College President Who Overcame Adversity Not Done Proving Himself

At age 5, when Jose Robledo became a migrant farm worker, he spoke no English and, day after day, stuffed bags full of cotton in the fields of Texas.

By the time he turned 10, Robledo had figured out there was more to life than back-breaking labor.

“I can still remember thinking, ‘If I can make $10,000, I’d be a success,’ ” Robledo, now 46, said this week.

By those pre-adolescent standards--or anyone else’s, for that matter--Robledo has certainly succeeded. On Friday, he will be inducted as the 10th president of Los Angeles City College in a 10:30 a.m. ceremony on the North Vermont Avenue campus.

“I had something to prove,” Robledo said of his determination to overcome the obstacles of poverty and language. “If someone else could do something, so could I. And I’m not done proving that.”

Although Robledo’s position as LACC president is being formalized tomorrow, he has been in the post for the past two years.

After 11 years as an administrator at De Anza College in Cupertino, he was named acting LACC president in the spring of 1991 and was officially given the post last year. Inauguration ceremonies were delayed to allow for planning and scheduling constraints, college public information officer Fred Piegonski said.

So far, Robledo is getting good marks from faculty.

Winston Butler, chairman of the theater department and a faculty representative, said the new president “is very committed to faculty concerns and to the students.”

“There are ups and downs in any kind of position, but there have been no strong negatives,” Butler said of faculty reaction to Robledo. “We have not liked all the decisions he has made, but he is very strong and good at presenting the reasons for why he does something.”

Robledo and the faculty all recognize that, in this time of budgetary shortfalls, the mission to provide quality education to LACC’s 15,500 students will be a tough one. In fact, Butler thinks Robledo’s challenge boils down to one word: budget.

Gov. Pete Wilson’s proposed 1993-94 budget calls for an 11% cut in community college funding and an increase in student fees to make up most of the shortfall. LACC has an operating budget of $23 million and students now pay $10 per unit.

“The governor’s (budget) proposal is hurting the disadvantaged students most,” Butler said. “Robledo’s challenge will be to create a (solid) educational environment for all people in our community.”

“Our resources are being diminished, but the demand for education is not being diminished,” Robledo said. “Many facilities are aging quickly and we need to replace them. We’ll be looking at the state and federal governments for funding, but we are increasing our efforts with (grants from) foundations.”

Beyond budgetary considerations is the changing demographics of the community LACC serves and the increasing numbers of Armenian, Asian and Latino students who need English-language training.

“Our purpose should be to get students through a transitional program (that teaches students English) and into an academic or vocational program,” Robledo said. “I want to improve the graduation rates and the transfer rates to four-year colleges.”

Robledo, the father of three sons, once worked with the late Cesar Chavez to unionize artichoke pickers. The Diamond Bar resident, who holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from UC Santa Cruz and a master’s in public administration from Cal State San Jose, plays down the importance of his inspirational role toward the changing LACC population.

“I hope I see myself as an example of someone who has made it through hard work,” Robledo said. “I don’t see myself as having completed the task.”