By Gilbert Gutierrez III
Daily Titan Staff Writer

On Oct. 28 at the Irvine campus’ Titan Student Union, the Irvine campus task force held an open forum that was mostly led by 47 students who came together to express how much they need their campus to remain operative. Yesterday at the Pollak Library, staff, faculty and advisers gave their input about the issue. Many of the topics discussed were concerns of rent of the site, course availability, admission of applicants and the continued need for education.

The first issue of importance that was discussed by the Task Force panel, including the dean of the Irvine campus, Susan Cooper, was “What should be the vision and mission for the Irvine campus and how should it support the mission and strategic goals of the university?”

Stephen Stambough, a professor of political science and criminal justice at the Irvine campus, said that on average the majority of his classes were not filled to capacity, as opposed to courses at the main campus in Fullerton. He added that professors were not around for the students on a daily basis.

The Task Force responded and said that there were not classes available that could fit more than 60 students. They have been working closely with the chairs and associate deans to identify which courses were needed for certain students who do not need them on a frequent basis.

Dr. Anil Puri, dean of the College of Business said that there are certain classes that are not available for students at Fullerton, so they are made available at Irvine.

Since most of the county comes from south Fullerton, Puri believes that the county will continue to grow, and the campus will remain a valuable presence.

“We have heard from the campus communities … some were looking for an expansion of the campus so that it can grow,” said Ephraim Smith, vice president of Academic Affairs.

Five majors are currently being offered at the site, and 48 courses are made available to the students for the 2009-10 academic year.

Dr. Shelly Arsneault, professor of political science, said that she, along with many professors of the political science faculty, do not wish to work at that location.

“If the good folks of south Orange County are so supportive, why don’t we get them their own campus?” she said.

“If it was going to grow, it wouldn’t have taken 20 years to grow. If it was an idea that was going to take off, I thought it would have taken off already. Maybe that is a matter of budget,” Arsneault said.

It is a group of faculty members that volunteer to operate and teach at the Irvine campus, Smith said.

The campus was encouraged to close enrollment, and they did so this year on Jan. 23, with the advice from the chancellor’s office. Last year, there were 3,000 students who applied for courses on the Irvine campus, and this year there were close to 8,000, he said.

He was one of the faculty members that answered many of the questions of concern.

“It was a heated conversation … in this discussion, in order for everyone to get their point to express their feelings and opinions (about the Irvine campus),” said Dr. Jack Bedell, chair of anthropology and one of the leading moderators of the Irvine campus Task Force.

“We were out to get good data and information about the site for those defending their argument,” he said.

Last week, opinions were expressed from the students who wish to continue attending courses at the Irvine campus. This week the teachers expressed their ideas. “It shows that we were getting more information from both sides to make a good decision about the future,” Bedell said.