SMC kicks off 75th anniversary celebration today
By GENEVA WHITMARSH Daily Press Staff Writer
SMC — At the end of a decade marked by jazz, flappers and the Great Depression, a group of 153 students gathered without fanfare on the second floor of a high school building to attend Santa Monica Junior College classes.
What a difference 75 years make. Today, the college has dropped the “junior” from its name and poured millions of dollars into its campuses, which extend throughout the city and attract 30,000 students. And though the swinging ’20s are a thing of the past, the college has left its mark on a more current icon: Rolling Stone magazine recently named SMC one of “Ten of the Best” two-year schools in America.
But as the college swells in size and popularity, officials deal with aging buildings, and the community faces increased traffic and less parking in the residential areas surrounding the school.
“It’s a balancing act,” said Bruce Smith, SMC’s spokesman. “We love the fact that SMC has an outstanding academic reputation. But at the same time, we have to balance that it can create problems and traffic for neighbors. The state legislature rewards us (monetarily) for growing. We’d suffer if we didn’t.”
The parking issue, coupled with increased enrollment, has spawned four satellite campuses throughout Santa Monica.
“Sure, there’s traffic around the school, especially during the first week of registration,” said City Councilman Herb Katz, who lives three blocks from SMC. “People say the school is too big. My argument is that if it wasn’t that big, we couldn’t have a lot of the courses that are offered.”
Another issue facing college officials is outdated buildings, the oldest of which was built in 1952. Smith said the 1994 Northridge Earthquake jump-started multi-million dollar improvements to several campus structures, as two buildings were destroyed and others were damaged.
“A lot of the buildings were simply getting older, and others had other problems, like they weren’t Internet connected,” Smith said.
SMC is reinvesting in itself with projects such as a main stage for the school’s theater arts program and a 10-acre site at the Santa Monica Airport that will eventually house the education, nursing and community service programs. Among those completed are a $2.2 million athletic complex on the east side of the football field and a downtown Santa Monica satellite campus for senior citizens.
And there’s more on the horizon. Voters approved a $160 million bond proposal in March of 2002 that will fund facility upgrades and the purchase of new buildings. And a multi-million dollar performing arts complex is being planned for SMC’s Madison Campus on 11th Street and Santa Monica Boulevard.
This year, college officials are anxiously awaiting the outcome of a $135 million bond proposition on the November ballot. The money would be spent to build and upgrade several buildings at SMC, buy more open space in Santa Monica and Malibu, and fund the development of other properties throughout the city.
The proposition’s creators originally asked for a $175 million bond, but reworked the proposal after failing to garner enough support among the college’s board of trustees. Santa Monica took the heaviest hit under the revised proposal. Whereas the previous plan proposed $75 million in projects at SMC, $75 million in joint projects with Santa Monica City Hall and $25 million in joint projects with Malibu City Hall, the new bond proposes just $45 million for joint projects with Santa Monica City Hall and a slightly reduced amount for SMC.
“All in all, the city’s relationship with the college is good, but there needs to be discussion among the college and the city so we don’t duplicate services,” Katz said. “That’s starting to happen. Part of the $135 million bond will go to items with the city, but there has to be an educational element to it. So, obviously that’s something that has to be coordinated.”
Today, students and staff will focus on celebrating the college’s 75th anniversary and marking the accomplishments since that first class day in 1929. The school now holds the record of being the No. 1 transfer institution to the University of California, USC and other four-year schools. It also boasts a roster of distinguished alumni including California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, actor Dustin Hoffman, singer/musician Rickie Lee Jones, astronaut Walter Cunningham and NFL player Isacc Bruce.
Betsy Hiteshaw, who taught child development at SMC from 1970-97, will be one of many to commemorate the anniversary.
“When I started teaching at SMC, it lacked the richness and ethnic diversity it has today,” she said. “We pushed the envelope further and further every year and made it simply amazing.”
The Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce already has honored SMC for 75 years of service, but the college’s festivities began with the start of the academic year. The following are events going on over the next few months: ■ “Einstein’s Universe” is the feature show at 8 p.m. today and Sept. 17 at SMC’s John Drescher Planetarium. The show examines the 100-year anniversary of the launch of Einstein’s relativity revolution that led to the discovery of warped space, black holes, the Big Bang and more. ■ The California Heritage Museum in Santa Monica will honor SMC and its president, Piedad Robertson, at its Oct. 1 Heritage Award Dinner. ■ SMC’s Opera Theater Benefit featuring artistic director Sue Ann Pinner and college opera alumni will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 1 at Christ the King Catholic Church in Hollywood. ■ SMC’s Homecoming game is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Nov. 13. The college will take on East Los Angeles College, and a special outreach is planned for alumni. ■ Graduates of SMC’s Arts Mentor Program will show their work at an exhibit scheduled from Nov. 16 to Dec. 10. The opening reception will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 19 at the Pete and Susan Barrett Gallery.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 10, 2004. Read the original PDF.