Elisa Pardo has been appointed to the Allan Hancock College Board of Trustees, filling the Area 1 vacancy through December 2028.
Pardo, who serves as the director of the nonprofit CommUnify and has nearly 20 years of community-leadership experience, was interviewed during the board’s Friday special meeting alongside candidate Sandy Lopez.
Pardo was appointed to complete the remaining term of Hilda Zacarías, who resigned in August after serving for 14 years.
During her interview, Pardo discussed her experience as a former first-generation Allan Hancock College student. She discussed challenges facing community college students, including fulfilling basic needs such as housing and transportation. She also touched on campus safety, specifically in light of federal immigration enforcement operations on campus this week.
“Safety is a huge component of our community,” Pardo said. “With the impacts of ICE, I would say we really need to strengthen our safety in our community.”
In response to the reported detainment of a student’s parent in a campus parking lot, Pardo also shared gratitude toward the college releasing a statement about the incident.
Superintendent/President Kevin Walthers said Monday that the college “strongly condemns immigration enforcement actions that create fear and uncertainty for our students and their families.”
“I would continue to support equity, and I would continue to support that commitment to our students while aligning and ensuring that communication signage is across the board, so we all know the path that we’re walking,” Pardo said.
She also discussed the role of the board as focusing on the “big picture” of strategy, policy and finances, as well as helping administrators handle day-to-day responsibilities. She described herself as action-driven and collaborative.
“I’m very well integrated in our community. I have my hands in a bunch of resources and services that exist,” Pardo said. “So what I would do is strengthen and leverage what exists in Hancock College to ensure that we can continue to collaborate as a community supporting each other to strengthen.”
Lopez, the other candidate for the seat, centered her interview on developing the local workforce, employer partnerships and career retention. As the business development manager of a local engineering firm and a member of the Santa Maria Recreation & Parks Commission, she discussed hiring Hancock interns and supporting local initiatives.
“I understand that all these groups sometimes speak different languages, and my talent is I know how to bring everyone together for the same end goal, which is keeping the students at the center of it all,” Lopez said.
After the interviews, the board met in closed session to debrief. A motion was made to nominate Pardo as the new trustee. Her nomination was approved in a 4-0 vote, with member Alejandra Enciso sitting out of the vote because of knowing both candidates.
Allan Hancock College has a $290 million school bond on the November ballot, Measure H.
Enciso and trustee Gregory Pensa are both running uncontested for re-election to their board seats, and the races will not appear on the November ballot.
