The Palomar College campus has changed dramatically since Dayna Schwab began working in the college\u2019s Facilities Department 19 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She was still a student at Palomar College when she began working as a short-term employee in the department. Through the years, she worked her way up in the department and is now manager for facilities operations, overseeing a variety of areas related to the college\u2019s facilities including the facilities use and rental program, access control systems, vehicle pool fleet, work order management and the budget. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t think Palomar would be a forever job, but it ended up that way,\u201d Schwab said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To further hone her skills, Schwab participated in the first Facilities Leadership Institute sponsored by the Community College Facility Coalition (CCFC). The mission of the CCFC is to provide leadership in legislative advocacy and deliver critical information, education, and training on facilities issues for community college districts and their business partners to enhance student learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Schwab was one of 38 people from community colleges across California who received a certificate in facilities leadership for participating in the program at the coalition\u2019s annual conference in November. She said the program had six modules held over two years, with topics about leadership, legal issues, planning, funding, design and construction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was very beneficial because sometimes we get siloed into certain areas,\u201d Schwab said. \u201cIt was great to see the big picture and see we were all going through the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the best things about the program was making connections with other facility leaders across the state, Schwab said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was great to meet other people who were in a similar role,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s helpful to know that Palomar isn\u2019t unique in its challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Palomar College now has about 100 buildings on its 200-acre campus in San Marcos and at the Education Centers in Escondido, Rancho Bernardo and Fallbrook. Soon after Schwab started working at Palomar, voters approved Proposition M, a $694 million bond measure, in 2006, which she said has transformed the student experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really rewarding to see students using the facilities that were built,\u201d she said \u2013 noting she has a particular fondness for the inviting spaces of the Library\/Learning Resource Center at the San Marcos campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt makes me very proud to be providing these state-of-the-art facilities for students to use,\u201d Schwab said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"