A humane donation by Dr. Norman Levan has created a place that will specifically be for the outreach of intelligence into the community as well as a workshop area for existing faculty and administration.
According to President William Andrews, the donation by Dr. Levan was a gift to Bakersfield College that included $2 million in funds to create the center, which is titled The Norman Levan Center for the Humanities, and another $1.5 million that are endowment funds. Only the money generated from the $1.5 million, in interest, can be used toward the center. The body of the money must never be spent.
According to an approved outline by Dr. Levan, the center “has the mission of providing programs and other activities which promote improved connections between the humanities and the practice of medicine, support ethical behavior in business and the professions, and encourage greater levels of scholarship and intellectual exchange among the faculty of Bakersfield College as well as in the Bakersfield Community.”
In order for the concept of the center to exist, it needed the framework of a home.”
There were five destinations that were chosen as ideas for the new center. Two rooms were located in the humanities section of the campus, at the north and east end. Another option was building a new location, while an out-skirted option was to leave the money as is. The last location was B-18, which was decided as the new location for the center.
The chosen destination, however, will momentarily displace students and faculty that inhabited the space that is the Office and Technology Lab area located in Room B-18, a spacious computer lab with a couple of offices for faculty members. It is located in the Business section of the campus.
B-18 was moved because it would not affect as many students as the other proposed locations. “One of the justifications was use of the class,” said Academic Senate President John Gerhold. “It had a lot of classes in it, but it did not service that many full-time students. So if we took it offline, to put the Levan Center there, the administration said that it would not have that great of an impact on the college at large.”
40 hours a week is how much time the lab is in operation.
“It had the least negative impact on instruction,” said Andrews. “I’m confident the Vice President (Ed Knudson) and faculty can address those instructions in another way, than the other locations.”
Business Department Chair Michael Ivey, as well as Vice President of Academic Affairs Ed Knudson, were chosen at an October 17 Academic Senate Executive Board Meeting to lead the search of a new home for the Office and Technology Lab.
The displacement of the classes should not hold over for too long. According to Knudson, classes will still be held this spring unaffected and a permanent home should be conceived by fall 2008.
“I met with Ed last week,” said Ivey. “They are still investigating alternatives, but I’m doubtful that a decision will be made by the fifth.”
Dec. 5, 2007, is the date that the senate will vote on a drafted resolution that calls for the administration to be more open and honest in the decision making with faculty and classified staff, according to Gerhold. The resolution was not finalized initially, for the senate allowed a relaxation period on the passage of the resolution in order for a promise to be realized.
“The president promised he would get together with the business department and discuss the courses that would be displaced,” said Gerhold. “He said they would have the decision for the replacement of the Technology Lab by Christmas, so we didn’t want to vote on the resolution and hoped they made good on their promise.”
The meeting on Oct. 17 was a special meeting where Andrews, Knudson and Levan Center Director Jack Hernandez were invited to attend. The occupants of the meeting discussed the entire issue, and Andrews discussed the decision-making process in choosing the Levan Center location.
After the meeting, the senate came to a conclusion. “We realize that the decision to put the Levin Center in B-18 was not very open,” said Gerhold, “In fact, the president apologized for not being open, and committed to future decisions being more open.”
The decision was on the executive level and Andrews ultimately had the final say. The faculty of the business department has no objection to the center and sees it as a wonderful gift.
“It’s not about the center, or the place of the center, or Dr. Levan,” said Ivey, “we are very grateful, but the lack of communication is what the department is upset about.”
“If I could do it over I would have called them together over the summer,” said Andrews. “I would have called them together and informed them of my decision and talked about it.”