A Stunned Community Mourns : 3 Campuses Are Hit Hard by the News

From the cafeterias to the classrooms of Ventura County’s three community colleges, word of Thomas G. Lakin’s bizarre death spread Monday among stunned students and faculty members.

“This is more than a shock,” said Carmen Eblen, a Spanish instructor at Oxnard College. “This is unreal. How can such a horrible thing happen to such a nice person?”

Flags were flown at half-staff at Moorpark, Oxnard and Ventura colleges as teachers and students talked about Lakin’s death and administrators discussed ways to honor him.

Lakin, the first African American chancellor of the 28,000-student district, died Sunday, an apparent victim of the rare disease necrotizing fasciitis, which rapidly eats away at human tissue.

Moorpark College President James Walker said he learned of Lakin’s illness over the weekend, and was certain he would pull through.

“I knew that it could be life-threatening, but my immediate reaction was that if anyone could survive this it would be him,” Walker said. “I still can’t believe it.”

Ola Washington, a teacher of African American history at Ventura College and a friend of Lakin’s for three years, said his sudden death is unsettling.

“It leaves us feeling vulnerable, and the rest of us are feeling a little more nervous today,” Washington told a class before bowing for a moment of silence Monday afternoon.

Washington described Lakin as a strong leader who came under fire for trying to bolster the district’s reserve funds. She recalled being struck by two framed photographs of a woman’s weathered hands that hang in Lakin’s office: They are his grandmother’s hands, and they helped him make it through the trying times, Lakin told her.

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Jerry White, who teaches health and physical education at Oxnard College, talked to students about Lakin and the strange disorder that took his life, but he did not have the answers students were looking for.

“What can I tell them?” White said. “You think you are doing the right things to live a healthy life when something like this happens. It shows the frailty of life.”

An acquaintance of Lakin, White said the two men chided each other about staying in shape when they met on campus, and talked about mutual friends in Los Angeles. He said Lakin sought to make Oxnard College equal to the other two community colleges, and the chancellor will be missed.

“We will not do as well without his support, because he was a big supporter of public education at Oxnard College,” White said. “He understood our problems.”

Yet many students--and even some teachers--were unaware Monday of Lakin’s death.

“I was wondering why the flag was at half-mast when I came in this morning,” said Patricia Robles, 19, outside Oxnard College.

Even those who did not know Lakin were shocked to hear of the unusual affliction, the so-called “flesh-eating” bacteria, that led to his death.

“I think it’s scary,” said Moe Smith, a Moorpark College freshman. “Everybody said this guy was healthy, and then one day he gets this disease. It really makes you think.”

Shawn Brennan, student body president at Oxnard College, said Lakin was a great supporter of student issues. He plans to send flowers to the family on behalf of students.

Brennan remembered seeing Lakin play basketball at the opening ceremonies of the Oxnard College Sports Complex in October, challenging players half his age and having a good time.

“He looked much younger, like a student that would be here, jumping around,” Brennan said. “It was hard to believe he (is) dead.”

Times staff writer Julie Fields and correspondent Matthew Mosk contributed to this story.