Peering through the window at the first century of SBCC is a lot like peering into the history of Santa Barbara. High ideals, great vision, budgetary battles, admirable individuals, housing shortages, parking problems and spectacular ocean views — they’re all there in A Century of Success: A Future of Possibilities by Leslie Westbrook, a hardcover book commemorating the college’s first 100 years of history.
More than 180 photographs help Westbrook tell the story of the birth of the college, its challenges and successes through the decades, and how its roots are intertwined with other educational institutions, notably the Santa Barbara School District and UCSB.
Not surprisingly, fitting 100 years of history into fewer than 200 pages of print was a huge challenge. In researching back issues of the school’s newspaper, The Channels, Westbrook came across this 1977 nugget: “Dr. George Frakes, history professor, says many history students have attempted to define the whole of American history in a few sentences. Frakes believes students should take his advice before attempting a definition. ‘Give up,’ said Frakes. ‘It’s useless. Defining American history in one sentence is like scooping up a bowl of Jell-O and pinning it to the wall.’”
“I love that quote, and it really is true,” Westbrook said.
She said one of her favorite interviews for the book was with Helen Pedotti, whose family included Max and Alice Schott for which the Schott Continuing Education campus is named and who died soon after they spoke.
“She helped fund classes at the County Jail, which were very unpopular at the time, but she thought it was important that students get their high school diplomas and learn things that would help them later,” Westbrook said. “I love the fact that she did something that was very unpopular. She gave a lot of money for that education in the County Jail program.
“On the other end, I am really sad that I didn’t get to meet Dr. Henry Bagish, who left papers behind and wonderful anecdotes about life on campus in the 1950s and all the camaraderie and all the volleyball games that the teachers and the students would go to. “
The story of how the college occupied various sites around town before setting into its Mesa home a half-century ago is also fascinating.
“It’s really amazing to think that were it not for the foresight of a few key people, they would never have had that beautiful (74-acre) site,” Westbrook said. “How prescient and wonderful it is that they were able to have the foresight to purchase that land so that the college could expand over to the West Campus.”
The more things change, the more they stay the same is an underlying and recurring theme of the book. Westbrook quotes political science professor Dr. John Kay, who joined the faculty in 1965, as saying, “Perhaps the dominant historical challenge SBCC has faced … has been the need for a reliable and predictable source of funding,” a statement echoed through the book and is still apt today.
On the positive financial side, the Foundation for Santa Barbara City College, established in 1976, continues to thrive and provide an important means of support for the school. Now one of the most successful community college foundations in the nation, it raises $5 million to $6 million annually through grants and private donations.
One such donor is local publisher and historian Dr. Eric Boehm, who underwrote A Century of Success: A Future of Possibilities.
“I think the world of it,” said Boehm, founder of publishers the Boehm Group and ABC-CLIO. “I think the book reflects the extraordinary institution of Santa Barbara City College very well. I’m quite proud of it.”
“This book brings together in a masterful and engaging way 100 years of history, memories, challenges and victories of Santa Barbara City College,” SBCC Superintendent/President Dr. Andreea Serban wrote in the introduction. “The demand for what we offer — an exceptional and affordable higher education and comprehensive services — has never been greater. Our college provides a first, second, third or lifelong chance for many who otherwise would not have any education opportunity. We are confident in our future and look forward to the next 100 years of stellar history.”
A Century of Success: A Future of Possibilities is available at the SBCC Bookstore, Tecolote Bookstore in Montecito, Chaucer’s Books and the Book Den in Santa Barbara, and Borders in Goleta.
Westbrook and SBCC representatives will be signing copies of the book from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. this Sunday, at Chaucer’s in Loreto Plaza, 3321 State St. in Santa Barbara, and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday at the SBCC Bookstore on the East Campus, 721 Cliff Drive in Santa Barbara.
— Noozhawk contributor Leslie Dinaberg can be reached at leslie@lesliedinaberg.com. Follow her on Twitter: @LeslieDinaberg.