Sierra College returns to Auburn roots for reunion

Rocklin's Sierra College honored its Auburn roots Sunday, welcoming former students who would have attended the school between 1936 and 1955.Most of the 80 people who attended what the college dubbed its golden era reunion were students when it was located on what is now the Placer High School campus, was called either Placer Junior College or Placer College, and sports teams played under the Spartans moniker, not the current Wolverines.For former students, it was a chance to catch up on old schoolmates, reminisce about old times, and in some cases, even break out an old yearbook to make some comparisons.Jim Morgan, was part of the Placer Junior College Class of 1940 - moving from Georgetown to stay with an uncle in Auburn while training to be a mining engineer. His second year, he moved to Colfax and "commuted" by driving a school bus back and forth at $50 a month. After junior high, he was soon in the Army and after World War II had been won, he was back in school - earning an electrical engineering degree from the University of Wyoming. Morgan's degree led him to a 39-year career in the Pacific Gas & Electric Co. engineering department - designing overhead, high-voltage transmission lines. He retired after 39 years and has since moved back to the Auburn area.Morgan recalled the names of two legendary educators at Placer College - history teacher Steven Barooshian and geology teacher and eventual college president Harold Weaver.Barooshian was inspirational and could perform some counter-psychology to get a point across, Morgan remembered."One of the girls would arrive late so one day he met her at the door and said 'We're glad you could join us. Let me escort you to your seat,'" he said. "The girl was never late again."Weaver was in his first year at the college when Morgan was in his first year. Morgan would drive the bus for a field trip to the Grand Canyon for Weaver's geology students. And when insurance wouldn't cover student field trips to mines, Weaver would organize a trip to Virginia City so pupils could have a look underground free of any state dictates.Now 87, Morgan has fond memories of his Placer College experiences. "My time was well-spent," he said. "The education I received guided me to a job that was challenging and fulfilling."Bob Lawrence, also of Auburn, started teaching physics at Placer College in the fall of 1946 and over the next 34 years, saw the changes and growth that would mirror the evolution of the state's community college network. The college was renamed Sierra College in 1954 - the same year the Spartans became the Wolverines. Three years later, the college was on its way to moving from Auburn after a bond measure to establish a wider district was approved by voters in 1957. The school moved to Rocklin in 1961. The current site was one of 30 possible locations.Today, the college district stretches from Roseville to Lake Tahoe, and takes in parts of Placer, Nevada, Sacramento and El Dorado counties. Over the years, hundreds of thousands of students have attended classes - at the original Auburn campus, at the Rocklin school, and for the past decade, at the Nevada City satellite campus.Lawrence, 92, said that Auburn's loss with the move to the Rocklin campus was a big gain for the school. Today, the campus continues to have more room to grow. In Auburn, its growth possibilities at the original site were limited."The community recognized that growth in Placer County west of Penryn was about twice what it was east of Penryn," Lawrence said. "It recognized the population was shifting."While the campus moved, Lawrence stayed at the home he had made in Auburn, driving the 15 miles along the newly built Interstate 80."I considered it the world's easiest commute - there was hardly any traffic at that time," he said.Sunday's reunion featured brunch, remarks from college President Leo Chavez, and a concert in the Dietrich Theater.Luis Sanchez, associate dean of business and technology, said that the reunion was part of an outreach that takes in seniors looking for lifelong learning opportunities and former students who may provide support for the school in the future."It's like you never leave - it's with you all your life," Sanchez said.Sanchez said that with the success of the reunion, he's promoting the idea of an event that would bring together current students, prospective students and alumni in an atmosphere similar to the University of California, Davis' Picnic Day.