PUBLIC FORUM : READERS TAKE SWING AT DRIVING RANGE PLAN FOR PIERCE COLLEGE.What a way to begin the 50th anniversary of Pierce College In 2006 the Library won a national Excellence award. Academics Pierce College offers associate's degrees, mainly in the arts and sciences. There are also certificate programs in early childhood education, social services, dental hygienist, and others. , by voting to ``move forward'' with the proposal to put a golf driving range on the farm (``Pierce College panel endorses golf range,'' Daily News, Aug. 27). The projected $150,000-a-year income is a tempting offer to a cash-starved campus embroiled em·broil tr.v. em·broiled, em·broil·ing, em·broils 1. To involve in argument, contention, or hostile actions: "Avoid . . . in its worst budget crisis. Yet in the same amount of time it would take to build the golf driving range and begin operation, other funding options suggested to the administration during the past year could be in place. An endowment of $3 million could conservatively generate $180,000 a year to offset the cost of operating the farm. By adding income from grants and student agriculture production, and increasing the endowment, the Agriculture/Natural Resources Department has the potential to become a self-supporting educational program. Why aren't those options being pursued by President E. Bing Inocencio? The college farmland is being targeted for commercial development before bringing together constituencies who support the farm as an agriculture and environmental-teaching laboratory. Obvious constituencies are the agriculture and environmental industries, school districts and community organizations, state and local agriculture and environmental organizations and agencies, and the college's own Agriculture, Earth and Life Science departments. Are these the people Inocencio is referring to when he says ``some people would like to reduce us to just a farm or just a park?'' Is that attitude on his part the reason there has been no farm committee, no farm management team, no farm task force set up by his administration? Add to this the fact that during the past three semesters, the college's major promotional fliers have not mentioned any of the current agriculture/natural resources programs and it appears that, under Inocencio's leadership, the viability of those programs is being seriously undermined. It is time for the public to do what the administration has so far been unwilling to do: establish a farm task force and farm endowment. We can, and will, succeed in preserving this irreplaceable educational asset. - Margo Murman President Coalition to Save the Farm Woodland Hills I am a Pierce College graduate from 1980, a business major. Although I did not directly use, in my studies, the Pierce College farm, it is one of the major attractions that brought me to and kept me at Pierce College. Open space, such as a golf course, is not the same as a working-teaching farm. I attended several farm breakfasts, rodeos There are literally thousands of Rodeos held worldwide each year. Some of the more notable or significant are listed below. Brazil São Paulo
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It is well worth keeping. If the college needs a golf driving range, let them build it on the physical education fields, not the farm. The farm should be made into a state agriculture preserve to safeguard it for our future generations. - Sheryl A. Duke Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. You ask the question, ``Should the community go to the mat to save the agricultural program?'' The answer should be a resounding re·sound v. re·sound·ed, re·sound·ing, re·sounds v.intr. 1. To be filled with sound; reverberate: The schoolyard resounded with the laughter of children. 2. yes! Pierce is the only agricultural campus in our area. It is the only location where you can learn about soils, growing crops, crop rotation, feed for various animals and medical treatment for those animals. While Los Angeles is a sprawling urban area, it should be known that there are more horses per capita [Latin, By the heads or polls.] A term used in the Descent and Distribution of the estate of one who dies without a will. It means to share and share alike according to the number of individuals. in Los Angeles County than in any other county in the country. Many equine equine Any member of the ungulate family Equidae, which includes the modern horses, zebras, and asses, all in the genus Equus, as well as more than 60 species known only from fossils. Equines descended from the dawn horse (see Eohippus). owners depend upon Pierce College's outstanding equine department for important knowledge in caring for their animals. I own two horses. I first started taking classes at Pierce so I would be better able to take care of my animals. The fields that are used for these classes, while they appear not to be in use, are classrooms themselves. While the public may only see cows walking around in them, they are used by horticulture horticulture [Lat. hortus=garden], science and art of gardening and of cultivating fruits, vegetables, flowers, and ornamental plants. Horticulture generally refers to small-scale gardening, and agriculture to the growing of field crops, usually on a large classes, biology classes and agricultural classes. Please do not deprive us of our learning facilities. Why not try and cut out some of the costs from the top-heavy portion of the college system? Why is it necessary to maintain two offices downtown for the administration? One is mortgaged; one is rented. Why not move the offices to a college campus that has room for them and cut those costs? - Mary E. Kaufman Calabasas On Sept. 14, 1947, 70 young men attended the first class offered at the Clarence Pierce School of Agriculture. It seems a shame that on the eve On the Eve (Накануне in Russian) is the third novel by famous Russian writer Ivan Turgenev, best known for his short stories and the novel Fathers and Sons. of Pierce's 50th birthday, the usefulness of the farm and the continuation of the agriculture programs has to be debated. At first, taking 11 acres out of the 240 acres of the Agriculture Department land for a driving range may not sound threatening, but I see it as what may be a cancerous tumor that may grow. - Jim Severino Winnetka We are appalled at the idea of developing a golf driving range on a large portion of Pierce College property - not for the glory of the school but to establish a for-profit business, on what was used as school/farm/learning center property for our community college. Please stop this development. - Diane and Michael Merriman Agoura Hills The Pierce College administration seems determined to build a golf driving range on the green pastures of its farmland that will inevitably destroy the school's agricultural program. There will be many unfortunate consequences of such a course of action. Valuable programs of veterinary science, animal husbandry animal husbandry, aspect of agriculture concerned with the care and breeding of domestic animals such as cattle, goats, sheep, hogs, and horses. Domestication of wild animal species was a crucial achievement in the prehistoric transition of human civilization from , horticultural hor·ti·cul·ture n. 1. The science or art of cultivating fruits, vegetables, flowers, or ornamental plants. 2. The cultivation of a garden. science and general agriculture will no longer be available to students. Over the years, schoolchildren schoolchildren school npl → écoliers mpl; (at secondary school) → collégiens mpl; lycéens mpl schoolchildren school got their first experience of live farm animals at Pierce and the old farm store was a place to buy fresh eggs, fruits and vegetables. Commercial development will prevent the revival of amenities like these. The Pierce fields and pastures are the primary source of forage forage Vegetable food, including corn and hay, of wild or domestic animals. Harvested, processed, and stored forage is called silage. Forage should be harvested in early maturity to avoid a decrease in protein and fibre content as crops mature. for the hundreds of Canada geese that spend the winter in the Valley. A V-shaped flock of geese across the sky, honking as they go, is an exciting spectacle, rare in a big city. If the geese lose their food supply we will lose something unique in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . Have the college authorities explored others ways to raise money? Have they applied for grants from foundations, government agencies, agribusiness agribusiness Agriculture operated by business; specifically, that part of a modern national economy devoted to the production, processing, and distribution of food and fibre products and byproducts. ? Have they brainstormed with local organizations - homeowners, service clubs, youth organizations - for ideas or fund raising? Perhaps a more enterprising and energetic approach to solving the financial problems of Pierce is required by those in charge rather than sacrificing the beautiful campus to a driving range. - Sandy Wohlgemuth Conservation Chair Los Angeles Audubon Society West Hollywood West Hollywood A community of southern California northeast of Beverly Hills. It is mainly residential. Population: 36,600. As a part-time agriculture student at Pierce College for more than two years, I am concerned that the general public is being taken in by the current administration of Pierce College, especially regarding the supposed lack of interest in agriculture courses. That simply is not the case. In the animal science course which commenced several weeks ago, 60 students showed up, hoping to get into the class originally meant for 30. Clearly the interest is there, not only in the excellent preveterinary-veterinary program and the Registered Veterinary Technician A veterinary technician (also called a vet tech), is a person trained and licensed to assist veterinarians. Their job is similar to that of a nurse. Job description program but also in general agriculture. The powers that be at Pierce College now want to develop a driving range on part of the farm acreage in order to help alleviate financial problems. I find it outrageous and see it as yet another nail in the coffin in which to bury the Agriculture Department. Repeatedly, the students and agriculture faculty have come up with logical and ``doable'' methods to generate income for the Agriculture Department so it would not have to rely on the financial support of the rest of the college. What have we gotten in return? ``No'' to the annual rodeo, which had well-documented profits until 1993 and 1994 when severe weather caused decreased attendance, and ``no'' to multiple Farm Walks - we were allowed one Farm Walk this year. Please do not be misled. There is interest in maintaining the Agriculture Department, but the students and the agriculture faculty desperately need the public's support. - Jan Wolf Lake View Terrace Pierce College is the last school in Los Angeles where children and adults can learn where food comes from. At Pierce they can see fruit trees, sheep, pigs and cattle being cared for. We need to save Pierce College farm and bring back the dairy and farm store. - Willis E. Simms Woodland Hills In this age of computers and electronics it is easy to forget that ``food'' comes from some place other than the grocery store. Our children need a place to learn and see how that process happens. Pierce College provides that experience. If you have not been to the Farm Walk in the springtime, you probably have not seen the delight and expressions of awe on the faces of the local children who visit. Have you also missed the geese that migrate from Canada? If the land is gone, where will they go? The use of this land should be dictated by the needs of the education of the students and by the local community. How would having a driving range improve education? I understand the college district needs funds, but why can't we use what we have for its intended use? I do not want these programs to disappear that others might not have this opportunity. This college should not lose any of its land. Once gone it cannot be reclaimed. We need the support of funds from the state to continue, as intended, as an agricultural school. This school provides excellent general education as well. - Patricia Wightman Canyon Country I am a new student at Pierce Community College enrolled in the Agricultural Horse Program. I have wanted to be in this program for many years now but for various reasons I wasn't able to go straight out of high school. I greatly fear not being able to get my associate's degree as·so·ci·ate's degree n. An academic degree conferred by a two-year college after the prescribed course of study has been successfully completed. in horse science here at Pierce because with the cutbacks, the classes I need to take will no longer be available. I cannot afford to go to a university or a private school because I do not have a steady enough job to pay for my moving out of my parents' home. Pierce offers me the ability to take the agricultural classes I need while still being able to stay at home. There needs to be more focus on how to save this amazing a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. campus. We have lost so many things already, it would be a grand shame to lose this. I'm sure a way can be created that would get the school out of financial problems without taking away the one thing that makes the school great. If nothing gets done for myself and the people who are attending the school now, something should be done to save the agricultural program for those who want to attend in the future. - Betina Loudermilk North Hollywood The Woodland Hills Homeowners Organization has long taken the position with each president of the college that the lands shall remain for the sole use of the college district for educational purposes. The WHHO WHHO President’s Park (White House) (US National Park Service) continues to demand that the agricultural program be actively maintained and all the land preserved. - Gordon Murley President Woodland Hills Homeowners Organization Woodland Hills I am an avid golfer myself but really now, another driving range? Is this the most creative solution our high thinkers in positions of authority can come up with? Corporations who profit from the business of agriculture - such as Archer Daniels Midland The Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM), is a conglomeration based in Decatur, Illinois. ADMoperates more than 270 plants worldwide, where cereal grains and oilseeds are processed into numerous products used in food, beverage, nutraceutical, industrial and animal feed , for example - and various other foundations, together with responsible civic leaders surely could construct a master plan, whereby the agricultural unit could be rCestored in such a way that would meet the needs of society in addition to running in the black. - Kas KAS Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (German Organization) Kas Kaserne (German Military: Barracks) KAS Social Action Cause (Netherlands Antilles) KAS Kontant Arbetsmarknadsstöd Gehring Tarzana Instead of a golf driving range, re-establish and expand the Pierce College farm plus a Cicero Farmer's Market selling corn, pumpkins, etc., which will bring revenue to the college. - Robert Garsen Woodland Hills At one time the Los Angeles Community College District The Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) is the community college district serving Los Angeles, California and some of its neighboring cities. In addition to typical college aged students, the LACCD also serves adults of all ages. required each college to prepare an annual Master Plan with measurable goals and objectives. At one time the LACCD LACCD Los Angeles Community College District chancellor installed a managerial accountability system to augment this strategic planning Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people. process. I know because I was part of the consulting team which assisted the chancellor. It now appears that this was much ado about nothing Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy by William Shakespeare. First published in 1600, it was likely first performed in the winter of 1598-1599,[1] and it remains one of Shakespeare's most enduring plays on stage. to the LACCD board of trustees board of trustees Politics The posse of thugs who oversee an institution's administration. See Board of directors. and the current cadre of administrative folks downtown. The series of recent financial crises needs careful and objective scrutiny. Why have income-generating ventures been canceled and/or delayed? Are there more LACCD designs to sell more of the parklike acreage at Pierce? What are plans to renew community trust in the managerial competence of the board of trustees and administrative folks? Are there current systems to assure strategic planning and accountability for results from the chancellor on down to and including each faculty person? The district is not bereft of talent as demonstrated by continuing successes of Mission and East Los Angeles colleges ELAC is a two year college, offering associate degree programs in over 25 fields as well as both academic transfer courses which prepare students for admission to the University of California and California State University system and occupational programs which prepare students for . There most likely are managerial gems widely scattered throughout the LACCD colleges. My concern is can the LACCD administrative folks recognize and use these gems when they find them? - J.B. ``Jerry'' Domine Winnetka Pierce College agricultural farmland is the jewel of the Valley. The 10-9 vote of the Pierce Council, to lease a portion of this acreage for a golf driving range, is outrageous. Agricultural studies programs should be emphasized and expanded. The farm could be completely self-supporting, as it was in the past. The people of the San FernCando Valley, both business and residential, need to unite to preserve this land for our children's children. - Pauline Tallent Winnetka Please make the farm a state agriculture preserve to save for my children and their children. We need geese, not golf. - Nadine Bufanda Panorama City It's a fact that driving ranges are a losing proposition financially. - Emaline Rich Woodland Hills ``Pave-over farmland is gone forever.'' - Marc Reisner, author of ``Cadillac Desert.'' - Melba Simms Woodland Hills Whether or not to convert part of the Pierce College farm into a golf driving range seems to be the burning question. It is sometimes appropriate to answer a question with another question: ``How ya gonna keep 'em happy down on the farm, after they've seen . . . La Quinta A division of Seagate that was originally an acquisition and then absorbed into the company by 1999. Quinta was the developer of Optically Assisted Winchester (OAW) technology. See OAW. , Morningside, Thunderbird thunderbird In North American Indian mythology, a powerful spirit in the form of a bird that watered the earth and made vegetation grow. Lightning was believed to flash from its eyes or beak, and the beating of its wings was thought to represent rolling thunder. , Rancho Las Palmas Las Palmas: see Palmas, Las, Spain. Las Palmas or Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Seaport city (pop., 2001: 354,863), northeastern Grand Canary Island, Spain. , Ironwood ironwood: see hornbeam. ironwood Any of numerous trees and shrubs, found worldwide, that have exceptionally tough or hard wood useful for timber, fence posts, and tool handles. . . .?'' - Lyle Talbot Lyle Talbot (February 8, 1902 - March 2, 1996), born Lisle Henderson in Pittsburgh but raised in a small Nebraska town, was a Hollywood actor best known for playing Joe Randolph on television's The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet Lancaster Inocencio uprooting Pierce farm ACCORDING to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. information given me, the Pierce College administration - whose president is E. Bing Inocencio - is seeking a golf driving range in the agricultural area of Pierce College. This could be interpreted as an attempt to eliminate the program and students involved in it. Many students, as well as faculty at the Pierce campus, depend upon the Pierce College farm experience to meet their goals in such fields as animal husbandry, veterinary medicine veterinary medicine, diagnosis and treatment of diseases of animals. An early interest in animal diseases is found in ancient Greek writings on medicine. Veterinary medicine began to achieve the stature of a science with the organization of the first school in the , horticulture, research sciences, natural resources management and food services food services Hospital services A 24/7 department in a hospital that provides for the nutritional needs of inpatients–eg, those needing special diets, preparing meals and transporting them to the floor and, through the cafeteria, the hospital staff and . The Pierce College farm is supported and appreciated by the local community. Pierce College is the only regional facility that allows students to participate in production agriculture. Families can also enjoy and better understand agriculture and its importance in our everyday lives through the Pierce College farm experience. I have been told that Inocencio lobbies against the agriculture department, claiming it is operating at a deficit, while others question the basis of this argument. I am also tCold that all proposals offered by the agriculture department to generate revenue have been rejected by Dr. Inocencio. I have been informed also that in January, Dr. Inocencio directed Dorothy Rupert, dean of the Foundation for Pierce College, to seek no monetary grants to assist the agriculture program. Also, Pierce College advertising in the community over the past year ignores the agriculture and natural resources programs. My wife attends Pierce College and informs me that all her agricultural classes are not only full, but overflowing with students - an undeniable testimony to the popularity of this department. Gross sales Gross Sales A measure of overall sales that isn't adjusted for customer discounts or returns, calculated simply by adding all sales invoices, and not including operating expenses, cost of goods sold, payment of taxes, or any other charge. of agricultural products in California last year were $24.5 billion. California agriculture and its related industries bring in over $58 billion in revenues. Contributing 120,000 jobs to the state economy in 1995, this industry provides food and fiber to the state, the nation and the world. Exports of California commodities contribute billions annually to the U.S. balance of trade. California agricultural resources are unique and irreplaceable - a combination of climate, fertility, and water that make it the most productive agricultural area of the nation, indeed the world. It surpasses the famed ``fertile crescent'' of ancient Mesopotamia. It has national economic and strategic importance. Pierce College is a valuable asset to California agriculture, providing much-needed, hands-on agricultural experience in the urban area. It is my hope that readers of this letter will contact Pierce College administrators at (818) 719-6408 to determine whether these things "These Things" is an EP by She Wants Revenge, released in 2005 by Perfect Kiss, a subsidiary of Geffen Records. Music Video The music video stars Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage. Track Listing 1. "These Things [Radio Edit]" - 3:17 2. are true and if so, as taxpayers, require justification for administration actions. - Casey Alesso President Los Angeles County Farm Bureau Lancaster CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Cows at Pierce College would vie for space with a driving range under proposal. Hans Gutknecht/Daily News |
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