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Serving San Jose City College Volume 51, No. 11
http://www.jaguar.sjeccd.cc.ca.us/SJCC!rimes
Thursday, September 25, 1997
Learning Resource Center stalled pending funding jodie Thompson Staff Writer
Burke Smith/The Times n Tsang listens to an explanation from a faculty member. 1
Brown Bag Lunches: e
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A chance to be heard Sonya Wormington Editor-in-Chief Welcome to the wonderful world of wishing, where administrators actually care what students think. This wish is becoming a reality as City College President Chui Tsang is hosting a series of Brown Bag lunches that allow students, staff and faculty to converse with the president and allows everyone to get feedback from each other. The Brown Bag lunches are informal conversations during the lunch hour, where anyone can promote their ideas about bow the campus should be run and what changes need to be made. The most recent lunch, held September 23, was entitled "An Update from Chui." The meeting was primarily to discuss the problems with the planned Learning Resource Center, which was blue lined by Governor Wilson and is again on his desk wailing for approval. According to Tsang, this approval is unlikely to happen until an alternate source of funding can be found. Tsang understands the need to let the legislators work out the funding and is currently going to the private sector attempting to get funding to help build the Center. Joseph King, a librarian at City College, felt that a great deal more work needed to be done before the plans for the Center could become a reality. "My contention has always been that the school does not have enough information to get proper donors and get the legislators involved. Someone needs to devote a lot of time and energy to this," he said. However, Tsang is more optimistic. "We have a new Facilities Director. We have drawings. We have the will to do it" Another major issue that was repeated throughout the meeting was the parking problems on campus. Tsang is enthusiastic that a good Plan will be implemented and he understands that students are looking for three things in parking: ease of access, ease of use and enough space to anticipate growth. He is also looking for a long-term plan so that current students will not be affected by drastically rising costs. Lois Lund, Dean of Language Arts, addressed the problem of a lack of technology in the computer labs. She called for some kind of COncerted effort to change the labs, updating them and providing better technology and more stations. Tsang, however, noted that there is a problem with the power Structure for the entire campus. He said there was only enough power to operate seven or eight stations and in order to update the labs, an outside power line would need to be brought onto campus, with an installation cost of hundreds of thousand of dollars.
See Tsang, Page 8.
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The funding for San lost City College's proposed Learning Resource Center, which was recently blue-lined by Governor Pete Wilson's line item veto, has received a second chance. The Omnibus bill, presented by Sen. John Vasconcellos (D-San Jose), places the proposed plan, along with an assortment of other previously vetoed items, once again before Wilson for approval. TheofficialreasonforWilson's recent rejection of the proposal, according to City College President Chui Tsang, is that the plan was not on the state Chancellor's list and was not within the scope of the current budget year. Wilson's selection of vetoed items from the state b ud ge t, however , came under great scrutiny. Most of the $3 14 million cuts made were of education or other projects backed by Democrats or based in Democratic districts, presumably to extort Democratic support of his plan to impose a mandatory English-only testing program fora!! California students . The San Jose Mercury News reported Wil son's statement, ''These amounts are set aside for restoration upon enactment of legislation which meets my uirements for a
testing program." City College's proposed funding is apparently not among the programs to be restored through the state budget. According to Tsang, while the Governor and the Chancellor support the proposed plan, it will only be approved if the funds are found elsewhere. "It is not clear where the funds are coming from ," Tsang said.
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(City College) ironically sits in the center of the Silicon Valley, [and] is below par with neighboring campuses. Chui Tsang President The $756,000 in funding proposed would s ub si di ze preliminary plans and drawings for the Learning Resource Center. If approved, it will be the frrst state funding awarded to City College in three decades . In a letter from Tsan to friends ,
As the semester barrels ahead at full force many students are having trouble finding tim~ for all their necessary studying. Don Tunick,
students and personnel of City College, he expresses the need to voice desire for approval to begin work on the center through letters and faxes to the governor. The time frame for consideration of this issue is crucial, as Wilson will need to sign the bill on or before Oct. 12 if it is to be passed. According to Robert Dias, Director of Plant Planning, Operations and Maintenance for theSanJoseCity/Evergreen Valley College District, the project would create43, 122 square feet of library space, a learning skills core, faculty offices, media service space and a centralized location for tutorial services and other programs. C ity College's 75 year o ld campus, according to President Tsang, "ironically sits in the core of Silicon Valley, [and] is below par with neighboring campuses." City College Librarian, Joseph King, stresses the need to upgrade the currently outdated library system on campus. King also focuses on the needs of City College students, which are composed mainly of ethnic minoriti<.:s and first generation college studen ts. Letters may be addressed to Pete Wilson, Office of the Governor, State Capitol, Sacramento, CA 95814. He may also be reached by fax at1-916-445-4633.
Mari Matsumoto/The Times however, manages to squeeze a few minutes of studying and relaxation in between his classes while enjoying the outdoors.