GILROY
– And then there were three.
A 12-member committee of students, teachers, staff and community
members selected its top three choices Tuesday for president of
Gavilan College. The hopefuls include: Steven M. Kinsella, the Vice
chancellor of Administrative Services for the West Valley-Mission
Community College District; Paulette J. Perfumo, Ph.D., the Deputy
Superintendent/
Vice President for Educational Services for the Fremont-Newark
Community College District; and Patricia A. Spencer, Ph.D., the
Executive Vice President for Educational Programs and Student
Services at Fullerton College.
GILROY – And then there were three.
A 12-member committee of students, teachers, staff and community members selected its top three choices Tuesday for president of Gavilan College. The hopefuls include: Steven M. Kinsella, the Vice chancellor of Administrative Services for the West Valley-Mission Community College District; Paulette J. Perfumo, Ph.D., the Deputy Superintendent/
Vice President for Educational Services for the Fremont-Newark Community College District; and Patricia A. Spencer, Ph.D., the Executive Vice President for Educational Programs and Student Services at Fullerton College.
The finalists were not available for comment before press time.
“Every single one we interviewed was a competent and accomplished person,” said Enrique Luna, a committee member who a Gavilan professor and president of the school’s Academic Senate. “I’d say I’m 75 percent assured we’re referring the best three. I just can’t be 100 percent sure because how much can you really get to know someone in an hour and a half.”
The finalists will now be interviewed separately by the Gavilan Board of Trustees Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evening next week. Earlier in the afternoon of those days, the candidates will meet with Gavilan constituency groups and the general public in open forums held at the campus.
Forums will be held from 1 to 2 p.m. and from 3 to 4 p.m. in room 210 of the Social Sciences building at Gavilan.
Although participants will not be able to make formal recommendations to the board, their comments will be forwarded to trustees before they make their final selection.
The board will make that decision on Wednesday, said Pat Howle, the college’s human resources director. However, the new president will not be formally announced until trustees do a site visit to the person’s current place of employment.
The college will announce its new president by Nov. 18. The president will take over the post, currently held by Interim President Martin Johnson, in January, 2003. The Gavilan College president’s post was vacated in July after Rose Marie Joyce, the former president, took a position at Whittier College near Los Angeles.
The three finalists were chosen from a group of 40 qualified applicants the selection committee narrowed to 11 earlier this month. The candidate search was nationwide with an emphasis on community college administrators in the western United States.
Monday and Tuesday were the first face-to-face interviews conducted by the selection committee. The prior selections were based on the candidates résumés sent before the Sept. 27 filing deadline.
Interviewerss this week asked the hopefuls nearly 20 questions, some of them requiring written responses. Candidates were also asked to do a mock presentation on a topic important to the college.
After the interviews and before they made their final choices, the selection committee was told about the endorsements candidates received from their listed references.
“The consultant tried to give us a sense of how strong each endorsement was,” said Luna.
The consultant, Jack Bessire of Pebble Beach-based Professional Personnel Leasing Inc., is directing Gavilan’s presidential search.
