily, been
scaled back. The decision stems from severe, and worsening, budget
pressures. The Los Angeles Community College District remains committed
to opening the satellite campus, and will consider how to move ahead
with its plans within five years. In the meantime, the community will be
able to use the new facilities and will benefit from new programs at the
location that will maintain an educational focus. A nonprofit group will
provide job training, and both non-credit and credit community college
courses are likely to be offered. In addition, a charter high school is
set to open in the fall. These activities will provide revenue for the
District to maintain the buildings, and to keep them open and secure
until a satellite campus is established.
Why is the original
satellite campus plan being changed?: It’s a matter of money. Given
the severe strains on the state budget, support for community college
instruction is being curtailed. With the defeat of five state budget
measures in the May 19 special election, further sweeping cutbacks will
be in store. That will cost the LACCD about $80 million, or more than
one-tenth of its general fund budget. What’s more, Los Angeles City
College, which planned to operate the satellite campus, already was
burdened with a budget shortfall of $1.2 million even before the special
election. As a result of the budget problems, classes will be cut for
thousands of students at the District’s colleges.
Why can’t some of
the more than $60 million being spent on redeveloping the site be
used to run a satellite community college campus?: The funds to
build and operate campuses come from separate sources. The capital
budget for construction and redevelopment reflects bond money approved
by voters in the District. That money can’t legally be used to operate
the campus. The operating funds largely come from the state, which
currently is going through enormous financial strain.
What physical
improvements are being made at the site?: Currently under
construction is the two-story New Education Building, which is expected
to be ready in time for the opening of a charter high school at the end
of August. (The school initially will be housed on the first floor.) The
redevelopment of the LACCD Van de Kamp Innovation Center should be completed over the
coming year. Among other things, it will have a wellness center with
exercise equipment in the basement that will be available for community
use. Work also is under way on a parking area that will include an array
of solar panels to produce carbon-free electricity. The site, in
addition, will have a central plant building to provide heating and air
conditioning efficiently. Also, to improve local traffic, San Fernando
Road will be widened, and a right-turn lane will be added for motorists
getting on the Glendale Freeway.
What will be
distinctive about the project?: The “adaptive reuse” of the Van de
Kamp building already is winning praise, and all of the construction is
meeting high environmental standards. In fact, all of the structures are
expected to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
standards, the widely recognized designation for sustainability
established by the U.S. Green Building Council. The project already has
the distinction of having met European standards for sustainability.
Plans also call for the site to be encircled by a fence designed to
evoke the area’s heritage as a center of the bakery industry. Design
proposals will be solicited from local artists.
What services will
be provided at the site?: In partnership with the City of Los
Angeles, a Workforce Innovation Center will be established. Its purpose
will be to train students for green-collar and health-care occupations.
The center will be managed by a nonprofit organization, Community Career
Development, which has over 25 years of experience in workforce
development. Other organizations also will operate at the site to
provide career counseling and job-placement support. In addition, the
Los Angeles City College Economic and Workforce Development office will
offer non-credit courses in basic skills and English as a Second
Language. The District also is exploring ways to provide basic academic
skills classes and general education credit courses that students could
use when they transfer to four-year colleges.
What high school is
coming to the site?: A nonprofit charter school organization that
had been looking for a temporary location, the Alliance for
College-Ready Public Schools, is preparing to launch the
Environmental Science and Technology High School. The organization’s
schools in Los Angeles, in the words of the Los Angeles Times, are
“consistently posting test scores and attendance rates that far outpace
surrounding district schools.” Alliance is focusing its recruiting
efforts within a three-mile radius of the LACCD Van de Kamp Innovation
Center site. The school will start with a
class of 100 or more 9th graders on Aug. 31, and then will add a grade
every year until it becomes a 9th-through-12th high school in fall,
2012, with about 450 students. After five years, however, the LACCD will
be free to take over the full site again, and the charter school will
have established a permanent location elsewhere.
Who will provide
security?: The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department will be
on duty during operating hours. When the facilities are closed,
electronic security systems will be used to protect the site.
What’s the outlook
for the future?: LACCD officials remain committed to establishing a
satellite community college campus at the Van de Kamp site. Plans for
the long-term future will be developed during the next five years and,
if the Los Angeles City College then has sufficient operating funds,
the intention is to place the satellite campus under the college's
administration. |
