In supporting Measure G, local residents have given Foothill-De Anza Community College District an extraordinary opportunity to restore and rebuild essential infrastructure, both physical and technological, that will benefit many generations to come. We are deeply grateful for this, and for all the public support that has allowed us to build and maintain two of California’s top community colleges.
Over a period 15 years, Measure G bonds will help the district keep pace with the accelerating change that has become such a constant and protect the investment the community has made in Foothill College and De Anza College since 1957.
These bonds will help improve the sustainability and energy efficiency of our campuses, reducing our carbon footprint and cutting power costs. They will allow us to renovate and rebuild classrooms and labs to meet evolving community needs and provide maximum flexibility in teaching and learning. Through Measure G, we can keep technology and equipment up to date and improve the safety and security of Foothill and De Anza colleges as public spaces.
We are excited about developing the De Anza Event Center on the Flint Center footprint in a way that will present new opportunities for use by the campus and the larger community. We plan to address as many needs as possible that were expressed by leaders of other local community institutions and groups while also meeting the instructional and student services needs of our students.
Measure G already has opened new opportunities for partnerships with other local public agencies and non-profit organizations for investment in affordable transitional housing for students, faculty and staff to help them get a toehold in one of the nation’s highest cost regions. This is a need that many local public agencies share.
Inevitably, some work under Measure G will be shaped by needs that we do not currently know or perhaps cannot even imagine, just as we could not have imagined that in 2020 a new coronavirus would change so many aspects of our operations. It is comforting to know that we are better prepared as a result of voters approving Measure G.
I speak on behalf of our students, faculty and staff as well as our Board of Trustees in expressing heartfelt gratitude to each of you who have invested in our colleges. Having worked in the district as an administrator since 1988, I deeply appreciate the community’s decades-long contributions to fulfilling the part of our mission statement that calls for providing “a dynamic learning environment that fosters student engagement, equal opportunity, and innovation in meeting the various educational and career goals of our diverse students.”
I assure you with confidence that the district will continue acting as a careful steward of your investment and that we will devote ourselves to ensuring that students of all ages and backgrounds leave our colleges well prepared to further their education or contribute to the workforce, whether they are just beginning careers or returning to learn new skills.
Having already educated more than 1 million students, we look forward to continuing our partnership with you.
Warm regards,
Judy C. Miner, Chancellor