The IVC faculty do not support the veterans' memorial clock tower project

     AS WE REPORTED Nov 9 (Another one of Glenn Roquemore’s hobbyhorses), the issue of construction of a veterans’ memorial clock tower has come up again at the college (IVC).
     The college once featured a “beloved” clock tower—a tribute, not to veterans, but to time, or maybe wood—inside its original central quadrangle, but it was torn down in 2006 owing to the structure's deterioration. Soon thereafter, the college indicated that a “new clock tower” was planned (Register, 2006). By 2008 and 2009, district (SOCCCD) documents referred to plans for a “Veterans Tribute Tower” at IVC. An IVC “Veterans Memorial Clock Tower project” was discussed in 2010, and a “Foundation Veterans Memorial Clock Tower Project” was referred to (by the President’s office) in 2013.
     More recently, an “IVC Veterans Tribute Tower Project” is referred to in district documents that indicate that a call for bids for construction has gone out. (That period is now over.)
     But, really, who wants this thing?
     Now that Glenn Roquemore has resigned from the IVC Presidency ("Woohoo!"), planned college expenditures seem to be under review, and this “million dollar” tower project has quickly come under scrutiny.

A tribute to time, and wood

     Item L of yesterday’s Academic Senate meeting was the planned clock tower. According to the meeting’s agenda, “recent administrative change ha[ve] led to a review of the plan to build a clock tower at IVC for over a million dollars.” The question before the group is: “[Do] IVC faculty want to go forward with the plan to build a clock tower?”

     During discussion of this item, I asked whether community groups or other groups would be disappointed (or worse) should the project be cancelled. Evidently, the answer is “no.” I was told that campus veterans were consulted and they indicated that they had no desire for the construction of this memorial.
     One wag noted that architectural renderings of the proposed tower seem to depict something that looked like a massive "guillotine."
     We all stared at the rendering.
     Senate VP Jeff told us that plans for a new student services complex are underway, and there is no reason why some sort of clock couldn't be included as part of that project, when the time comes to plan the dang thing.
     That was reassuring to fans of big timepieces.

     It became clear, too, that cancellation of the current "clock tower" project would free up the money, that hasn't been spent, for other campus projects.
     With such factoids before them, the Senators resoundingly defeated the agenda item.
     For what that's worth.

* * *

     IN OTHER NEWS: widely detested IVC administrator Linda Fontanilla (Vice President for Student Services) recently received a new contract, but it was only for a single year. Most other administrators and managers received 2-year contracts.
     I attended last week's meeting of the School of Humanities. During the meeting, we were treated to a presentation by one of the college's chemists, who was there to discuss ongoing efforts to compose "learning objectives." Since he was a chemist, and since he asked if we had any questions, I said, "Is it true that  Kiana Tabibzadeh will be returning to IVC?"
     Kiana, you see, used to teach Chemistry around here. And she's Glenn Roquemore's wife.

     The question seemed to throw the fellow a bit. Then he said, "at yesterday's department meeting, we were told that that might happen." —Something like that.
     You'll recall that, after years and years of nepotistism-based Kianistic high-handedness and abuse over in the B200 Building, our Kiana was sent packing to the other college, Saddleback. But now hubby has resigned the IVC Presidency, and he'll be returning, in the Fall, not to IVC, but to Saddleback. (Why there? Dunno.)
     So I guess that led to Kiana's direction to go north.
     —Or maybe these events are unrelated.
     Dunno.
     Question: why did Glenn resign and not serve out the rest of his contract? What was that about?
     And: is he getting paid in the Spring (while he enjoys home life)? Even though he resigned?