Gavilan College President Steve Kinsella wants students to talk
to him. While walking around campus, he wears a badge with his name
and title in the hope that students will feel free to stop and
chat.
Gavilan College President Steve Kinsella wants students to talk to him. While walking around campus, he wears a badge with his name and title in the hope that students will feel free to stop and chat.
“It’s just to let them know who you are, and hopefully, they’ll talk to you,” Kinsella said. “A lot of them do. You get to hear their perspective.”
The former Marine with an extensive background in finance says he’s enjoyed interacting with students and the college community during the past year, even if his transition was slowed by budget problems that needed immediate attention.
“I really wasn’t planning on dealing with the budget – yet,” he said. “I was hoping I could spend more time learning about the community and the instructional program and really trying to just get a better feel for what was happening.”
Not only did Kinsella tackle Gavilan’s budget woes right out of the starting block after taking the Gavilan helm in January 2003, he did so in award-winning fashion. He helped the college form a budget work group that incorporated voices across the Gavilan campuses. The group cut $1.2 million, or about 5 percent of the college budget, to cover an existing deficit and additional state cuts.
Gavilan will have a budget deficit of about $300,000 to close next year, and Kinsella is already getting feedback on a plan to eliminate one of three vice president positions after Vice President John Baker retires this year. The savings will be roughly $115,000 and will be ongoing until the position can be re-instated.
Gavilan was recognized for its innovative and successful approach by the Community College League of California.
“The focus … was to bite off enough in reductions so that we wouldn’t have to spend all of our time and energy on that,” Kinsella said.
Kinsella’s collaborative tack extends beyond budget cuts, as he shuns the idea of managing from the top down.
“My approach, normally, is to describe what the problem is and ask (staff) to solve it,” he said. “I want to make sure that anything we decide is within the … system but, then, that I give them free rein.”
“I think the bottom line is trust,” Baker said. “I think he enjoys the trust of people because of the way he looks at issues. I applaud him for that, and we feel that we’ve all been given a chance to give feedback on ideas.”
Under Kinsella’s leadership, the college looks well-equipped for the years ahead. He has helped give Gavilan a significant advantage over other community colleges in the state by making a healthy budget a top priority and planning ahead.
“We reacted (to last year’s budget), I think, probably at about the right level, and we made enough of the instrumental types of changes that allowed us to really pull that expenditure base down quickly,” Kinsella said. “And we’re adjusting to that, still. … We’re watching the state budget, obviously, but it’s a matter of a waiting game.”
“Right now, we’re in as good a shape as we’ve ever been,” said Marty Johnson, vice president of instructional services. “Our efficiency is way up. Financially, so far, we’re very stable, unlike many colleges.”
Although the things already accomplished during Kinsella’s first year with Gavilan have clearly made an impression, it is his vision and plans for what lies ahead that truly show why he is seen as a valuable asset.
“He certainly has insight into the college and the future of the college,” said Simon Cooke, president of the Associated Student Body. “He’s always looking five, 10, 20 years down the road, and he’s showing people what his vision is, always. Students are lucky to have that.”
“I think he’s opened a lot of people’s eyes on where Gavilan should be,” Trustee Mark Dover said. “As far as just keeping it fiscally sound, he’s adamant about balancing the budget every year. His budget knowledge has been … a driving force for where the college is going right now.”
Dover said Kinsella was the perfect man for the job. When attending conferences with other community college staff and board members, “everybody will come up to us trustees and say, ‘What a great president you have.’
“He’s honest and has high morals and his integrity is so high that it just makes the institution strong from the top down.”
