The Willow Glen Resident

WG trustee campaigns for a community college bond

By Mary Spicuzza

Back in 1921, San Jose City College's humble facilities probably suited its 86 students quite nicely. But decades later folks at the San Jose/Evergreen Community College District have realized that both campuses are in desperate need of renovation and repair, and they've put a bond measure on the Nov. 3 ballot to fund these upgrades.

The district's board of trustees voted June 23 to take steps to turn around decades of neglect with a $135 million bond measure, which would be used to bring campus facilities up to earthquake-safety codes, as well as the access standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Bond moneys would also pay for additional outdoor lighting on both campuses.

According to board president and Willow Glen resident Richard Hobbs, whose trustee area includes the Glen, "Facilities have been the key roadblock to being able to offer innovative and expanded course offerings in our district. Evergreen is a new and incomplete campus, and City College is the second-oldest campus in California, with few renovations in its history."

Considering the colleges have received overwhelming praise--in a district-wide survey, 70 percent of voters in the area give both schools kudos for their wide range of two-year programs and community-oriented courses--some assume passing the bond will be a cakewalk all the way to the polls.

The board of trustees knows better.

The big day may be months away, but the campaign committee is now realizing the key to passage isn't just good intentions but heightened community awareness.

"The general-obligation bond is supported by every [local] elected official from both parties," says trustee Nancy Pyle, who has been a driving force in organizing a citizens' steering committee to rally for the bond's passage. "But we need to get the word out now."

Pyle points out that the bond needs to pass by a two-thirds vote to become a reality for the district. She says many other school districts have failed to pass bonds because some voters simply do not know how desperately facilities need improvements.

On the wish list for San Jose City College is a new library, science lab, facilities for career-training programs and a high-technology center. Evergreen Valley College, which was built in 1975, has set its sights on an addition to its nursing-program facilities, a complex for visual and performing arts and high-tech facilities.

For more information on getting involved in the community-outreach campaign committee, call Catherine Lew at 510/594-0224.

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