Palomar dean passes the reins after 33 years

By: NOELLE IBRAHIM - Staff Writer
College loses student advocate, colleagues say | Friday, December 28, 2007 9:31 PM PST ∞

SAN MARCOS -- Dean of Languages and Literature Katheryn Garlow started her adventure with Palomar College as a student fresh out of high school more than 40 years ago. Now 64, with three decades of service to the college under her belt, Garlow says she's ready for a new adventure ---- retirement.

"I don't know what I'm going to do," said Garlow, whose last official day was Dec. 21. "I'm going to let something find me."

In the story of her life, Garlow said her passions, including teaching English as a Second Language and increasing student access to higher education, have always found her.

"I'm confident something will come," she said, adding that she plans to take up guitar and polish her Spanish.

She'll also have more time for horseback riding when she and her husband soon move to a remote ranch in central New Mexico.

"We're going to realize a dream while we're still strong," she said.

Garlow's colleagues say Palomar is losing a staple on campus. Everyone knew, loved and respected her, said her secretary, Anna Hilton.

"It's going to be very difficult for anyone to fill her shoes," said Lynda Halttunen, Palomar's dean of counseling services who has known Garlow for 20 years. "She has a body of institutional knowledge nobody else has, and she's taking that with her."

English professor Stephen McDonald is slated to take over as interim dean Jan. 7.

A product of Palomar who was recognized as Alumna of the Year during the college's commencement in May, Garlow says she's seen many changes in the campus over the years, including diversity in the student body, technology in the classroom -- she said she used to type out assignments on a typewriter ---- and students' level of preparedness for college.

"In those days, we were all college-ready ... we came here because it was inexpensive to go to school," Garlow said, explaining why she and others attended Palomar. "Nowadays, 80 to 90 percent of our students come with basic skills issues (in reading, math and English)."

After earning an associate's degree in English from Palomar, Garlow went on to earn her bachelor's in English and German from Whittier College. She later earned a Ph.D. with an emphasis in policy studies in language and cross-cultural education jointly through Claremont Graduate University and San Diego State.

But it was during her time in Europe after graduating from Whittier and teaching high school English that she discovered she had a passion for teaching English as a foreign language to students from other countries.

"I taught a Gypsy girl English in Germany," said Garlow, who has studied 11 languages. "It was a vocation. I didn't dream of doing anything else."

Garlow was there at the birth of the ESL department at Palomar, where she'd dreamed of working since she was 18, she said. She taught the subject full time until about four years ago, when she became dean.

"These are students I believe deserve a chance at higher education," she said.

Palomar's ESL program has grown from roughly 600 students when Garlow first started to 3,000 today, she said.

"They come in with the idea of learning English and little by little they develop high goals for themselves," she said, adding that her aim was to help students achieve their goals and then some.

Lee Chen, chair of the ESL department, described Garlow as a humanistic person who put students' needs first.

"She wouldn't hesitate to advocate for those people who don't have a voice," Chen said, recalling how Garlow would take students under her wing and tutor them individually for hours on end. "The equality, the access (are things) she's very passionate about."

Garlow said the most rewarding part of her time at Palomar was seeing the expression on students' faces when they grasped a new concept.

"That (was) enough (reward) for the day," she said.

Contact staff writer Noelle Ibrahim at (760) 740-3517 or nibrahim@nctimes.com.