Present:

Earl Ault, Cedar Mountain Winery

Linda Ault, Cedar Mountain Winery

Neal Ely, Dean of Academic Services, Las Positas College

David Everett, LPC Adjunct Faculty

Ron Liljedahl, LPC Faculty, Horticulture
 Tom O’Malley, Tri-Valley Business Council

Michael Orton, Friends of the Vineyards

Sblend Sblendorio, LVWA/Sblendorio Estate & Vineyard

John Silva, Caltrans, Retired
Called to order: 4:12 PM
I.
WELCOME/INTRODUCTIONS
Dr. Ely welcomed everyone to the Fall 2004 Horticulture Advisory Board meeting, thanked them for coming, and asked all to sign in and update e-mail addresses. He introduced Michael Orton from Friends of the Vineyards and David Everett, who is teaching the VWT Wine and Food Pairing class.
Dr. Ely offered all in attendance the “Gifts of Appreciation” listed below. They are the
College’s way of thanking Advisory Board members for their support, time, and advice.

A voucher good for two tickets to any Las Positas College Performing Arts event on campus during the Fall or Spring semesters. The vouchers must be redeemed at the LPC Bookstore at least 24 hours prior to the event you wish to attend.

Special parking permits are available to Advisory Board members. The permits are issued on a two-year cycle and are valid through the current academic year.

Horticulture Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
October 28, 2004
Board members themselves should only use parking permits. Anyone who needs a permit should see Colleen after the meeting.

LPC Library Cards are also available to Advisory Board members. Application forms are contained in each meeting packet. They should be completed and returned to Colleen so that a Library/LPC card can be issued.
II.
APPROVAL OF SPRING 2004 MINUTES
Motion: submitted.
Vote:
MSC:
Accept the minutes from the April 29, 2004 Advisory Board meeting as
Unanimous
Ron Liljedahl/Earl Ault
III.
COLLEGE REPORT TO THE BOARD
A.
Fall 2004 Enrollments
Dr. Ely reviewed the Fall 2004 Enrollment handout. Enrollments look good except for HORT 51 Plant Materials I. Dr. Ely reported that enrollments in the
VWT classes have exceeded expectations. The VWT 12 VINEYARD SOILS,
FERTILIZERS AND IRRIGATION class was originally sized at 35, was increased to 40, and when it filled up again it was capped at 45 and moved to a new classroom. VWT 45 FOOD AND WINE PAIRING class lost a couple of students to job changes. There are still students who want to add, but it is past the add deadline.
Horticulture
Fall, 2004 Enrollments
Course Title
HORT 50 Introduction to Horticulture
HORT 51 Plant Materials I
HORT 59 Landscape Design
Viticulture and Winery Technology
Fall, 2004 Enrollments
Course Title
VWT 12 Vineyard Soils, Fertilizers and Irrigation
VWT 45 Food and Wine Pairing
Allowed Enrolled Open Instructor
30
30
30
28
9
20
2
21
10
Liljedahl
Liljedahl
Liljedahl
Allowed Enrolled Open Instructor
45 45 0 Liljedahl
35 32 3 Everett
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Horticulture Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
October 28, 2004
B.
Spring 2005 Schedule
Spring 2005 schedules were passed out to board members. The following courses will be offered in Spring 2005:
HORT 52 PLANT MATERIALS II
HORT 54 PLANTING MEDIA & NUTRITION
HORT 56 ARBORICULTURE
HORT 69 ADVANCED LANDSCAPE DESIGN
VWT 35
VWT 44
VINEYARD PEST & DISEASE MANAGEMENT
WORLD VITICULTURE & WINES
C.
2004-2006 Catalog
The 2004-2006 catalogs are available to anyone who would like one. There will be an addendum in 2005 and a new catalog again in Fall 2006. Dr. Ely announced that through the help of the Advisory Board, the VWT program is in the catalog with degree requirements and courses descriptions.
D.
Budget Update
Dr. Ely reported that it is a tight year, but there has been growth to where we were two years ago. We have been frugal and prudent, even though there are increased costs to cover, including the cost of benefits. He does not anticipate any major cutbacks, expects the College to continue to grow and keep up with the growing community.
E.
Enrollment Management
Dr. Ely explained that the Enrollment Management Committee is the College’s process for sorting out what classes we offer, based on funds allocated to the district. There is a structure to the process, which is based on enrollment trends, future growth potential. The colleges each have Enrollment Management committees, which allocate FTE to each division and respective disciplines.
F.
Education Master Plan Update and Bond Activities
Dr. Ely reported that last spring the $498M Measure B bond passed. He noted that there are two buildings in the pipeline being built with funds not from
Measure B. The gymnasium is under construction and the multi-disciplinary building will house classrooms and computer rooms, and should start in the spring.
The college is in the process of detailed planning for the efficient use of the
Measure B funds. There are three major task forces looking at the planning opportunities, including facilities and organization plans and student learning
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Horticulture Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
October 28, 2004 outcomes. Student enrollment is expected to double in ten years. The College is fortunate to have acreage to plan out the usage of the space.
The Educational Master Plan was updated two years ago and is now being reviewed for currency. The Horticulture and Viticulture and Winery Technology sections are being reviewed and expanded.
G.
Majors Faire (October 18) and Senior and Parents Night (October 27)
Dr. Ely announced that the Majors Fair was held October 18 th
. It was well attended; Jacquie Williams-Courtright participated. Ron Liljedahl reported that many students stopped, student feedback was positive and there was lots of interest. Senior and Parent Night was held the previous evening. In attendance were high school seniors and their parents from Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin and Sunol. They were given an overview of the College with breakout sessions where they learned more about specific disciplines. There were more than 400 in attendance.
H.
Report to the Board by Ron Liljedahl
Ron Liljedahl reported to the Board that the VWT 12 class is interesting to teach and covers subjects he is familiar with. There are 45 interesting students, including a cellar master, 3-4 students with significant acreage, some with 100-
200 vines, and some that plan to plant 50 vines. A small number of students from the horticulture program are interested in the VWT program and are enthusiastic about it. As the instructor, Ron learns with the students. So far, he has had one guest speaker; Michael Princevalle gave a presentation about soils. He reported that the College president’s husband is in the class, as they co-own several acres in Brentwood. Ron is looking for guests to speak about fertilizers and irrigation.
Sblend Sblendorio suggested that Ron call Mike Wanless, who works for Sterling in Napa. He also referred Ron to Ken Kupperman (925-766-3679).
I.
Ron reported on his recent activities, which include a booth at the Home and
Garden Show and participation at the Alameda County Fair. He has a good group of students and enrollments are good, except for the Plant ID class, which has been offered every semester for the last four years. He expects that enrollments will also be good in the spring semester.
Earl Ault noted that one of his employees is taking Ron’s class and invited Ron to bring his class to their winery; Sblend Sblendorio also invited them to his vineyard.
Viticulture Program Update
Dr. Ely noted that Ron Liljedahl and David Everett are the inaugural instructors for the VWT program and are largely responsible for how well the program is being received. Feedback on both classes has been good and they have both gotten off to a good start.
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Horticulture Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
October 28, 2004
Dr. Ely invited David to speak to the Advisory Board about his class. David reported that he thought it was a “brilliant” idea to offer the Food and Wine
Pairing class as the first in the program. His students are very interested, are having fun, and he expects at least half of them to take the VWT 44 class in the spring. When asked how often VWT 45 would be offered, David said he thought it was a good idea to offer it once in a while; Dr. Ely said that it may be offered again in Spring 06. David said that teaching VWT 45 is challenging because food and wine pairing is subjective; he noted that the wine knowledge of his students is improving. He noted that an exhibition kitchen would be a fine “classroom” for the class. He is looking forward to the next class. Dr. Ely added that there were
25 students who wanted to add the class the first night.
It was asked if there are plans for a vineyard on campus. Dr. Ely explained that it is in the Master Plan and it was part of the Bond. One of the ideas was that half of the vineyard would be for production of both white and red wines. Half of the vineyard would be used every semester for practicing skills, teaching about irrigation, planting vines, and other reoccurring hands-on activities.
Sblend was interested in how specific David’s classes would be. For example, would they focus on Bordeaux or a particular region? He wanted to know what the students wanted. David answered that it is difficult to speak to some subjects in general terms. He would like to bring students’ wine knowledge up to higher levels.
Dr. Ely informed the Advisory Board that Ron Liljedahl has announced his retirement, effective at the end of the current academic year. Dr. Ely anticipates going out this spring to hire a full-time instructor to teach viticulture, enology, and horticulture classes. This will allow the College to offer more than two VWT courses per semester. He noted that it is important that the full-time instructor oversee the on-campus development of a teaching vineyard and be a liaison to the community. There will be a time when we will need someplace for students to get hands-on experience in the community. The faculty person will also help to build a relationship with Friends of the Vineyards, the Livermore Valley
Winegrowers Association, and local wineries. Dr. Ely has consulted with Steve
Krebs, the VWT coordinator at Napa Valley College, who hired a similar faculty member four years ago, who was able to make recommendations for the job announcement and trade publications in which to advertise the position.
During this transition time, Dr. Ely explained that we will need adjunct instructors in horticulture. Although the new instructor will teach some horticulture classes to keep that program functioning on campus, there will be a need for adjunct faculty also. Dr. Ely asked that if board members know of anyone who might be interested in teaching part-time, that they let him know.

Horticulture Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
October 28, 2004
Ron Liljedahl noted that it would be difficult to hire someone with experience in landscape and plant science as well as viticulture and winery technology. It was clarified that the VWT instructor will be a full-time position and the balance of the horticulture classes will be taught by part-time faculty. John Silva will contact
Dr. Ely with names of people who might be able to teach a class. It was also suggested that Jacquie Courtright-Williams might be interested in teaching a class. Dr. Ely clarified that the Education Master Plan calls for a full-time faculty member in Horticulture and a full-time faculty member in VWT and there is no intent not to have the horticulture program here.
Dr. Ely explained that the VWT program was designed without prerequisites.
Linda Ault talked about the Education Committee of the Wine Growers
Association and the possibility of using it as a resource.
Dr. Ely reported that the program approval package for the VWT program was recently sent to the State Chancellor’s Office and included a letter of support from the LWGA and past minutes from the Horticulture Advisory Board. He expects a determination of approval for the program before the end of the current academic year.
Dr. Ely explained that the VWT brochures are being displayed in local wineries as well as the wine shop in Brentwood. Mr. Silva asked about similar programs at other colleges and whether students would come from out of the area. Dr. Ely told him that the most well-known VWT program was at Napa Valley College. In addition to local students, Dr. Ely expects students from Tracy and Brentwood and has had calls from prospective students in San Francisco. Dr. Ely noted that
Fresno State has a VWT program.
Dr. Ely announced that personally, and on behalf of the College, he appreciates the support of the Advisory Board for the VWT program and appreciates Ron taking on the VWT classes and teaching them.
IV.
Recommendations by the Advisory Board
1.
The Board recommends that the College dedicate land for a vineyard and that 2 rows of vines be planted every year and left permanently for use in teaching the program. They recommend that any unplanned space be considered for the VWT program.
2.
The Board recommends that the College reserve 5-7 acres for the future development of a “Horticulture/Viticulture/Enology” Center on campus. The
Center would include classrooms, smart classrooms with AV capabilities, a drafting room, a minimum of three greenhouses, vineyard area, orchard area, vegetable and flower garden areas, a shade house, out-buildings, and hospitality facilities with a kitchen. The kitchen would include a cooler, specific classroom with glass storage, a cold box for flowers, and dishwasher. The Center should be
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Horticulture Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
October 28, 2004 a beautiful facility to showcase various programs. There should be a secretary to support the program and opportunities in the future to hold plant sales and wine sales for revenue enhancement.
3.
The Board recommends that the College continue its recruiting efforts. They should continue involvement at the Fair and the Home and Garden Show. The
College should consider marketing the program in other districts to bring students into the program.
4.
Upon completion of the search for a full-time VWT instructor, that the College initiate a search for a full-time Horticulture instructor.
5.
The Board recommends that the College develop the unlimited potential for interaction between the VWT program and other programs on campus, i.e.,
Business (Winery Management) and Graphic Arts (wine label design).
6.
The Board recommends continued community interaction for all facets of the program.
V.
Date of the next meeting
Thursday, April 21, 2005 at 4:00 PM.
ADJOURNED: 5:30 PM
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