Special Report to the Public:
Geysil Arroyo
Trustee Geysil Arroyo said she was proud and humbled to preside over her first Board Meeting as president, and she thanked the public speakers for sharing their updates and concerns. She said that the District is strong, and encouraged staff and faculty to continue bringing concerns to the board and students to seek out and take advantage of the many supports the District provides.
Craig Milgrim
Trustee Craig Milgrim reported that he, along with Trustee Mariah Jameson and Chancellor Gregory Smith, had meetings with representative from San Diego Unified School District and the San Diego Foundation to discuss the San Diego Educational Regional Housing Authority initiative. He lauded The San Diego Foundation for its support and expressed appreciation for their confidence in the District to shepherd this project.
Maria Nieto Senour
Trustee Maria Nieto Senour reported that she is curious about artificial intelligence and wants to learn more about its potential place in education.
Gregory Smith
Chancellor Gregory Smith welcomed everyone back from the holiday break. He recognized the efforts of those supporting wildfire victims in Los Angeles. He shared his report with San Diego College of Continuing Education President Tina M. King who introduced Masahiro Omae as the college’s new vice president of Instruction. He reported that on January 28 he will participate in a panel event, along with former Trustee Sean Elo-Rivera and others at College of Continuing Education around supports for immigrant, LGBTQIA+ and other communities threatened by the new administration; on February 26 he’ll host the inaugural districtwide Town Hall at Mesa College which will be broadcast live with a panel of support center coordinators to discuss how the District is preparing for possible loss of funding or attempts by new government to pass legislation that may harm certain students; Spring Forums at each college (City College, January 30; District Office, February 4; Miramar College, February 18; Mesa College, February 24; and College of Continuing Education, March 5) will be held in a town hall-type format with open dialogue encouraged. He reported that an $850 million bond issuance was completed last week, locking in a best-possible interest rate to benefit taxpayers; he expects that District will be able to begin breaking ground on several Measure HH projects sometime in 2027; and he thanked vice chancellors Joel Peterson and Dan Troy and their staff for their efforts. Chancellor Smith said that on January 31, a group from SDCCD will get to experience Arizona State University’s AI Dreamscape immersive education with an eye toward implementing similar technology within the SDCCD. At the end of the month, he and other SDCCD colleagues and trustees will visit Sacramento to engage with Assembly and Senate members, then to Washington, DC to meet with federal representatives to discuss national priorities, including the community college baccalaureate.
Chancellor Smith reported that Governor Gavin Newsom released a balanced January budget proposal with a modest surplus. Highlights of the proposal included a 2.43% COLA, a Proposition 98 guaranteed increase which will provided additional funding for community colleges, enrollment growth funding, but noted no COLA was applied to the Strong Workforce or Student Equity Achievement Programs, which could cause strain on the SDCCD’s budget. Areas of key advocacy as the budget process progresses include growth funding beyond 0.5%, fully funding FTES, and a return to full funding of Strong Workforce. He announced the District will be supporting two legislative bills including one to expand Strong Workforce program flexibility and offer more paid internship opportunities, and another bill to expand categorical programs to include noncredit students.
Zora Williams
Student Trustee Zora Williams reported that City College will hold a convocation on January 31 to celebrate the upcoming spring semester; that Mesa College is holding online and in person scholarship information sessions and noted the college is offering over 100 scholarships with various awards and students with any GPA are encouraged to apply; that Miramar College hosted the graduation ceremony for the 14th class of the Firefighter 1 Academy on December 13; and that College of Continuing Education hosted a grand opening of its Tutoring and Learning Center at the Educational Cultural Complex.
BOARD ACTIONS
At its regular meeting of January 16, 2025, which was conducted in-person, with online participation available, the Board of Trustees:
- Heard public comment from City College Academic Senate (AS) President Mona Alsoraimi said she hoped everyone had a restful break and said the AS had not met. She reported that Ismael Carrillo has been selected as the college’s DEIA and Anti-Racism officer and the AI Workgroup has convened to provide a venue for the AS and faculty. Mesa College AS President Andrew Hoffman said the college is participating in the annual MLK Jr. Parade on Sunday, January 19, the college will host its spring convocation on January 30, and an AS workshop is being held for committee chairs during the flex week. He said he was hopeful the chancellor would respond to his comments from the December meeting on a comparison from 10 years ago on topics such as the 50% law and how much is being spent on administration compared with instruction. He noted that enrollment started to decline after 2014-15, even before the COVID pandemic and other changes. He said his hypothesis is that more money was going to the classroom then and expressed his concern that the District’s focus remains on serving students. Miramar College AS President Pablo Martin welcomed everyone and said convocation is coming up with a focus on connecting people and a professional development day is taking place. College of Continuing Education AS President Richard Weinroth wished everyone a happy new year and announced that the college recently open its Tutoring Center, he also acknowledged the partnership with Minou Spradley is coming to an end and that the college is welcoming Masa Omae as vice president of Instructional Servies. He concluded saying he welcomes AI and is excited about the potential it brings to assist with instruction.
- Conducted the first reading of a new Chapter 5 – Student Services board policy.
- Accepted the District’s 2023-24 Independent Auditor’s Reports, which were conducted by Eide Bailly LLP. Audits for the five major funds in the District were provided: General Fund, Proposition S Fund, Proposition N Fund, the SDCC Auxiliary Organization, and the Social Security Alternative Plan. The Board’s Budget Study and Audit Subcommittee (Trustees Magaña and Milgrim) had reviewed the audits in depth with Vice Chancellor Daniel Troy and Chancellor Gregory Smith prior to the meeting. Auditor Rachel Green addressed the Board regarding the audits. The audits were unmodified.
- Ratified the appointment and employment contract of Masahiro Omae as vice president of Instructional Services at College of Continuing Education.
- Authorized agreements with healthcare agencies for use of clinical facilities by students enrolled in District health occupation programs.
- Authorized travel for San Diego City College students to attend the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Region 8 conference, February 11-15 in Mesa, Arizona; Society for Photographic Education West/Southwest Chapter Conference, March 5-8 in Reno, Nevada; and the Associated Writing Programs Conference March 5-8 in Los Angeles California; for San Diego Miramar College students to attend Annual Alliance of Hispanic Serving Institution Educators (AHSIE) Best Practices Conference, March 8-1 from and for Miramar College Study Abroad program from June 9 to July 20, 2025, in London, England.
- Accepted grants from the U.S. Department of Education for Title III, Part A Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISI) at City College; from the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office for the Homeless and Housing Insecurity program (HHIP) grant at City College, and the Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement (MESA) program at City and Miramar colleges; and the California Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) for the districtwide Cooperative Sub-Minimum Wage to Competitive Integrated Employment Project.
- Entered into agreements with the California Department of Social Services and the San Diego County Office of Education for Child Development programs at City, Mesa, and Miramar colleges; with the California Department of Forestry and Protection (CAL Fire) to provide training to Cal Fire personnel at Miramar College; and the San Diego Workforce Partnership, Inc. to provide training to students in the Emergency Medical Technician program at Miramar College.
- Accepted grants from the Foundation for Grossmont and Cuyamaca Colleges for the Strong Workforce Program Dual Enrollment Strategic Planning project at Mesa and Miramar colleges; for the Vocational Nurse Training Program (VNTP) Project at College of Continuing Education; and the 3D Design and Printing, and MongoDB Project at College of Continuing Education.
- Authorized the use of the Catholic Charities Refugee Services as an off-campus facility by College of Continuing Education; adopted a resolution making the finding necessary under Government Code Section 4217 to enter into an Energy Service Agreement with EMCOR without formal competitive bidding; and entered into a service contract and procurement of equipment with Axon Enterprise Inc.
- Approved a change order with GQ Builders for the painting project at the District Office; and ratified Emergency Action taken pursuant to PCC 22050 to locate and repair a hydronic leak in the underground hot water system near the I-building at Miramar College.
- Approved purchase orders and contracts completed during December 2024; new or revised courses and programs; the mileage reimbursement rate for employees who use their personal car for travel to 70.0 cents per mile, as established by the Internal Revenue Service; and various personnel actions including the certification of short-term personnel service effective on or after January 17, 2025.