Foothill College prepares to unveil

Foothill College in Los Altos Hills is scheduled to celebrate five decades of providing higher education to Silicon Valley students with a community open house that features the grand opening of the college’s new Campus Center, Student Services Building, Life Sciences Building and Lohman Theatre, 4-7 p.m. Sept. 25. “We transform lives at Foothill College,” said President Judy Miner, who added that these are the first major construction projects at Foothill since the Foothill-De Anza Community College District was formed in 1957 and the hilltop campus opened in 1961. “We’ve watched crews transform concrete, glass and steel into the newest, most innovative instructional and student services spaces in Silicon Valley. For seven years, construction workers and cranes have been doing the heavy lifting. Now, it’s time for Foothill students, faculty and staff to do our own version of heavy lifting, by using these new teaching and learning facilities for their highest and best purpose.” The celebration The celebration will begin with remarks from Perkins+Will Design Principal Nick Seierup, who has shepherded the construction projects. Additional speakers include Miner, Foothill-De Anza Community College District Chancellor Martha Kanter, Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board President Hal Plotkin, Foothill Academic Senate President Paul Starer and Foothill Classified Senate President David Garrido. The festivities will feature the grand opening of the college’s new Campus Center. Guests can tour the new facility and enjoy live entertainment, art and historical displays, dance performances by members of the award-winning Foothill Repertoire Dance Company and ballroom dancers Bill Frankeberger and Elia Wu, and hors d’oeuvres. An exhibit by landscape photographer Morley Baer, who took photos of the hilltop campus when it was first constructed in 1961, under the direction of architects Kump, Masten and Hurd will be showcased. Originally built to serve 3,500 full-time students, today Foothill serves more than 18,000 students per quarter on campus, online and at community locations such as its Middlefield Campus in Palo Alto. Measure E, a $248 million facilities bond passed by voters in 1999 to renovate existing buildings as well as construct new facilities in the Foothill-De Anza Community College District, funded the newly constructed buildings. In 2006, voters approved Measure C, a 15-year $490 million plan to support more renovations and new construction at Foothill College and De Anza College in Cupertino. Lower campus complex The lower campus complex serves as the visual and physical gateway entrance to the campus. It provides easy access to students and visitors. The two largest structures in the complex are the three-story Student Services Building and the Life Sciences Building, both built into the hillside. These main buildings feature green roofs with soil and plantings to mimic the natural landscape when viewed from the upper campus. Both buildings have outside elevators that offer access to the upper campus. At the top of the complex, a classroom building houses a multimedia computer lab and two lecture halls, each seating 60 students. The complex includes the new Lohman Theatre. The Student Services building is designed to function as a one-stop shop. The new structure houses admissions, records, outreach, assessment, financial aid, counseling services, the Career/Transfer Center, three multipurpose rooms, a large lecture hall and faculty offices. The new Life Sciences Building houses the veterinary technology program, the environmental horticulture and design program, two classrooms/labs and a computer lab. The upper floor houses the biology program, with five new labs and instructional support spaces. Near the building’s exit, there are new outbuildings that support these programs, including kennels, a barn, greenhouses, a lath house and open space for animal paddocks and gardens. The Lohman Theatre The Lohman Theatre was made possible in part by a donation from Betty Lohman, a longtime resident of Los Altos Hills and friend of the Foothill College Theatre Arts Department. The lower campus complex, which includes the new theater, is built on the former site of John and Betty Lohman’s Los Altos Hills residence. Prior to the formation of the Foothill Community College District in 1957, the couple owned a ranch that included portions of what would become Foothill College. After leaving Los Altos Hills, the Lohmans joined friends to found Carmel Valley’s Quail Lodge Resort & Golf Club. The 200-seat Lohman Theatre features an advanced audio system, lobby video monitors and Internet access throughout the facility. A large lobby area suitable for receptions will double as a gallery space for art exhibits. The design utilizes technology and maximizes space flexibility. “Equal access to quality education is the only way to conquer poverty,” Lohman said, before she passed away in 2005. “The land under Foothill College will always be home to me. I’m so grateful that our ranch has been transformed into this amazing institution that offers quality educational opportunity for all.” The Campus Center Designed as one of Foothill’s signature buildings, the new Campus Center utilizes architectural elements from its predecessor in a modern context for the next century of students. The two-building center houses a dining room, food services, bookstore, student lounge, student government and activities offices, health and psychological services, district police, middle college program and two large meeting rooms. Outside, an activity plaza serves as a prime gathering place for student activities. Foothill received three architecture design awards for the new Campus Center, two from the American Institute of Architects and one from the Community College Facilities Coalition. Admission and parking for the open house are free, and the public is invited. For more information, visit www.foothill.edu.