Farewell and Thank You: Mace Perona and Lana Rose
Johanna Mikkelä
Issue date: 5/11/05 Section: Features
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Few people have contributed to City College's excellence in as many ways as Lana Rose, 60.
Rose was the president of the academic senate from 1999- 2003 and is known for her tireless leadership.
"Being senate president is definitely one of the things I've enjoyed the most. I felt like I was able to contribute more on behalf of faculty colleagues and I could help shape policies," Rose said.
Since she came to City College in 1979 she has also been a science instructor, a bi-lingual commencement speaker and a counselor. In 1983 Rose was appointed as the first paid Executive Director of the Foundation for City College.
According to an official letter from Keith McLellan, dean of educational programs, Rose added structure and vision to the foundation and made it one of the most successful ones in the country. While working with the foundation she also earned a master's degree in Education with Emphasis in Confluent Education from UCSB.
Rose has also worked as a coordinator of the City College-UCSB Transition Program. When budget cutbacks affected the program in the late 90's, she continued to fight for it and provided good leadership.
"I think the biggest change at City College, since I started, is our struggle with financing. It's hard to change decisions made by the state so you have to be creative," Rose said.
In his letter, McLellan also said that they wish her well in retirement as she knits her way into the hearts and lives of new generations.
Rose said that the first thing she will do when she retires is to take a trip with her husband to the East to visit historic places. After that, she said, she will clean the house.
Mace Perona
Mace Perona, founding chair of the Film Studies Department made what began as a single course, into a department with more than 600 students each semester.
Perona began teaching at City College in 1972 and, according to a letter from Michael Stinson, Co-Chair of the Film Studies Department, teaching literature and film has truly been a labor of love for Perona.
Perona is known for his encyclopaedic knowledge of film. Students, who took his "Introduction to film" class decades ago, now recommend it to their children.
According to Stinson's letter Perona said "'I've buried a father, a mother, a brother, said good-bye to some friends, but I have also laughed with my grandsons: Dante, Dario and Damian. I have learned to cherish the sacredness of the now, the uniqueness of the moment, the rarity of friendships and the miracle of love. My life has truly been a 'moveable' feast and I have not yet lost my appetite.'"
Perona taught a Shakespeare course in Oregon and directed one Study Abroad program in England in 1992 as well as one in France in 1993. While he was in France, he took the chance to run the Paris Marathon.
In his letter, Stinson also said,
"Beloved by his colleagues in the School of Media Arts, Mace is known for his ready wit, the ever-present sparkle in his eye and his unflagging generosity."