Racism Cited by Manager Who Quit College Post : Ethnic problems: Former director at Saddleback says he was harassed but got no support from district officials.

A former supervisor at Saddleback College said this week that he quit his job because of “unbearable” racial harassment and a lack of support from the district.

Lonnie Poindexter, 60, denied the Saddleback Community College District’s earlier contention that he left his job as director of Operations and Support Services on Sept. 30 simply because he got a better job offer.

“I felt the district stuck their heads in the sand and hoped it would blow over,” Poindexter said from his new home in Richmond, Calif., where he works as director of maintenance and operations for the Richmond Unified School District.

“When you’re black, you’ve been fighting racial things all of your life if you’re my age,” he said. “But in all the years, I had never encountered the type of hatred that I encountered there.”

Poindexter said he and three other Saddleback College employees, two black and one white, had been subjected to five months of racial harassment which came in the form of anonymous telephone calls both at home and at work and racist flyers sent through inter-office mail.

“It reached the point when the constant harassment was just unbearable and I felt I wasn’t getting the proper support from the district,” he said.

Saddleback College President Constance M. Carroll said on Friday that the racial harassment was not brought to her attention until shortly before Poindexter left the college.

“The overt racist types of problems were relatively recent and they are being investigated by the college, the district and the Sheriff’s Department,” Carroll said. “When I found out about it, I immediately informed the district chancellor.”

Poindexter said he was hired in 1989 to supervise a department which oversees groundskeepers, custodians, mechanics and maintenance workers. He was told by college administrators to make sweeping changes, he said, because the department had not been performing up to standard.

“The district hired me to make changes because the grounds were not kept and rooms were dirty,” Poindexter said. “When you make changes, you’re going to be subjected to some criticism. That’s expected. The problem is when it become vicious. If I had been a different color, I don’t think I would have been subjected to this type of harassment.”

Poindexter said his policy changes prompted several employees to complain to district officials and file grievances about his supervisory methods.

Marcia Milchiker, president of the Board of Trustees, said of Poindexter’s allegation that district officials chose to ignore the racial harassment: “I don’t think it’s a fair statement. I was never truly aware that there were any racial problems, but I was aware that there were problems in that department. Employees sent several petitions to the board to get rid of him. There was a lot of employee unhappiness with his management style. Maybe there was some racial motivation, but we were not aware of it until very late.”

Carroll said that she had supported Poindexter through a series of labor-management disputes and had been pleased with the changes he brought to his department.

Carroll said she was greatly disturbed by the racial incidents and that the college is working with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department to investigate.

“My support of Lonnie’s changes were unwavering,” Carroll said. “He was a wonderful director who brought about changes that were good for the college. I regret that he left. We want to get to the bottom of this and get to the people responsible. Their activities are illegal and repugnant to us as educators and human beings.”

Since Poindexter quit, racial harassment of the three other employees has continued, said Richard Sneed, chancellor of the Saddleback Community College District.

Two weeks ago, Sneed condemned the racial harassment in a memo issued to faculty and staff at both Saddleback and Irvine Valley colleges. He stated in the memo that any employee or student implicated in the calls or flyers would be fired or expelled. Sneed has also formed a cultural diversity task force to investigate the incidents and examine current district policies on racial harassment.

Last week, more than 60 employees from both colleges presented a written resolution to the district’s Board of Trustees, demanding a more aggressive investigation of the incidents.

Carroll, who is also black, said she has long fought for civil rights and said the college has made a concerted effort to educate employees and students about cultural and ethnic diversity.

“We are going to bend over backwards to continue our educational efforts,” Carroll said. “In this area of Orange County, there is not much experience with cultural and ethnic diversity. I think it is healthy to bring these issues out into the forefront and it’s important to keep a bright light on intolerance and bigotry.”

Poindexter, who has no plans to file a lawsuit or grievance against the district, said that although the episodes forced him to leave the college, he is glad to see that more attention is being paid to the problem.

“It’s too late for me,” he said, “but somebody had to pay the price. My hope is that my experience will make it easier for the next person of color.”