Teachers Protest Recruitment Decision

Angered by the community college board’s decision 10 days ago to launch an expanded search for a new head of Oxnard College, instructors plan to meet with Chancellor Philip Westin on Monday to ask him to persuade the trustees to hire the president from an existing pool of candidates.

“We are going to be asking the chancellor to support us in asking the board to reverse their decision,” said Carmen Guerrero-Calderon, vice president of Oxnard College’s Academic Senate. “We have various issues facing Oxnard College that we need permanent leadership for.”

The board voted unanimously July 17 to continue its search, touching off protests by members of a screening committee that had already identified 14 potential candidates. Trustees also told Westin to find a recruiting firm to help with the search and to find a new interim president.

The current acting president, Ruth Hemming, was one of two candidates favored by the screening committee, which is composed of instructors and community members.

Westin has appointed Judith Valles, retired president of Golden West College in Huntington Beach, as interim president effective Monday.

The president’s job opened up when Elise Schneider left in February for a newly created position as the college system’s foreign student recruiter.

Guerrero-Calderon said expanding the search is a waste of time and money. She believes that both Hemming and another candidate, Darlene Pacheco, a vice president for instruction at Moorpark College, are well-qualified for the president’s post.

Guerrero-Calderon said Oxnard College needs permanent leadership because the college is opening a new dental-hygiene program and offering extension courses in Camarillo.

“We have already gone through a [search] process,” she said. “We have found some excellent people. There is no reason to throw the process out.”