Claim that College “saved” the Sedona Film School fails to comport with reality
The Blog has responded to a recent editorial in the Verde Independent in which the editor claimed the Community College “saved” the Sedona Film school with the handful of media courses it offered this fall on the Verde Valley Campus. By clicking here, you can read the newspaper editorial. The following is the Blog’s editor’s letter in response to the Verde Independent editor.
Commentary by Bob Oliphant
Your November 19 editorial, “College decision actually saved film school program,” is long on rhetoric, short on facts, and misleading. It is an understatement to say that it is “embarrassingly wide of the mark.”
First, you ignore the fact that the College made no actual effort to “save“ the 69 credit nine-month nationally recognized Film School program located at the Sedona Campus. Rather, the closing of the Film School, formally announced October, 2013, was the last step in the calculated decision by Community College President Penelope Wills to remove all courses from the Sedona Campus so it could be sold and the money banked to finance construction of a third large campus on the West side of the County. That campus is an integral part of the College’s published ten-year plan and it needs at least $45 million to get off the ground.
Second, you ignore the fact that in January, 2014 the Sedona campus had been appraised to establish its market value by an expert in anticipation of a sale. By then, the College was in the process of stripping it of all credit courses. Only because of an avalanche of protest from Verde Valley citizens and Sedona officials in March, 2014 did the District Governing Board retreat from supporting the Wills’ decision to close and sell the Campus.
Third, you misled readers by implying that the current 12 credits of face-to-face media course offerings are comparable to the 69 credits required of the Sedona Film School graduates. They aren’t! For example, using your figures, in 2009 there were 69 students enrolled in the Film School in Sedona. They were required to take a minimum of 66 credits in a nine month intense training program—a total of 4,761 credit hours.
The current media program on the Verde Campus has 51 students with some of them taking all of the 12 credits offered face-to-face and some of them taking the one on-line 3 credit course. At best, they experience a total of 612 face-to-face credit hours per semester, assuming all 51 students enrolled in all the face-to-face courses. There is no comparison to a film school curriculum and what is now being offered!
Fourth, you failed to explain to your readers that the low enrollment of 13 by the fall of 2013 was a result of the College’s own internal decisions. Because it was shutting down the Campus in anticipation of selling it, there was no marketing for the Film School. Therefore, 13 students were left to complete their training. Even so, 13 students accounted for 858 credit hours of training, which is far more than offered today.
Fifth, you ignore the disingenuous statements made by the College in 2012 and 2013 in which it lauded the Film School and its increasing enrollment. For example, in August, 2012, the College stated that “The Yavapai College film program (on the Sedona Campus) is continuing and is being enhanced. It is not being dissolved.” As late as December, 2012 one finds statements in College press releases such as the College “launched a significant recruiting campaign and doubled its enrollment this year! In these tough economic times, that is a significant achievement.” Are you oblivious to what the College said about the Film School and what it actually did?
Finally, your claim that Sedona residents are “sore” about moving the program is without substance. First, a legitimate nationally recognized film school was not moved. It was closed. Second, the current media course offerings do not make up a film school; there is nothing to be “sore” about. Third, not a single resident who spoke at the recent Sedona Town Hall meeting indicated any resentment about the media program on the Verde campus. I speculate that you were attempting to create a false jingoistic divide between Sedona and the remainder of the Verde Valley? If so, that is shameful.
Bob Oliphant