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Pasadena Oity College
soccer
Lancers beat
Condors
Page
7»
Volume 100, Issue 3
"The Independent Student Voice of
РСС,
Serving Pasadena Since 1915.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Despite crowds, enrollment dips
Michael doto
Staff Writer
Unexpectedly, PCC enrollment
is lower for the fall semester of
2009 than it was last fall.
According to the Acting Dean of
Enrollment Management Allen
Dooley, as of Monday there were
26,384 students enrolled for the fall
semester of 2009 compared with
26,639 last fall.
The data comes from the Office
of Research and Planning. The
data is compiled through the first
census day, which serves as a cut¬
off point for the college to report
enrollment to the state.
Although enrollment is down,
the college is not drastically reduc¬
ing the number of classes being
offered.
"Unlike many of our sister col¬
leges and universities who have
had to significantly cut their offer¬
ings, at PCC our fall 2009 is at 98
percent of what we offered last
year. That is a very strong num¬
ber," said Dooley.
Even though the college has
been able to keep the majority of
classes being offered, there is a
struggle to add classes for incom¬
ing freshmen who do not get pri¬
ority registration dates.
"It's been really tough to add.
This is my third day trying to add
and I haven't gotten one class yet,"
said Danny Huen, 19, acting major.
Many students are flocking to
PCC from other colleges because
of greater reductions in class offer-
Continued on page 2
Ex-student's murder trial delayed
Genaro Bonilla
Staff Writer
Former PCC Student Isaac
Campbell, accused of murdering
his girlfriend, appeared in court
Sept. 9 where his preliminary hear¬
ing was rescheduled to Oct. 7 due
to further discussions between the
District Attorney and the Public
Defender.
"Due to further discussions with
the District Attorney we request to
move the preliminary hearing to
Oct. 7," said Public Defender Jim
Duffy. Details on what the discus¬
sions entail were not provided.
Campbell is on trial on suspi¬
cion of murdering his ex-girl¬
friend, Liya "Jessie" Lu, also a for¬
mer PCC student, in August 2007.
Prior to this, there had been one
other preliminary hearing that was
postponed for nine months due to
the delay in finishing the autopsy
of Lu.
Lu's body was found in
September 2007 at an Arcadia resi¬
dence. Her body was wrapped in a
plastic bag, placed in a large blue
trash bin, and buried under 10 gal¬
lons of kitty litter.
According to the coroner's
report, filed in May, Lu's cause of
death was inconclusive due to the
decomposed state of her body.
"The elaborate preparation to
dispose of the cadaver is a strong
indication of the intent to dispose
of evidence that could point out
Continued on page 2
First town hall
held to discuss
future of PCC
The Piazza is abuzz
Michael Lee/Courier
Students sit and eat in the newly designed Campus Center's cafeteria, The Piazza. Story page 4
10-year plan being developed
ROY LENN
Staff Writer
The first of several scheduled
town hall meetings to discuss
plans for the future of the school
was held Tuesday in Arcadia.
About 15 people attended the
meeting, including Trustee Beth
Wells-Miller to discuss the devel¬
opment of an Educational Master
Plan (EMP), a comprehensive doc¬
ument that provides an overview
of existing programs and lays out
objectives for future development.
"Success is not just based on get¬
ting students to the door," said
PCC Acting President Lisa
Sugimoto. "It's getting them
through.” Sugimoto also noted
that it's expensive to process and
admit students if they don't stick
around.
To assist in creating an EMP, the
school has hired MIG, a multidisci¬
plinary firm that specializes in
higher education planning.
Tuesday's discussion was led by
Daniel Iacofano, a founding prin¬
cipal of MIG and educational plan¬
ner.
Consultants have been a point of
contention for many faculty mem¬
bers, who believe paying for out¬
side consultation is a waste of
resources.
In early June, the Faculty
Association produced a petition
that protested the cost of consult¬
ants, specifically the $225,235 PCC
has allocated to pay MIG for the
Vision 2020 master plan.
In formulating an EMP, the
Pasadena Area Community
College District will look at how
PCC can best use its resources and
accommodate its projected enroll¬
ment by 2020. The plan also will
help determine facility needs.
"I see this process [of developing
an EMP] as an investment in the
future," Iacofano said. "Our mis¬
sion is open access and student
-success."
The PACCD will draw its plan
with input from the PCC Board of
Trustees, students, faculty, staff,
and community members.
At the center of Tuesday's dis¬
cussion were the strengths and
weaknesses of PCC, as well as key
challenges for the college.
"I think we're bursting at the
seams," said Mary Ann Laun,
Dean of Library Sciences. She
remarked that PCC is strained
when many students show up the
first week of class, expecting to get
admission without having regis¬
tered or taken placement tests.
"Students have to come prepared
ahead of time," she said.
Continued on page 2
Micaela Rodriguez/Courier
A town hall meeting is held in Arcadia on Tuesday night.
Student
DJs
Radio show
starts spinning
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