Former local rep Jack Scott stepping down as California Community Colleges chancellor
Jack Scott, a veteran and popular educator who has headed the state’s community college system during a period of brutal budget cuts and was often a voice decrying the impact on students, announced Tuesday that he will retire as chancellor overseeing the 112 campuses.
Scott, 78, became chancellor of the nation’s largest community college system in January 2009 after a long career as a state legislator and college campus leader, giving him rare insights into both politics and academia. A Democrat, he served in the Legislature for 12 years until 2000, as an assemblyman and senator from the Pasadena area, and previously was president of Pasadena City College and Cypress College.
In an interview Tuesday, Scott said the last few years of budget battles in Sacramento had not been easy but he emphasized that he was not retiring because of discouragement with the funding of higher education in California.
“I figure 58 years of work is enough,” he said. “I’d prefer a less demanding life.”
-- Larry Gordon, Los Angeles Times