HUNTINGTON BEACH : Alumni ‘Hall of Fame’ Inaugurated

Golden West College on Thursday inaugurated a “Hall of Fame”-type honor to recognize distinguished alumni.

College President Judith Valles and other officials unveiled Golden West’s new “Pillar of Achievement,” which has six inaugural alumni honorees. The six being honored include Saddleback College administrator Vern Hodge, who was a 1969 graduate of Golden West.

The outdoor ceremonies Thursday, on the quad of the community college’s campus, were part of Golden West’s celebration of its 25th anniversary.

The new Pillar of Achievement is a concrete column at the college’s Administration Building. Alumni honorees will be selected annually, and their etched portraits will be affixed to the pillar.

The six inaugural Golden West alumni honored Thursday are:

* Hodge, of San Clemente, who graduated from Golden West in 1969. Hodge is currently vice president of student services at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo. He is also a member of the board of directors of the Saddleback College Foundation.

* Dr. Karen J. Armitage of Santa Fe, N.M., who graduated from Golden West in 1971. She is currently chief medical officer for the New Mexico Department of Health. She is the author of two books, “Response of Physicians to Medical Complaints in Men and Women” and “Promoting the Use of Care Safety Devices for Infants.”

* Ed Dlugokencky of Boulder, Colo., a 1979 Golden West graduate. He is an atmospheric chemist and research associate for the University of Colorado Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, where he is project leader for a program which studies global atmospheric levels of methane.

* Nancy A. Pollard of Huntington Beach, a 1976 Golden West graduate. A lawyer, she is current member and former president and vice president of the Coast Community College District Board of Trustees, which governs Golden West, Orange Coast College and Coastline Community College.

* Eileen M. Swift of Mission Viejo, a 1981 Golden West graduate. She is a neonatal nurse at the Infant Special Care Unit of UCI Medical Center. As a member of the Perinatal Outreach Program, she trains Orange County medical personnel to perform resuscitation on newborns, if necessary, in the delivery room.

* Anthony S. Tricoli of Marina, Calif., a 1976 Golden West graduate. A former health and physical education instructor at Golden West, Tricoli now serves as dean of instruction at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton. He formerly was dean of the evening-college program at Coastline Community College in Fountain Valley.