UCI Satellite Campus Plan Under Study

Looking to expand its domain and spread its reputation, UC Irvine may open satellite branches in Orange County by 1991 to offer extension courses to more than 15,000 students, university officials said Wednesday.

It would mark the first move by the university to create permanent academic complexes elsewhere in the county since the acquisition of its teaching hospital in Orange in the mid-1970s.

No specific sites have been identified, but if university officials approve the plan, a branch facility may eventually be established somewhere in South County as well as North County, said Melvin Hall, dean of UCI’s extension services.

The proposal, which is being studied by a special campus task force, follows by less than two months the opening of Cal State Fullerton’s initial satellite campus in the county--a series of portable classrooms and offices at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo.

But UCI officials say it is only coincidence that they are looking to establish learning hubs in other corners of the county. They say Cal State Fullerton’s campus in South County is largely aimed at undergraduate students working toward four-year degrees. UCI’s branch centers would offer only non-credit extension courses geared toward post-baccalaureate professionals seeking to brush up on career skills or expand into other fields.

Hall said the goal is to consolidate the university’s expanding extension programs--which drew more than 15,000 students last year alone--at permanent locations that would be closer to employment and residential centers.

About 1,000 courses and seminars are now offered annually, both on campus and at rented facilities throughout the county. With classroom space and parking at UCI’s central campus in Irvine already at a premium, it is impossible to schedule more extension courses there. Because many who are enrolled in extension courses also work full time, Hall said establishing satellite centers would make it easier for people to attend night and weekend classes.

“We are trying to give the extension program and the university a higher degree of visibility,” he said. “One of the significant advantages of moving off campus is the ability to tap into new populations by reducing the commute time for many prospective students.”

It would also give the extension program a fixed base, Hall said, so “people would not have to look all over the map for us.”

Hall predicted that the cost to open permanent satellite facilities initially would be minimal because the university is already renting classroom space in local schools, commercial buildings and civic centers in Irvine and Costa Mesa. A few extension classes are also held in Anaheim and Laguna Beach. Next year, several extension courses will be offered at a health club in Buena Park.

“It would be a wash at first,” said Hall, referring to the start-up costs of opening a branch facility, particularly if the university leases the facilities. But he acknowledged that if the decision is to purchase classroom space, or build a new center, “we’d be looking at a significant investment.”

A decision to open a branch facility probably won’t be made until June, when campus officials will decide whether the plan is economically feasible, Hall said. If given the go-ahead, he said, one extension center would open before additional branches are added.

Curriculum at each facility, he said, would be tailored to the geographic area. For example, a North County branch would have a heavier emphasis on business management, hazardous materials and employee-management relations because of its proximity to manufacturing and industrial centers. But in South County, with its burgeoning residential base, Hall said the offerings would include humanities and education courses.

“By taking the courses to a specific area, we can provide courses that meet specific needs and interests,” said Hall, adding that many of UCI’s extension students already have undergraduate degrees.

The university would not be the first campus in the University of California system to permanently locate its extension programs off campus. At least four others, including UC San Diego and UCLA, have off-campus extension offices and classrooms.