Students and faculty were given the opportunity to express their ideas for improving Moorpark College at the Y’all Come Facilities Master Plan meeting on Dec. 3.

Vice President of Business Services Iris Ingram, Athletic Director Howard Davis and Director of Facilities, Maintenance & Operations John Sinutko held this meeting in the EATM building room 101. The meeting sought to develop a vision for the future of the school based upon the ideas that the students and faculty presented.

Sinutko explained that the Facilities Master Plan is the framework that specific plans are built from, which makes student involvement extremely important.

“We look forward to a year’s worth of interaction,” said Sinutko.

The meeting sought to develop a vision for the future of the school based upon the ideas that the students and faculty presented. It was important for those attending to know that even if the ideas aren’t specific, they would be influential in the long run.

Ingram stressed the importance of Moorpark College having a vision that is influenced by the entire campus.

“Resources are more than just financial; it can be a vision that seems workable,” said Ingram. “We need to create a vision that is limitless, but grounded in reality.”

Attendees were put into four separate groups to discuss specific concerns and thoughts regarding the future of the school.

Ingram gave each group three topics to discuss amongst each other: what aspects the plan should cover, what the campus should look like by the year 2020, and how the plan should incorporate emerging issues in technology, sustainability and pedagogy.

Once each group had finished their discussions, they were asked to present their ideas in front of the entire room. Ingram then recorded every idea in order to develop a single draft for the Master Plan.

Most groups agreed that the cafeteria is too limited, there aren’t sufficient areas for students to gather, and that there isn’t a large enough range of technologies for students to use.

Career Transfer Center Coordinator Judi Gould was among the faculty at the meeting, and she expressed similar concerns within her group.

She explained that what Moorpark College currently provides, in terms of a student center, is too limited and results in students leaving immediately after their classes have ended.

“We really need to implement a place for students to gather together,” said Gould. “This should be an enhanced student center that will include food, a gathering place for students, and a range of technologies for students to use.”

Another popular opinion among the attendees was that the athletic center was far too limited. According to some of the attending faculty members, a few athletic classrooms are far too small for their respective classes. It was also expressed among the attendees that the gym was outdated and too difficult for students to be allowed to use.

Davis, who was also a facilitator at this event, shared her idea regarding this issue.

“Instead of (gym-use being a class), the gym could be expanded and made open to the public,” said Davis. “We could just charge people a fee to use it.”

Some other ideas suggested at the meeting were the development of more meeting rooms and workshop spaces, a gallery that displays student art and achievements, improved recycling, and the creation of a carpool website for students.

Another idea suggested was a more convenient website that would keep every website used by Moorpark College, like MyVCCCD, D2L and StudentVoice, in one place. This social media hub would make it easier for students, clubs and teachers to communicate.

All of these ideas were speculated amongst the room in order to envision a desirable future for the college, which strives to focus on the needs of the students.

The last Master Plan was created in 2004, and it included both the renovation of Fountain Hall and the development of the parking structure.

This plan will guide the way for a specific plan in the years to come. It will be updated and reviewed, which will take time. The current plan is looking ahead as far as 2020, so the administration has the time to possibly turn these visions into a reality.