APTOS — Cabrillo College officials announced Monday that they have selected five finalists to fill the president’s seat when current president Laurel Jones retires on Jan. 2.
The community is invited to a series of forum-style interviews of the candidates on Nov. 29.
The announcement followed a “rigorous, national process,” Cabrillo spokeswoman Kristin Fabos said.
The president search committee included two search consultants, representatives from Cabrillo’s Board of Trustees, student representatives, faculty, staff, a student and a community member.
“This has been a national search, with broad representation from all campus constituent groups — faculty, staff, administration, students, the Foundation, and the community were all represented on the committee,” said Gary Reece, Cabrillo trustee and chair of the President/Superintendent Search Committee. “We are pleased with the extremely qualified pool of candidates, and we look forward to presenting this impressive slate of finalists to the Cabrillo and broader community and having the opportunity for open dialogue.”
Each forum is 45 minutes long, with a 15-minute break in between.
Candidates will be given the same two questions, and will speak for approximately 10 minutes while members of the audience complete index cards with questions of their own.
Audience questions selected for presentation will then be read to the candidate. The last five minutes is reserved for a closing statement by each candidate.
The Cabrillo Community College District Board of Trustees will conduct final, individual interviews of each candidate in a closed session on Nov. 30.
At the conclusion of the forums, each finalist candidate will meet with the Cabrillo College Board of Trustees for a final interview.
The board expected to make a decision on the final candidate in December.
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Cabrillo College will hold campus-wide community forums on Wednesday, Nov. 29 in the Samper Music Recital Hall, 6500 Soquel Drive in Aptos. Admission is free. Parking in Lot L, which is adjacent to the Samper Recital Hall, will be free.
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Forum schedule
• 2-2:45 p.m.: Kimberlee Messina, currently Interim Vice Chancellor of Educational Services and Planning at San Mateo Community College District, San Mateo
• 3-3:45 p.m.: Matthew Wetstein, currently Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Instruction & Planning at San Joaquin Delta College, Stockton
• 4-4:45 p.m.: Susan Lamb, currently Interim Chancellor at City College of San Francisco, San Francisco
• 5-5:45 p.m.: Melinda Nish, currently Executive Advisor to the President/Acting Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs at the College of the Marshall Islands, Majuro, Marshall Islands
• 6-6:45 p.m.: Georgia Lorenz, currently Vice President of Academic Affairs, Santa Monica College, Santa Monica
