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CLARION citrus college
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ccclarion.com VOL LXXV • Issue 4
October 5, 2021
Haugh turns 50 BY SKYLR SCOTT
NEWS EDITOR SSCOTT@CCCLARION.COM
In 1971, then-Superintendent/ President of Citrus College Robert D. Haugh achieved a dream 11 years in the making: opening a performing arts center at Citrus College. On Oct. 13, the Haugh will celebrate its 50th anniversary. It was renamed the Robert Haugh Performing Arts Center or Haugh in 1981 to honor the retiring superintendent/president. The Haugh website said it has 1,400 seats, a black box theatre and classrooms, keeping the building busy while hosting 200 performances annually before COVID-19. Throughout the years, the Haugh has added a recording arts and video studio, a dance and piano laboratory, dressing rooms, a state-of-the-art sound system and a new stage light system. “The Haugh is a theatre for the community,” Dean of Visual and Performing Arts John Vaughan said. Vaughan said he is proud of the college for maintaining up-todate technology and continually renovating the Haugh. “When you walk into the Haugh it feels very much state-of-theart,” he said. Although the Haugh can be rented out to showcase anyone’s work, it is dedicated to spotlighting performing artists at Citrus. Many of the performances
Accrediting team to visit virtually
ARCHITECT’S RENDERING FROM CLARION FILE; CURRENT PHOTO BY JUSTIN GEORGE
An early architect’s rendering of the Citrus auditorium, left, is blended with a current photo of the Haugh Performing Arts Center.
are presented by the Citrus College Visual and Performing Arts Department. Tiina Mittler, who has been with Citrus for four years and is currently the director of the Haugh, said, “Not only is this
PHOTO COURTESY OF PIXABAY
STAFF REPORT
Important Dates
Citrus College is preparing for an accreditation visit from Oct. 12 to Oct. 13. Accreditation is a huge deal for the college, Vice President of Academic Affairs and Accreditation Liaison Officer Joumana McGowan said. Without it, the degrees students earn would be invalid. Accreditation also ensures the public that the college is providing quality education, as well as enables access to federal financial aid funds. The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges or ACCJC will conduct its site visit virtually via Zoom meetings. In a presentation at convocation, McGowan explained the three stages of accreditation. Self-Reflection A primary goal of accreditation is to ensure continual improvement and satisfaction of standards at the college,
Welcome: 9:30 a.m. Oct. 12
CONTACT@CCCLARION.COM
Open Forum: 2:45 p.m. Oct. 12 Exit Report: 2:45 p.m. Oct. 13
McGowan said. As a method of self-reflection, Citrus puts together its Institutional Self-Evaluation Report or ISER, which includes evidence that the college satisfies all accreditation standards. Institutional Self-Evaluation Report Teams comprised of various Citrus College employees evaluate the college using four standards: n Mission, Academic Quality and Institutional Effectiveness n Instruction, Library, Learning Support and Student Services n Physical, Technological, Financial and Human Resources
Read Visit, Page 4
a stage for world class artists, it’s also a stage for theater professionals who are starting their career.” Mittler said overseeing the logistics of the rental program, the staffing, programming and
everything that goes into the Haugh is “an absolute pleasure” and that “It is so much fun. It is challenging in all the right places.” She said that because there is nothing like the Haugh nearby, it draws attention from across the
region and highlights the college and its performers. The Haugh has appeared in the 2017 movie “The Circle” starring Emma Watson and Tom Hanks,
BY MIRANDA PALMAS
Last year, groundskeeping wasn’t the same, Cable said. “Without our students the grounds seem lonely,” Cable said. “We are very happy to see some have returned and we look forward to the time when COVID will be over and we can get back to normal.” The college normally has 14 groundskeepers, however, there are currently 12. “That number fluctuates for retirements and various other reasons,” Cable said. “Three positions are currently being advertised.” New protocols have been implemented to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, including social distancing and mask wearing, Cable said. Hand sanitizer is also available throughout campus. Like all other employees and students on campus, groundskeepers have to adhere to mandatory COVID-19 testing and
daily pre-screening. With minimal students and staff around, animals have moved onto the campus. “A lot of rodents and small animals, such as skunks, coyotes, possums, [and] squirrels have moved in,” Cable said. More students and staff are present on the campus now, although during the pandemic “many homeless folks have left messes on campus that we clean up,” Cable said. Besides the lack of people on campus, Cable said groundskeeping hasn’t changed too much. “The trash collection is very minimal but for the most part the work maintaining the grounds is the same whether or not students are on campus,” Cable said. He mentioned that the groundskeepers miss interacting with staff and students and welcome friendly interaction in passing.
Read Haugh, Page 4
COVID-19 affects groundskeepers STAFF REPORTER MPALMAS@CCCLARION.COM
Citrus College has a total of 12 groundskeepers that maintain the campus. Despite the absence of students in the past year, they showed up to do their jobs. Due to COVID-19, the campus was shut down four weeks into the spring 2020 semester and all classes were moved online, but the empty campus still needed to be maintained. Citrus College Grounds Supervisor Randy Cable shared his experience of how COVID-19 impacted groundskeeping on campus and what changes had to be made because of the virus. “Our goal is to give our students the best campus we can,” Cable said. “We strive to keep the grounds well maintained, clean, safe and inviting so students can focus on their studies.”