SANTA ANA : Trustees Reject Plan for Research Routine

The Rancho Santiago College Board of Trustees this week rejected a proposed policy that would have required individual trustees to get board approval before requesting information, research or reports from district staff.

Board President Shirley Ralston, who said such a procedure has been the board’s “unwritten policy” for 21 years, suggested that it become official after Trustee Charles W. (Pete) Maddox conducted independent investigations into various district matters.

Ralston has accused Maddox of “micro-management” and said his investigations, one of which was a probe into the operations of the college print shop, were “taking up a great deal of staff time.”

“My feeling is that it’s become a problem,” she said.

But Ralston’s proposal received little support from fellow board members, many of whom said they felt the policy would be too restrictive.

“I feel the process would limit my ability as a trustee and as an elected person,” Trustee Brian E. Conley said. “I have a mandate from the people who voted for me to find out information and make corrections.”

During a heated one-hour discussion, Maddox said he has simply been doing his job. He said the proposed policy was a “punitive measure” aimed at him, similar to when he was stripped of his appointments to various college committees earlier this year for asking the district attorney’s office to conduct an investigation into the college’s now-defunct swap meet.

“I think it’s a very detrimental policy to even consider,” Maddox said. “I will never accept a policy that will say there are restrictions on what information I can ask for.”

District Chancellor Robert D. Jensen said that while the board could not legally enforce such a policy, he said it is a good idea for members to work together and through the chancellor when information is needed.

He said independent investigations and requests for information “undermine” the board’s relationship with the chancellor.

“It’s not a legal issue,” Jensen said. “It’s a matter of protocol and being a member of a team.”