PCC’s school of cosmetology has been suspended indefinitely and no classes in the discipline will be offered in the fall as administrators decide on the future of the program.
With the U building still awaiting repairs, space is at a premium for PCC. As a result, the cosmetology school is being forced out of its home in the Community Education Center (CEC) to make way for the soon-to-be accredited nursing program.
The department, which comprises one full-time faculty member and six adjunct faculty members, found out the news via email from the dean of Career and Technical Education Paul Jarrell.
“I can’t believe they did this,” said Gloria Vizer, the program’s only full time faculty member.
According to Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs Kathleen Scott, there had already been discussion about moving the cosmetology school out of the CEC, but space issues and the forthcoming retirement of Vizer accelerated the change.
“It is not our intention to cancel the program,” she said. “There is more planning that needs to be done.”
Scott explained that the ultimate plan was to get the program situated into a storefront that some schools such as Santa Barbara City College use so that there would be more interaction with the public.
Jarrell is currently off campus and did not respond to an email requesting comment on this story.
Vizer has been with the program for 41 years and plans to retire after this year. She said that she and her colleagues sensed trouble was afoot at the beginning of the spring semester when they were alerted that no freshmen were being accepted into the program for the spring or summer terms. They were then promised a big freshman class in the fall, she said, to compensate for the hours missed in the spring and summer before the suspension of the program was revealed.
“This really hurts the program, students, and our clients,” said Vizer.
Lynn Lawrence, who sits on the advisory board for the cosmetology program and owns one of the largest hair salons in the area—Lawrence and Colbert Salon—expressed great concern at the Academic Senate meeting on Monday.
“I have 20 chairs to fill,” Lawrence said. “There isn’t another cosmetology program between Pasadena and Citrus.”
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When I first read this article I said this can’t be true, but, then again, it is so similar to what happened to the Building Construction and Culinary Arts programs (I wonder if the Board of Trustees knows about them). This type of change has a number of implications for the campus. It only amplifies the continued lack of strategic planning and communication to all affected groups including but not limited to the Board of Trustees. Cosmetology is so vital to our community and to so many of our students I can’t imagine the thought processes that led to the idea to suspend the program.
This is a clear end around by the Administration. In order to end a program the Administration would have to get Faculty Senate approval. By suspending the program, or putting it on hiatus , they do not. It is clear that the Administration it still playing games with college.