4A • December 15, 2017 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com
Views from the Rock
College president shares
vision for South County
In May 2016, Chris Breitmeyer
was named president of Clatsop
Community College. Breitmeyer, who
previously served as vice president
for academic and student affairs at
Saint Charles Community College in
Missouri, is now a year and a half
in. Among his goals is a five-year
strategic plan for the college, with the
goal of determining how it can serve
the community and region more effec-
tively. We met with Breitmeyer in the
Seaside extension of the campus.
EVE MARX/FOR CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
Delectable mushroom tart at Harding Trading Co.
Q: Do you get to the South County
campus often?
Breitmeyer: Not as much as I
would like. That’s why I am mak-
ing an effort now. At least a couple
times of months I am going to spend
mornings here. I have meetings that
here, but I’m trying to make a special
effort. Especially in Cannon Beach.
Interacting with those folks is some-
thing I haven’t done much of.
Q: What is the rationale for the
South County campus?
Breitmeyer: Right now it is fo-
cused on the SBDC (Small Business
Development Center) and the CEDR
(Clatsop Economic Development
Resources).
I know we do have some classes
here, but I’d really like it to be more
of an extension of the main campus.
In the future, we would have the
option of lower division transfer
courses classes down here or be able
to start a CTE (career technical edu-
cation) program.
A good example is our business
program. We have two tracks: one
where you can transfer to get a four-
year degree and a certificate degree
where you can start working. We are
limited a little bit by the number of
classrooms we have. But, for exam-
ple, today I am the only person in this
room. We could have a class in here.
The problem we have run into in the
past is that enrollment numbers have
never been that strong in the South
County. We have to crack that nut.
Q: Given that history, are you
considering new programs here?
Breitmeyer: One of the things
we are doing with the strategic plan
is looking at new programs. That
includes new things, and also more
niche and focused kind of programs.
We are looking for something
under the hospitality, brewing and
management umbrella. That has come
up several times. That is something
I want to move forward on. I don’t
know if we have the facilities to do it
all down here, but we could at least
get it started. Within the next year or
so we really have to look at how we
are going to do that.
There are other programs in the
state that we can model that program
after. The curriculum is out there,
so it’s not like we have to start from
ground zero. That could be this
campus’s identity; it’s tailored for
that. The South County campus could
be for the hospitality sector what the
main campus is for the maritime and
automotive community,
Q: Who is your audience? Young
R.J. MARX/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
South County campus of Clatsop Community College.
A
CANNON SHOTS
R.J. MARX
people? Life learners?
Breitmeyer: There is a large
population of folks who are highly ed-
ucated, have been successful in their
careers, but are still eager to learn.
I do see an opportunity for those
lifelong learners throughout the area.
We are looking for returning learners
or people who want to be retrained or
retool for a new career.
Q: How would you measure a
program’s success? By the number of
attendees?
Breitmeyer: Yes, that’s the basic
metric. We have a minimum. If there
are only two people interested in a
birdwatching class, I want to figure
out how to be able to make that go.
But I also have my administrator
saying, it’s going to cost “X” amount
of dollars, is it worth it?
Additionally if we start to expand
here, we are going to have to take
some losses upfront. In order to build
the momentum, it’s just like any
business — you are not going to get
profitable for a while.
Q: Do you recruit students?
Breitmeyer: Troy Henry is our
recruiter and he goes out to the high
schools. We just had 300 high school
seniors on our campus last week.
They were from all the local schools:
Seaside, Warrenton, Knappa, Astoria,
and Jewell. We had others from as far
away as Portland and Canby. Each
took a little mini-class they could
select out of three.
Q: I saw a shocking statistic about
the number of homeless students in
the state of Oregon.
Breitmeyer: I personally know
a couple of students in Astoria who
shared their stories with me. They
are couch-surfing for a while and
then they live in their car. It’s pretty
incredible.
I thought I had it tough when I had
to work in the cafeteria as an under-
R.J. MARX/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
Chris Breitmeyer at the Seaside cam-
pus of Clatsop Community College.
grad. What they’re doing is incredi-
ble.
Q: Does Clatsop Community Col-
lege have any dorm facilities?
Breitmeyer: Like everybody else
here, we are struggling with housing,
We may look in the future to some
kind of public-private partnership
where a private entity builds and
manages a space and we enter into
an agreement to supply them with
students as residents.
Q: How do you like living here?
Breitmeyer: I love it. I am from
the Midwest originally. I love the
weather here.
Q: Do you want people to be in-
volved in the school here, maybe not
as students but as leaders or volun-
teers?
Breitmeyer: Our foundation is one
way people can get involved if they
are interested. That’s the fundraising
arm. They do a lot of good work rais-
ing scholarships for students.
One of our board members just
stepped down. He’s from Astoria, so
they have to be from Astoria. People
can put their hat in the ring and the
board will do an interview process.
We talked about community
education classes. If someone has
an interest in photography and they
would like to teach a class, they could
certainly do that.
Happy Holidays, from your library friends
W
e held our annual holiday tea
on Dec. 2, and as always, it
was a very warm and cozy
event, complete with refreshments and
good company! A special thank you
to Lynn Halldorson with Kettle/Black
Teahouse for catering our tea, it was
delightful.
Occasionally a member of our library
family is the lucky winner of our lovely
quilt and the 2017 quilt drawing was
one of those occasions. The winner of
the quilt was our own Chara Larrance,
longtime library volunteer! Congratula-
tions, Chara!
To welcome the youngest new citi-
zens of Cannon Beach and Arch Cape,
we have begun a new program called
“Books for Babies.” All babies who live
in Cannon Beach and Arch Cape from
newborn to one year of age are eligible.
Parents, please come to the library at
131 North Hemlock to receive the gift
Publisher
Kari Borgen
Editor
R.J. Marx
Circulation
Manager
Jeremy Feldman
Production
Manager
John D. Bruijn
AT THE LIBRARY
CARLA O’REILLY
of three brand new books for your little
ones! We are open every day except
Sunday.
Cannon Beach Reads will convene
at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 20, for their
final book of the 2017 season. They will
be discussing “In Defense of a Liberal
Education,” by Fareed Zakaria. To kick
off the 2018 season on Wednesday, Jan.
17, they will be discussing Mark Twain’s
“Life on the Mississippi.” The complete
list of 2018 books will be available soon.
New members are always welcome!
We have begun thinking about a new
reading program for our entire com-
munity. We would all read a book, at
Advertising Sales
Holly Larkins
Classified Sales
Danielle Fisher
Staff writer
Brenna Visser
Contributing
writers
Rebecca Herren
Katherine Lacaze
Eve Marx
Nancy McCarthy
Eating while
standing up
CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
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which point we
would meet for
a community
discussion.
Book most
likely would
deal with
issues such
as tourism,
coastal wild-
life, and other
topics relevant to
our community. So let’s
all think about this for future months. If
you have any ideas to share, please call
the Library at 503-436-1391. More to
follow!
Lastly, keep in mind that the library
will be closed Christmas Day and New
Year’s Day.
Once again, we would like to wish
each and every one of you a warm and
joyful holiday season!
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fter days of rain and very little to do on weekends
save for catching up on sleep, this past weekend
was a whirlwind of activity, most of it involving
eating and drinking.
It all began Friday at the Community Hall in Cannon
Beach at the North Coast Land Conservancy thank-you
party for their volunteers. The turnout was terrific and in
addition to a Native American blessing of the land and
some high quality mingling, there was a lot to eat.
My spouse has a thing about eating at parties, in
particular eating while standing up. He claims to have
never mastered holding a wine glass and a paper plate.
Having no such inhibitions, I assembled myself an open-
faced sandwich
of prosciutto and
Brie and devoured VIEW FROM
two really good
THE PORCH
oatmeal raisin
EVE MARX
cookies when he
announced he was
ready to leave.
On our way out of Cannon Beach we saw an empty space
adjacent to Harding Trading Co. on Beaver Street.
I don’t know if you’ve been to Harding Trading Co.
They don’t take reservations. I feel lucky to have gotten in
three times. For folks of a certain mindset, this might be
the most romantic spot in Cannon Beach. We had dinner,
despite my land conservancy party snack. I restricted my-
self to the mushroom tart, which is offered as an appetizer
and comes with a scrumptious little green salad piquantly
dressed in a mustard vinaigrette. My spouse had the coq au
vin. As I said, I don’t know if you’ve been to the Harding
Trading Co. It’s a very exciting place. The food is French
and authentic. The décor is farm vintage. The restaurant
is also a store. You can buy local honey and a lovely skin
cream and pretty napkins. Many items in the restaurant are
for sale, including some of the light fixtures.
On Saturday evening we went to a party hosted by
Cannon Beach celebrities David and Cherilynn Frei. After
pouring myself a glass of something alcoholic, I dove
into the crowd. Another couple we’re friends with were
positioned near the food table. I was encouraged to try the
meatballs while my husband ate a lot of crab. Before I was
told it was time to leave, I also managed to scarf down a
stuffed baked potato skin and a couple of Medjool dates.
Sunday morning bloomed bright and shiny so we de-
cided to take a walk on Arcadia Beach. On the way home,
we hit Sleepy Monk where we each had a latte and split a
chocolate chip scone.
In Seaside I tried to work off some calories by taking
one of our dogs for a walk around the Cove. The waves
were modest and the sun was shining, which meant a doz-
en or more surfers were in the water flaunting their lack
of fear of sharks. Around the parked vehicles (including a
pair of white Mercedes vans) there were numerous people
in various states of undress peeling themselves out of their
wetsuits. I’d have to give up eating altogether before I’d
even think of getting
into one of those
things.
I could watch oth-
er people surf all day,
but we had another
party to go to, this
one in Gearhart. Oh
my word, the food.
The hostess, who
relocated to the area
not long ago from
northern California,
put out a spread.
She had asparagus
wrapped in prosciut-
to; cranberry and
Dessert at Harding Trading Co.
walnut baked Brie;
prawns with cocktail
sauce; and artichoke dip made with fresh artichoke. I ate
three raisin-studded pumpernickel crackers heavily loaded
with blue cheese and dried apricot. My husband said he
ate about 20 prawns but he might have been exaggerating.
Much to my dismay, he was ready to leave the party be-
fore I’d finished one glass of pinot gris. On the way home
I chastised him for making me leave early.
I’m still hungry, I said.
We pulled into McDonald’s.
I ordered a cheeseburger.
Yes, I’m embarrassed. But I ate it anyway.
THE NATIONAL AWARD-WINNING