Mt. SAC turns 60
Gabriel Mendoza
Issue date: 10/9/06 Section: News
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Although the official anniversary is Sept.16, a birthday party and cake cutting ceremony were recently held in the Student Services Center courtyard.
Students under the warm sun watched and listened as the cheer team performed along with music by local musical group Cliff Notes.
"We must thank the administration, faculty, staff and students before us who made us who we are," said Mt. SAC President Christopher O'Hearn.
Formerly a naval and army hospital, the college began its first year with 682 enrolled students and 23 faculty members. A fleet of seven buses provided free transportation to campus for students.
Instructors taught seven periods a day five days a week. They were also responsible for counseling, managing ticket sales for college events, and planning special events.
The college was initially named Eastern Los Angeles County Community College. It was later renamed Mount San Antonio, after the mountain in the distance now popularly known as Mount Baldy.
Left behind and scattered throughout campus were uninviting naval and army barracks. Some students, faculty, and staff chose to live in the utilitarian buildings, some of which still remain on campus but heating the poorly insulated buildings proved to be a difficult task.
Equipped with an oil-burning stove, each barrack had to be lit by hand before 8 a.m. classes. In addition, each barrack had a different lock and key. Fortunately, the college housed two custodians on campus that lit the stoves.
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