COLLEGE HAS SHOT AT EXTRA FUNDS.

Byline: Eugene Tong  Staff Writer

VALENCIA - College of the Canyons has a shot at collecting $1.25 million toward construction of a permanent home for its University Center if it can meet a series of fund-raising hurdles, including a $250,000 donor challenge by year's end, officials said.

Among the contributions into the project's $10 million goal disclosed Wednesday is a $250,000 gift from The Newhall Land & Farming Company. The Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation, a charity operated by the Newhall family, also pledged $250,000 - to be paid in $50,000 increments over five years - if the nonprofit College of the Canyons Foundation can raise an equal amount during that time.

A third gift of $50,000 came from an anonymous donor, who pledged an additional $200,000 to the center if the college raises at least $250,000 by Dec. 31. The foundation has collected some $80,000 toward the match over the past six weeks, Executive Director Kathleen Maloney said.

``That's a hard task,'' she said. ``But it's one we're up to. We feel confident that when we get the word out about this match, more people will respond. It's definitely a way of doubling your money.''

Envisioned as a hub for local residents to earn bachelor's and master's degrees at the community college, the University Center has hosted dozens of degree programs from four-year institutions including California State University, Northridge, and University of La Verne at a set of portable classrooms. About 300 degrees have been awarded from the center during the past 18 months.

Meantime, officials were trying to raise $10 million for a permanent building on the campus's southwest corner. Roughly $6 million in pledges and donations have been assembled since the foundation began the effort two years ago, Maloney said. ``We've been in the silent phase of this campaign,'' she said. ``Now we're into the community part where we have to get more and more people involved.''

The ongoing matching-fund challenge will energize the campaign, Maloney said.

``It really does keep you going,'' she said. ``And it's exciting for the donors. Everyone wants to be on that winning team.''

Newhall Land chief executive Gary Cusumano said his company's gift to the effort is an investment for the business community.

``Industry relies on the skills and knowledge of the work force to stay competitive in their given markets,'' he said. ``Currently, our company, like others in this community, must often go outside of this valley to secure the advanced levels of technology and training to keep our edge.

``The University Center will provide local residents and employees the opportunity to earn their bachelor's and master's degrees from four-year universities without having to leave our valley,'' he said.

The grant from the Newhall Foundation - the largest the charity has made - continues the family's dedication to local philanthropy, said Tony Newhall, the group's board secretary and great-grandson of patriarch Henry Mayo Newhall.

``Our goal is to contribute to improve the culture and quality of life in the communities where Henry Mayo Newhall lived and worked,'' he said. ``We were actually stunned by (the college's) ideas and their vision.

``We saw that the University Center will fulfill a broad spectrum of needs,'' Newhall said. ``It's bringing an opportunity for all classes of people to expand their learning and their horizons without leaving this valley.''

Eugene Tong, [phone]

eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

College of the Canyons President Dianne Van Hook places a mortarboard on a depiction of the new $10 million University Center planned for the campus. The college announced gifts of $250,000 and a fund-raising challenge with matching funds.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer