Special Report to the Public:
Geysil Arroyo
Trustee Geysil Arroyo said that she attended the Martin Luther King Jr. Parade. She thanked her Board colleagues for providing her the opportunity to continue serving as Board President, and she wished everyone a happy new year and a great spring semester.
Mariah Jameson
Trustee Mariah Jameson shared that she attended the parade and said it was good to be in community with everyone ahead of the start of the spring semester. She said she is looking forward to upcoming events at each of the colleges.
Dr. Marichu Magaña
Trustee Marichu Magaña reported that she attended the parade and commented on how impressive the College of Continuing Education float was. She said she appreciates the Academic Senate presidents for sharing the many accolades being awarded to folks at the colleges.
Craig Milgrim
Trustee Craig Milgrim said that he hoped everyone had a restful winter break. He acknowledged the email newsletter regarding Measure HH updates from Vice Chancellor Joel Peterson’s office and thanked those on his team for the outreach and exploration taking place on the overall project. He encouraged District employees to stay engaged throughout the whole process to make sure all ideas are heard and taken into consideration.
Dr. Maria Nieto Senour
Trustee Maria Nieto Senour reported that she attended the parade and All Peoples Breakfast in January. She said she was impressed with the parade float created by College of Continuing Education.
Gregory Smith
Chancellor Gregory Smith acknowledged Director, Facilities Services, Angelo Pelligrini for his 25 years of service to the District as he prepares to take on a new position at Grossmont-Cuyamaca. He welcomed everyone back and wished all a happy New Year. He noted that he had a lot of time over the winter break to reflect on the news taking place across the country, which has led to Cabinet revisiting the protocols in place should Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity take place near or on District campuses or the District Office. He reported that on January 16, College of Continuing Education’s Mid-City Campus implemented its ICE protocols after reports were received of ICE near campus, and he acknowledged the swift actions of employees and a recap of events from President Tina M. King. He said that he went to the campus that afternoon to observe firsthand and said he is confident that campus members are prepared should enforcement actions reach the campus in the future. He also noted that the colleges and all SDCCE campuses will take part in tabletop exercises at the start of the semester to better prepare for such an event, and that he will share related communication with the District community at the start of the semester. Chancellor Smith said that he was appreciative of Mayor Todd Gloria’s January 15 State of the City remarks, which revealed plans to partner with the SDCCD and Mesa College to provide a museum display space for the World Art Collection, a collaboration that has been in discussion with President Ashanti T. Hands, Dr. Denise Rogers, and Vice Chancellor Laurie Coskey, for a couple of years now. He thanked the mayor and the city of San Diego for its support in this plan to help revitalize the Civic Center in downtown San Diego.
Chancellor Smith reported that Governor Gavin Newsom released his January budget proposal, which was positive for community colleges and included a fully funded Cost of Living Allowance (COLA), growth funding, and COLAs on several categorical programs. He expressed some concern over the level of investment for K-12 funding, which comes at the expense of community college funding. He also noted that the proposed budget does not address unfunded growth or student equity and achievement program funding, which hasn’t received a COLA for several years and is critical at a time with the federal government is cutting DEI programs. He said several District leaders and student leaders will be traveling to Sacramento to meet with legislators on January 26 and 27 and advocate on behalf of the District.
Jeremiah Palomino
Student Trustee Jeremiah Palomino reported that City College Associated Student Government will hold a retreat on January 28 and reconvene meetings on February 11. He said that Mesa College will also hold an ASG retreat on January 28 with regular meetings starting again on February 11. He also reported that College of Continuing Education held its first Associated Students meeting on January 20.
BOARD ACTIONS
At its regular meeting of January 22, 2026, which was conducted in-person, with online participation available, the Board of Trustees:
- Announced the following actions from Closed Session: accepted the recommendation not to renew the employment contract of a regular academic employee at San Diego Miramar College, as required under Section 87732 of the California Education Code; and denied the appeal of the administrative determination of a Title 5 complaint.
- Heard public comment from City College Academic Senate President Mona Alsoraimi Espiritu who said that the AS has not met but they will have a retreat on January 26 to review priorities. She reported that the AS is in the process of implementing the sustainability resolution around event planning that was passed last semester, beginning with conversations around food waste. She concluded by pointing out that Ramadan and the Lunar New Year start on the same day this year and that it is important to provide people with grace during this time of year. Mesa College AS President Mary Gwin said the AS has not met but the first Senate Executive meeting is February 9. Faculty are looking forward to the start of the semester including convocation breakout sessions. She acknowledged the college’s sports programs, including athletes and coaches who were recognized for excellence. Winter Creating Rich Unique Intellectual Student Experiences (CRUISE) was held last week and was a big success. Also, the college is looking forward to working with the Mexican Consulate on an information event this weekend. College of Continuing Education AS President Richard Weinroth thanked Mona Alsoraimi Espiritu for the reminder about Ramadan. He also acknowledged presidents Ricky Shabazz and Ashanti Hands for their interview on KPBS radio including highlighting the importance of noncredit education. He said he is excited about recent accomplishments over the past semester, with many at the college who were recognized by the community and their peers. He also mentioned a recent Know Your Rights presentation by General Counsel Ljubisa Kostic that was well received. He said SDCCE’s recent Institution Day was a wonderful experience. He concluded by thanking all those who continue to support the college in its important mission.
- Adopted a resolution recognizing February 2026 as Black History Month; and approved new or revised courses and programs following comments by Dean Shelly Hess.
- Authorized agreements with healthcare agencies for use of clinical facilities by students enrolled in District health occupation programs; and approved the revised mission statement for Miramar College.
- Appointed Sean Caruana, College of Continuing Education faculty member to the California Adult Education Program (CAEP) San Diego Adult Education Regional Consortium (SDAERC).
- Authorized travel for San Diego City College students to attend the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Region 8 conference, February 10-15 in Glendale, California; Mesa College Students to attend the Women’s Wear Daily MAGIC Conference, February 23-26 in New York, New York; and Miramar College students to attend the 2026 APAHE National Conference Legacies in Action: Courage and Resilience from April 12-14, in Anaheim, California.
- Accepted grants the California Community College Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) for the A2MEND program at City College; and the Mesa Impactship Program and Umoja program at Mesa College.
- Accepted funding from the Conrad Prebys Foundation for the Healing Through Nature Initiative/Blooming Minds program at City College; for the National Endowment for the Arts for the Mesa College World Art Collection; and from the California Department of Education for the Child Development Centers at City, Mesa, and Miramar colleges.
- Ratified the award of a cooperative agreement with Sourcewell for the purchase of automated invoicing implementation and software through Hyland Perceptive; and CollegeBuys for the purchase of electronic document management, workflow automation, building user e-Forms, and record storage through Softdocs SC, LLC.
- Adopted the Resource Allocation Formula (RAF) 2026 salary schedules for AFT Guild 1931 Faculty, Classified Professionals, Non-Academic Non-Classified Employees, Police Officers Association, Supervisory and Professional Administrators Association, Association of Confidential Employees, and the Executive Management units and adopted a resolution in the matter of compensation of members the Board of Trustees.
- Authorized the purchase of three air-conditioning units from Trane under a college buys master service agreement to procure and replace the units at the Mesa College S100 Building.
- Reviewed and ratified Emergency Actions taken to repair the baseball outfield fence and netting at Mesa College, the York Chiller at the Miramar College central plant; and to restore and replace flood impacted areas at the College of Continuing Education Cesar Chavez Campus.
- Approved purchase orders and contracts completed during December 2025; notices to proceed and change orders completed during December 2025; Measure HH project updates prepared during November and December 2025; the mileage reimbursement rate for employees who use their personal car for travel to 72.5 cents per mile, as established by the Internal Revenue Service; and various personnel actions including the certification of short-term personnel service effective on or after January 23, 2026.