CLARION citrus college
Wednesday, September18, 2019
Paranormal class resumes Page 3
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SOLAR CARPORTS COMING TO SOUTHWEST OF CAMPUS
Faculty art show Page 6
Volume LXXIII Issue 2
Trustees disagree over new Board Policy BY JAMES DUFFY V EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
JDUFF Y@CCCL ARION.COM
The Citrus College Board of Trustees disagreed over a revision to its Code of Ethics on Aug. 20. Trustee Ed Ortell requested to divide the motion between the previously agreed Code and amended provisions he contested. Ortell contended the new language in the Board’s Code of Ethics could limit his free speech rights, hurt his constituents and restrict his use of the press. His motion to divide was denied after receiving no second. Their dispute arose over differing interpretations of a Board Policy 2715 taken from “While you respect the majority and you’re willing to abide by it, you may not want to support that particular approach,” Ortell said.
SEE “TRUSTEES” PAGE 9 Photo courtesy of Wikimedia
S2 and E2 parking lots to close for construction between October and December
C BY JAMES DUFFY V EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
JDUFF Y@CCCL ARION.COM
itrus College closed the third phase of a five-year sustainability plan. As part of the plan, solar carport stalls will be installed on the southwest of
campus. M Bar C construction was awarded a $1.8 million contract with Citrus College after a bid walk in June. M Bar C director of strategic accounts Neil Bradley said construction would begin between late October and midNovember and progress to early 2020. M Bar C marketing coordinator Kelsey Webster said her company’s innovative spirit made them a leader in solar shade structures. “Back in 1975, we opened just doing carports,” Webster said. “You’ll see them at a lot of apartment complexes. There’s just shade. There’s not solar on top. As time has gone on and that’s an
opportunity, we now have access to, putting solar on top of car ports, it was a natural progression.” Solar panels will not be installed on the southern slopes of the football stadium as previously discussed by facilities. Trees lining the football stadium will not be cut down. “That plan was an alternate and that one was cost prohibitive,” said Fred Diamond, facilities supervisor. Diamond said construction and energy storage were strategically planned to maximize state subsidies. For energy savings, the college gets 24 cents per kilowatt/hour. Facilities also benefits from grant money for reducing the college’s energy demand through retro-commissioning and transitioning to LED light bulbs. The college received a rebate for energy efficient light bulbs. The rebate is no longer available California Energy Commission offered a $250,000 grant to the college to incentivize conservation improvements campus wide in 2014. Many of the improvements to campus facilities benefited directly from successive grant disbursements. The college kept thorough records of all its energy usage to show compliance with the commission’s plan, and made them eligible for more grant money. Bradley said in an email the campus’ 1,416 panels can generate 566.4 kilowatts of power. Only some of the solar power
California Energy Commission offered a $250,000 grant to the college to incentivize conservation generated is during the day is stored. Some of the power is unusable during other high usage periods. Though the solar generated power for the college is far below its energy demand, the college negotiated a deal with Southern California Edison to reduce its energy cost in exchange for the solar power generated. Diamond said he suspects the next campus energy projects will involve dramatic changes to the state electrical and energy codes. He stays informed of energy opportunities by listening to statewide facilities management team he is part of, within the Community College Chancellor’s office. “We get all the scoop,” Diamond said.
Campus literary lights extinguish English Society disbands after five-years BY CASSIE SAMPSON STAFF REPORTER
CSAMPSON@CCCL ARION.COM
The English Society shut down at the end of the spring 2019 semester. Professors who could no longer moderate the club said the English Society closed due to lack of support and a shifting curriculum “It’s been a journey as to why we had to put it on hold,” said Lisa Telesca, Language Arts professor and English Society moderator. “It’s not forever; it’s on hiatus.” English curriculum changes were mandated by California Assembly Bill 705. The bill forces community college English and math professors to instruct transferlevel coursework in two semesters. The legislation accelerates students through math and English requirements to increase the graduates. But the bill also stressed professors in those subjects including the club moderators. They said they hope once their department gets used to the new workflow, the club will return.
SEE “ENGLISH” PAGE 9
AZUSA POLICE CHIEF RETIRES BY DEBLI CHAVES STAFF REPORTER
DCHAVES@CCCL ARION.COM
Police captain Michael Bertelsen was sworn-in as chief of the Azusa Police Department, replacing chief Stepan Hunt on Sept.16. The former chief and Citrus College administration of justice professor Hunt ended his 30-year career with his department Sept. 13. He led the police department for three years before retiring at age 51. Hunt began his career with the police department in December 1989 as a trainee. He was a supervisor, watch
commander, narcotics officer, detective, gang training officer, terrorism liaison and a member of the SWAT team. Hunt was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for his role in a violent incident at a bank in 1995. During his time as chief, some of his officers were awarded the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor by President Donald Trump, the highest national award for law enforcement. Hunt submitted his officers for the award for their conduct during an election day shooting in 2016. “To be recognized at a national level
for their heroism was just incredible and probably the highlight of my career,” Hunt said. His department hired 25 officers during his time as chief. Operations Captain Chris Grant has been with the Azusa Police Department for thirteen years. Captain Grant said the department does a lot of community outreach. “We do a lot of community engagement, it’s very important to us,” Grant said.
SEE “CHIEF” PAGE 9
Retired Azusa Police Chief Stephan Hunt