Pima Community College was notified last week by the Higher Learning Commission that it has been removed from sanction after demonstrating it is no longer at risk of not meeting Criteria for Accreditation. The Commission’s decision came the morning after a contentious meeting of the Pima Community College Governing Board.
The decision by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) Board of Trustees surprised community members who have seen little improvement in the College’s responsiveness to the community’s concerns.
Mario Gonzales, chairperson of C-FAIRR (Coalition for Accountability, Integrity, Respect, and Responsibility), addressed those concerns before the Board of Governors. Gonzales said that Board members Mark Hanna and Sylvia Lee had “failed in their duties and have not undertaken the task of seriously assessing the Chancellor’s leadership.”
According to Gonzales, since Chancellor Lambert has been at PCC, Hanna and Lee have awarded him outstanding evaluations. “We don’t understand their basis,” said Gonzales. “These evaluations are clearly not based on actual performance. Indeed, contrary to THEIR assessments of him, two different federal judges have found Mr. Lambert, who, we understand, is trained in civil rights law, liable and responsible for denying two college employees of their constitutional right to due process. For two federal judges to find the Chancellor culpable of egregious acts in two similar cases in any given time period should be reason enough for the Board to launch an investigation of his performance.”
Gonzales, a long-time community leader, noted that the “monies paid out by the College to settle these lawsuits are amounts we can ill afford especially in light of the fact that monies are tight and we’re at the point of downsizing.”
C-FAIRR is asking the Board to reconsider the Chancellor’s performance evaluations. “Through PCC’s own data, C-FAIRR has learned that the diversity of the College’s staffing patterns are severely anti-Hispanic. The data show that during the 4 years that represent Mr. Lambert’s tenure as Chancellor, there has been no effort to eliminate or even ameliorate discrimination against Mexican/Americans a fundamental demographic statistic of the Tucson community. PCC is designated by the Federal Department of Education a Hispanic serving institution. Therefore, we ask that the three new members of the Board fulfill the requirements of their office and reevaluate the Chancellor based on actual performance.”
However, PCC is not just discriminating against Mexican/American educators, according to a presentation by PCC mathematics instructor, David Morales, the College is also choosing to eliminate educational opportunities at the Desert Vista and East campuses.
The College was placed On Notice in March 2015 out of concern that the College could fall out of compliance with several specific criteria.
PCC will now shift its efforts to an upcoming Comprehensive Evaluation expected in Fall 2018 or Spring 2019. This evaluation is a routine part of the 10-year accreditation process.