The Community College League of California Recognized Retiring Community College Chancellors & Presidents at the 2024 CEO Symposium

The Community College League of California recognized retiring California Community College Chancellors and Presidents for their years of service at the 2024 CEO Symposium in San Diego. League CEO and President Larry Galizio Ph.D., and CEOCCC President Julianna Barnes, Ed.D. presented those in attendance with a commemorative plaque.

Among those being recognized were:

New Program Proves to Be What Is Needed for Those Ascending to the CEO Position

The Community College League of California (League) would like to congratulate the 2021 program cohort and those that have ascended to a new role at a college. To date, eight participants from the 2021 inaugural cohort have either secured a CEO position or are currently serving in an acting or interim CEO Position.

Humanity, Not AI, is Essential for Student Retention

League President & CEO Dr. Larry Galizio makes his argument for people, not bots in an op-ed published by Diverse: Issues In Higher Education. He explains why human connection and face-to-face relationships are essential to enrollment, retention, and student success at community colleges.

Membership into #RealCollegeCalifornia Coalition is Open and Welcomes New and Existing Members

Envisioned by the Chief Executive Officers of the California Community Colleges’ Affordability, Food & Housing Access Taskforce, and in partnership with the Community College League of California, the #RealCollegeCalifornia Coalition offers the latest expert help using evidence-driven support and hands-on guidance to help members develop new approaches and equity-based solutions, building internal capacity and gaining tools to impact institutional transformation.

Why A California Community Colleges Aspiring CEO Program?

No fewer than 14 CEOs—some of whom have been in California Community College (CCC) leadership roles for more than two decades—plan to retire in 2021, and we may experience more departures before year's end. While leadership change offers significant opportunities for districts and colleges to reenvision their strategic priorities and approach to their mission, this collective loss of institutional memory and experience will affect districts and arguably our entire sector for years to come.

Join the #RealCollegeCalifornia Coalition to Support Your Students' Basic Needs

#RealCollegeCalifornia was launched in 2019 when the Chief Executive Officers of the California Community Colleges’ Affordability, Food & Housing Access Taskforce sought support from the Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice. Their shared vision: To learn from the latest scientific evidence to advance the institutional effectiveness of basic needs accessibility work. By mid-2019, the #RealCollegeCalifornia Coalition was born. While the current pandemic was not on the horizon, there has been a clear and present basic needs crisis affecting students for some time now. Beginning to address that crisis helped leaders prepare for the additional challenges they were soon to face with COVID-19.

Equity Can’t Wait: Now is the Time for the Community College Baccalaureate Degree

The equity mission of California’s community colleges necessitates liberating the 72 districts and 114 colleges to decide locally whether or not to offer baccalaureate degrees. California’s public community colleges are the most ethnically and socioeconomically diverse higher education institutions in the state, and their geographic reach—almost 90 percent of Californians live within 10 miles of a community college—is unparalleled.

2017 CEO Leadership Academy

In June, California community college CEOs gathered for the 2017 CEO Leadership Academy, designed specifically to address the unique challenges and opportunities confronted by leaders of California Community Colleges.