Las Positas College Closer to Finding a President

moved one step closer Thursday to finding a new campus president.

College officials held a public forum on campus for a pair of candidates recently added to the list of finalists.

The presidential candidates, each currently holding a position as vice chancellor elsewhere, echoed concerns about fiscal responsibility and increased communication among the campus amid the state budget crisis.

Kevin Walthers, vice chancellor for administration for the West Virginia Community and Technical College System, spoke first to an audience of about 40 people on campus.

"We need to make sure the dollars we’re spending reflect the things we're doing, he said. "If those things don’t match our budget then we’re not really doing those things."

In response to student concerns over difficulty in registering for required classes, Walthers said registration should be made easier.

"I never understood how we had really long lines at our registration desk," he said. "There are other places in the world that have figured out how to do line management, whether it be Disneyland or Chili's. It’s not 1983 anymore. We should be able to allow students to register."

Recently, college officials announced a 15-unit cap for all students in light of budget shortfalls that have led to class cuts and increased tuition fees.

Walthers added that he seeks to balance the budget as well as maintain other programs, such as those in athletics and theater, by increasing communication and interaction among faculty and student government groups.

“As educators, we’re sort of militantly egalitarian," he said. "We need to make sure all of the campus has a say in what we’re doing."

Barry Russell, vice chancellor of academic affairs for the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office, spoke after Walthers, expressing similar views regarding budget concerns.

"The system that you use to make sure we stay within the budget I think we should be doing all the time," he said.

Russell also said increased communication is needed on the campus to reform the college's budget policies.

"It’s very important to pull people together who are being involved with that," he said. " Keep the communication going."

Additionally, Russell said officials need to look at the hiring process for instructors. 

"One of the most important things a campus does is the hiring process for faculty," he said. "It’s making sure you’re hiring faculty who are connected and have that ‘students first’ mentality."

A third candidate, Kindred Marillo, originally chosen with Walthers and Russell as part of the latest group of finalists, withdrew her application after being hired as Lake Tahoe Community College's president.

Chabot-Las Positas College District Chancellor Joel Kinnamon has said the district hopes to hire a president by the end of the college's spring semester this month.

The college  in April after failing to name a new campus chief by a previously targeted March deadline.

The campus has been searching for a president for seven months. is heading the college as its interim president and will continue in that capacity until a permanent president is chosen, officials said.

The initial search appeared to be nearing an end when officials narrowed its group of candidates to four finalists.

The four at the college in late February.

One of the finalists, Joseph Olsen, was hired as president of Umpqua Community College in Oregon.

The candidates from the first round of the search still are being considered for the position, according to district spokeswoman Laura Weaver. They are:

• Stephen Schoonmaker, vice president of instruction at Clatsop Community College in Astoria, Ore.
• Kimberly Perry, vice president of academic affairs at Los Angeles City College
• Kevin Trutna, vice president for academic and student services at Yuba College in Marysville