Kudos to Centralia College once again.
Recently, an addition was made to an already fine facility (see the story about the new batting cages in the Thursday, Nov. 30 edition). The college has added several new facilities in recent years, the last being a new ballfield and batting cages. I am all for it; sports touch so many young people. I participated in many sports activities as a young lad, even playing a bit of some semi-pro baseball.
In spite of the glitz and the glitter of all this, the college has fallen far behind in one academic area. They are at the 1960s level when it comes to the visual and applied arts. A once small but fine art department that took past instructor, Bob Bauer, over three decades to bring into reality was demolished with no intention of replacement. I am talking about a Fine Arts Department (structures) that no longer exists.
The instructors here, now, do the best they can, without a facility designed for their purposes. Bob Bauer fought for, and had, building facilities for painting, printmaking, pottery, sculpture, photography and commercial art. I know, as I was a part-time instructor here with Bob and Jim Lundquist in the mid-1970s. The facility was relatively small, though adequate. The enrollment then was much smaller than today. The pottery area housed one of the finest gas-fired stoneware kilns ever put into a college or university facility. Since its demise, there has been little “serious” 3-D offerings of any kind — no facility. How sad in an institution that prides itself as a leader in academia.
Recently, the college was offered one of the finest and safest “ceramic shell” casting systems to be found anywhere. This would be a gift, if there was a facility to house it. This was met with little to no interest. Not only could a facility like this house metal casting, but arc welding and fabrication as well. Jewelry making and stoneware ceramics would be in the same facility. Two-dimensional art could be housed here also with consideration to proper lighting.
A facility and offerings such as these could easily be made into four-year programs later. This would surely help put Centralia College higher up on the academic map. Whether this type of offering has been overlooked by accident or on purpose, only the academic leadership would know. It would be refreshing, indeed, to see these areas brought back to what they were — or more. It is time for Centralia College to do something about this.
James Stafford
Adna
