Campus Updates in the Next 5 Years

Photos by Kane Finders

Big changes may be coming to Mt. Hood Community College over the next five years – if there’s money available to make them.

On Jan. 11 and 12, the campus community was invited to a series of Gresham campus facilities planning sessions, hosted by Charles George, head of Facilities for MHCC, and Mark Stoller of Opsis Architecture. The two laid out five-year concepts for Mt. Hood, soliciting feedback (during both Zoom and in-person forums) to prepare to present them to the public later this year. Everything from the methodology behind their proposals’ decision-making to renderings that depict a revitalized campus was shared.

The concept work was done in conjunction with a steering committee made up of faculty and staff from around the campus. A space use study of campus was conducted, and found that MHCC’s classroom space was only being 60% utilized. That leaves 40% not being used, space that can be better used for other things. The group also hosted workshops with students and staff to figure out what students would like to see change on campus.

This led to six key points identified that need change: instruction; equity and access; campus “welcoming feel;” student success and support; asset preservation; and security and safety.

One big change being considered is to move the MHCC nursing program, currently based at the Bruning Center near central Gresham, to the main Mt. Hood campus. During one session, geology instructor Daina Hardisty raised concern that this could displace the geology lab space, situated at the north end of the Academic Center. Stoller responded that a lot of the science labs would be remodeled, possibly making the changes less burdensome. Still, this concern could be applied to the rest of the campus, if the nursing program is moved. MHCC would expect a significant shift in where campus services are located.

Stoller did note that some of the MHCC labs haven’t been remodeled since the opening of campus back in the 1960s. Also recommended is a Library renovation that would offer small group study spaces along with other changes to make it a more useful and welcoming place to be on campus.

One concept that stood out to me personally was the addition of activity nodes around campus: More places where could hang out and study. This would help address the issue that the only places currently to hang out on campus and interact with peers are in the Student Union and the Library.

As for the campus atmosphere, it’s proposed that the Academic Center would get a new look with a focus on a more colorful exterior, an improvement over the current drab concrete. More windows would be added to campus, although this did raise safety concerns for some session participants. On the larger topic of safety, more lighting, facility access control (locking doors, etc.), and alarms were also part of the concept.

All these concepts will be shared publicly in full later in the year, once the group is done collecting feedback.

A significant hurdle in bringing the proposal to reality will be funding for these projects – most likely included in a general bond measure (a voter-approved property tax increase). That’s something Mt. Hood hasn’t been able to win approval of since 1974, but is preparing to again attempt soon.