There has been an apparent reshuffling of the College of the Canyons administration as Deputy Chancellor Diane Fierro and Sharlene Coleal, assistant superintendent of business services, are set to retire, according to Eric Harnish, spokesman for the college.
Coleal’s effective retirement date is set for Sept. 3, while Fiero’s is set for Sept. 20, according to Harnish.
The news comes just two days before a Santa Clarita Community College District board of trustees meeting in which multiple other changes are expected to be approved for the one-college district.
Part of the closed session preceding the open session on Wednesday is a conference between the board and the college’s legal counsel concerning two potential pieces of litigation.
Part of the agenda for Wednesday’s meeting is an item concerning who is authorized to sign checks and other forms on behalf of the college. That item recommends that the board remove Fiero and Coleal as certified signatories and indicates that a handful of administrative personnel are having their titles changed.
Also recommended for removal as a certified signatory is Dianne Van Hook, who was placed on administrative leave from her position as chancellor last month before announcing her retirement a week later.
Recommended to be added as a certified signatory is David Andrus, named acting chancellor by the board last month.
Already certified to sign contracts and other forms regarding legal or monetary matters, but having their titles changed are: Jason Hinkle, from associate vice president of business services to interim assistant superintendent/vice president of business services; Erin Tague, who will have the interim tag removed from her position as assistant superintendent/vice president of facilities, planning operations and construction; and Kristina Hancock, from special assistant to the chancellor to chief of staff.
Wednesday’s meeting is set to begin at 5 p.m. at the Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook University Center, Room 301, located at 26455 Rockwell Canyon Road. The closed session is set for 4 p.m.
Making the appointment official
While Andrus has been operating as the acting chancellor for nearly a month, the board is set to formally approve his contract on Wednesday.
Prior to that vote taking place, the board will vote on changing the title of the head of the college, or the CEO, from “chancellor” to “superintendent/president,” which has been deemed to be consistent with how other community college districts operate, according to the agenda.
“By tradition, the CEO at a single-college district is called ‘superintendent/president,’” the agenda item reads. “The CEO at a multi-college district is denominated a ‘chancellor.’ The reason for the change is lost in the mists of time. But now that the position is vacant, the district suggests this is a suitable time to make the change.”
Should Andrus ever be incapacitated to the point that he cannot fulfill his CEO duties — or whomever is in that position at the time — the board is also set to approve a succession order. The order, proposed by Andrus, would be as follows, if approved: assistant superintendent of instruction, followed by assistant superintendent of student services and then assistant superintendent of human resources.
Challenge to the appointment process
Calling the appointment of Andrus improperly noticed, activist Steve Petzold, a former Santa Clarita resident who now lives in Georgia, has requested that the board rescind the appointment.
Petzold contests that Government Code Section 54957 “requires advance notification to the public which allows them to decide whether to attend the meeting and/or provide written comment.”
“Your decision to make an appointment without the lawful notification required under law deprives the public of their rights,” Petzold wrote in a letter addressed to Andrus and board President Edel Alonso, “and makes the district extremely vulnerable to a cure and correct action which may result in legal action against the district.”
The analysis provided with the agenda item states: “The board appointed David Andrus as acting chancellor due to the leave of Dr. Van Hook. The board was acting under Board Policy 2432. The action was properly on the agenda.”
Student housing update
A couple years after the college was awarded a nearly $62-million Affordable Student Housing grant from the state to build permanent housing for low-income students, the board is set to hear an update on when that can be expected to be completed.
That presentation is set to be delivered by Ann Volz, president of the Volz Co., a real estate and operational advisory and program management firm, and will cover “the timeline to date, current legislative information, moving to a 24/7 campus, the expense and revenue projections, cost to date of the project and finally, the choices we will need to make as a district on the new lease revenue bonds implemented by the state.”
Volz has been working with the district since early 2024 on how campus housing can be brought to the college, according to the agenda.
“Along with her team, Ms. Volz has helped develop expense and revenue projections, helped with the design of the building, and created a timeline for the housing construction,” the item reads.
