The Santa Barbara City College Board of Trustees will see at least one new face when results of the Nov. 6 election are tallied.
The trustees represent the residents of the seven SBCC districts on Santa Barbara County’s South Coast — from Carpinteria to Goleta — in determining policies and making decisions governing the total operations of the entire district and the college.
The members are elected by voters in the individual districts, and serve four-year terms.
Area No. 1 — Carpinteria and Montecito
Incumbent Peter Haslund is running uncontested for the Area No. 1 seat.
Haslund joined the governing board in 2010. He was awarded professor emeritus status upon his retirement from SBCC in 2009 after 40 years in the classroom teaching political science and global studies.
He said the board’s primary responsibility is to set policy as guidelines that allow the college administration to steer the school in the direction of achieving its mission and goals.
“I’ve learned a lot about the college and the community in the last eight years, and hope to make use of that knowledge during the next four years,” Haslund told Noozhawk.
“A primary motivation for me is that I think I have been helpful in coping with both short- and long-range issues.”
Area No. 2 — Goleta
For the past couple of elections, the race for Area No. 2 — roughly the boundaries of the city of Goleta — has not been contested. This time it is, with incumbent Robert Miller, a retired trial lawyer, facing Brandon Morse, a business manager.
By a unanimous board vote earlier this year, Miller was appointed to take the place of previously appointed trustee Marianne Kugler, who resigned in January. If elected next month, he will complete the final two years of Kugler’s term.
Miller, a Goleta planning commissioner, said he’s spent a considerable amount of time since his appointment educating himself about SBCC and meeting leaders among the administration, faculty, students and staff.
“As to the attributes and behavior that are important for a successful board member, I recommend the ability to listen carefully, see the big picture and appreciate the tremendous resource of SBCC,” he said.
He emphasized the importance of understanding the rules and policies that govern the college, as well as knowing key campus leaders.
“It is equally important to be prepared for each board meeting by studying the issues that will be discussed,” he continued. “The most important thing I have learned is the many ways that SBCC is such a tremendous resource for our community.”
Miller’s priorities include student success, supporting programs to provide the best educational opportunities possible for the community, fiscal responsibility, and continuing support of the SBCC Promise and other programs that guarantee open access to the college.
“I’m excited to be part of an education facility that affords its students the opportunity to succeed in today’s economy, and at the same time provides a skilled workforce for our local economy,” he said.
Morse did not respond to three Noozhawk requests for an interview.
Area No. 5 — Mission Canyon and Santa Barbara
In Area No. 5, incumbent and retired attorney Marsha Croninger is facing a challenge from Darcél Elliott, chief of staff for county First District Supervisor Das Williams.
Area 5 includes the Riviera, Mission Canyon, the Upper Eastside, a portion of the Westside to Bath Street and roughly between Quinto and Victoria streets, and San Roque.
Croninger was first elected to the SBCC board in 2010, and served as board president from 2015 to 2018.
Among her goals, she counts more programs for careers in well-paying jobs that don’t require a bachelor’s degree, like trades, technology and health care; priority registration for all local students; and responsible spending of taxpayer dollars.
“I am running for re-election now to assure that the college continues to focus on the educational needs of its community — newborn through senior — with a platform of ‘Keep the Community in Community College’ and to help the college continue to build more programs that meet the need of our community,” she said.
Croninger practiced law for more than 30 years, and for 10 years was a partner in the Los Angeles office of McDermott Will & Emery, where she headed the firm’s environmental law practice before retiring in 2005.
She supports the idea of exploring a small public/private project to assist the community’s most vulnerable local students, such as single parents, students in foster care and those with mobile disabilities.
“Among the differences between myself and my opponent,” Croninger said, “are her advocacy for building housing for out-of-district students — international students, out-of-state students and students from elsewhere in California.”
She addresses the housing issue head on.
“Community colleges are not funded to provide housing because they are colleges centered on their communities,” Croninger noted. “Trustees need to be mindful of their role as policymakers, do their homework, be careful in spending taxpayers money, and be thoughtful and respectful in communicating with others at all times.”
Elliott has worked in state and local government for 10 years, and said community engagement and partnerships have been themes of her career.
Her campaign platform includes building dedicated student and workforce housing, retrofitting and modernizing the campus, developing more community engagement and partnerships, and supporting all students.
“I worked with Santa Barbara City College frequently … and have always felt the SBCC board was in need of more proactive leadership,” Elliott said.
“We need to better engage the whole community in how SBCC can better support them, and SBCC needs to better participate in conversations about issues in our community and how they can help provide some solutions to them.”
If elected, she said, she will “help direct SBCC to be a stronger community participant and work with our community members to solve pressing issues concerning the college.”
Area No. 6 — Isla Vista and Santa Barbara
Incumbent Jonathan Abboud is running unopposed for re-election in Area No. 6, which covers the communities of Hope Ranch and Isla Vista.
First elected in 2014, Abboud is the youngest community college trustee in California.
“I’m motivated to be a board member because I’ve seen firsthand the dire need to have marginalized voices directly at the table when making important decisions about education and students’ lives,” he said.
“From support of undocumented students to the need to build housing on campus, the board needs someone willing to stand up for those most in need.”
Area No. 7 — Santa Barbara
Kate Parker, a long-time Santa Barbara Unified School District trustee, economics professor Daniel Seymour and entrepreneur Laurie Punches are vying for the Area No. 7 seat held by Marty Blum, a former Santa Barbara mayor who is not seeking re-election.
Parker said an SBCC board member must care about the college, be dedicated to its long-term success, and be open-minded, curious and fair. In addition, she said, they must be strong leaders, especially when challenges arise.
“I’ve seen firsthand what an important role SBCC plays in providing opportunities for local students — both during high school through dual enrollment and after graduation, since SBCC is the college that Santa Barbara Unified students are most likely to attend,” she said.
“I’ve watched SBCC’s successes over the years and seen its challenges, too.”
If elected, Parker said, her primary focus would be to ensure that students are able to fulfill their personal educational goals — whether it be getting the transfer credits needed to move on to a four-year institution, updating their job skills or exploring a new interest.
She said she believes a community college needs to reflect the community’s needs, so she would make it a priority to build connections with and between students, staff, regional colleges and universities, employers, neighbors and other stakeholders.
“I know that the college needs trustees who understand how it fits into the fabric of the community, and I’m confident that I have the knowledge and skills to serve SBCC well,” Parker said.
“Their most important responsibility is creating a vision, mission and policies that support the success of all students.”
Seymour, a higher education professional, has taught in major universities and at the community college level. He also worked with many community colleges around the country on a consulting basis, and his books are used widely in strategic planning.
He served as a senior administrator in three community colleges, including Ventura College, Los Angeles City College and Houston Community College.
Seymour said he will focus on improving the completion rates for SBCC students and wants to support the institution in understanding California’s new performance funding formula.
“The challenges for today’s community college are great, especially as it relates to budgets and funding,” he said.
“I think it is important to have one or more people on the board with technical expertise in addition to more general community interests.”
Punches is an entrepreneur and says she created several businesses on the South Coast.
“I’m a middle-class person who loves education,” the mother of four said.
Punches studied at SBCC, which she said informs her approach to the college.
“I want to be a voice for the students on the board,” she said. “Something I see happening in the City College is, often times, the freedom and diversity to learn and have the true full spectrum of education is being limited, and I would like to expand that.”
Punches said she would bring balance to the SBCC board, describing herself as a “soft voice.”
“I care about what the students think as opposed to what money demands,” she said. “I want to know where the students want this money to be.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
