Share: The Pasadena Area Community College District and the Pasadena Faculty Association (PCCFA) came to an agreement following a Public Employment Relations Board recommendation on Dec. 12, 2022 to bring back the winter intersession to PCC after it was removed from the academic calendar as a three year “pilot program” which started in 2021. The pilot program was created and approved by the PCC Community College District and the Board of Trustees was not legal according to the PERB ruling because it did not properly …
BLOTTER: Hazmat situation and loitering transients
Share: Monday – January 23, 2023: A male transient was advised to leave campus after sleeping in Lot 4. Lot 7 was patrolled after a suspicious vehicle circled the lot. A report was taken after a police unit in Lot 4 was vandalized by a subject shattering the front and rear window with a concrete rock. A transient left campus after being seen sleeping in a blanket near the North Entrance of C-bldg. Drug paraphernalia was removed from grass adjacent to CDC. There was a …
Harassment of women remains prevalent at PCC
Share: Sexual harassment in college campuses is a growing issue on a nationwide scale. As new data is being presented showing the influx of harassment rates, PCC discusses extra measures to ensure the future safety of students on campus and raise awareness on a local level. Around 9.2 million undergraduate women wake up each morning to attend college classes, a privilege that only became protected by Title IX of the Education Amendments in 1972. As of 2020 women make up 58% of undergraduate enrollment, yet …
Post-COVID enrollment ticks up compared to spring ’22
Share: Stalling enrollment rates at PCC are showing signs of a slight increase in Spring 2023 as more students make their way back to campus following the impacts of COVID-19 and successive declines in enrollment. In a Board of Trustees meeting on Jan 18, admissions data was presented by the Dean for Enrollment Services Dr. Myriam Altounji, and the Assistant Superintendent-Vice President of Instruction Dr. Laura Ramirez, which showed a jump in student count from last Spring, and Fall 2022. Although the Spring 2023 semester …
BLOTTER: Fire alarms and transients asked to leave campus
Share: Monday, January 9, 2023 A black male transient was escorted off campus after roaming around in the C- building. A fire alarm was silenced in Welding Shop after smoke was detected. A transient sleeping in Lot 5 level 1 was escorted off campus. A female student reported not receiving a check that Financial Aid sent her. Financial Aid stated that it had already been cashed out. A male transient known to sleep in Lot 4, was escorted out of the C-building after loitering inside …
Authorities investigate hazardous materials at library, find baking soda
Share: Update 2:15 p.m.: According to the Pasadena Police Department the suspected hazardous materials ended up being baking soda, and no further action was taken. Original Story: On Wednesday Jan 25 the Pasadena Fire Department responded to a hazardous materials report at 55 South Hill Avenue at 12:15 p.m. According to the Pasadena Fire Department on scene it was supposedly a “white” substance in the book drop-off, and multiple response teams from a number of local fire fighting agencies are responding to the incident. The …
PCC community gathers to mourn the 11 lives lost in the Monterey Park shooting
Share: On Jan 24, four days after the deadliest mass shooting in LA county history and three days after the start of Lunar New Year celebrations, PCC students, faculty, and staff gathered in the Circadian Lounge to honor the 11 lives lost in the shooting at the Star Ballroom Dance Hall. The event, organized and hosted by CAPE – the Coalition of Asian Pacific Employees, a collaborative group of current and former Asian and Pacific Islander PCC employees – aimed to provide people with a …
PCC set to hire 58 new faculty members
Share: Pasadena City College will be hiring 58 new faculty members in the coming year funded by the schools annual hiring budget. Funding for the new hires comes from the allotted state funds that the school receives each year. The amount of funding is determined by the number of students enrolled. Positions will include professors, counselors and librarians. “It is 58 faculty positions, this is something that the college goes through every year,” PCC’s Spokesperson, Alexander Boekelheide said.”In State regulations require us to hire a …
Community colleges won’t face the brunt of California budget cuts
Share: PCC and other California Community Colleges are facing possible spending cuts due to the budget deficit in California. “Right now we are in pretty good shape but there are storm clouds in the horizon,” said board of trustees member Jim Osterling. “the state has given us a heads up and plenty of lead time to be able to do our best we can and adjust for that.” The run of budget surpluses California has been enjoying in recent years has come to end. Recent …
What’s cooking at the Piazza: School searches for new food vendor
Share: The Piazza, PCC’s main cafeteria, is undergoing changes to adopt a new food vendor as early as March— following the termination of food services on campus by the current contracting company, Sodexo, in December of 2022. Even though the replacement vendor has not yet been decided, preparation to make changes is currently ongoing. Four potential food vendors— Primo Nosh, PFD Management, Inc., Thomas Cuisine, and Genuine Foods attended a mandatory pre-proposal conference and job-walk. The vendors are encouraged to present their business proposals to …