KCCD Trustee Nan Gomez-Heitzeberg, Delta prof Cirian Villavicencio appointed

 

Two Central Valley community college representatives were appointed to the California Community College Board of Governors: Cirian Villavicencio, a professor at  San Joaquin Delta College in the North Valley, and Kern Community College District trustee Nan Gomez-Heitzeberg from the southern San Joaquin Valley.

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the appointments Feb. 28 for the board, the highest governing body in California’s community college system that advocates for nearly 2 million students at 116 colleges across the state.

They will be working with systemwide Chancellor Sonya Christian, who served on the CVHEC board when she was a Central Valley higher education leader, to provide guidance and strategic direction to districts and community colleges in California by implementing the Governor’s Roadmap to Success for California Community Colleges.

They will also work with the chancellor to advance the California Community College’s “Vision 2030” action plan which focuses on improving student outcomes while focusing on four strategic areas: guiding field practice, removing barriers, fostering policy reform, and supporting college implementation.

“We are delighted that in addition to Chancellor Christian, the Central Valley can now claim two new members of the California Community Colleges Board of Governors,” said Dr. Benjamín Durán, executive director, of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium.

 

“We are especially pleased that these two new BOG members — coming from the north and south regions of our valley — provide the governing board with true representation from throughout our nine-county region,” Durán added. “Please join us in extending a Central Valley congratulations to the two new Board of Governors members.”

Gomez-Heitzeberg, who taught at Porterville College and was an administrator at Bakersfield College, is a lifelong advocate for education who has witnessed firsthand the transformational power of community colleges.

“My experiences in the classroom, as an administrator, and as a trustee have strengthened my advocacy,” said Trustee Gomez-Heitzeberg. “I appreciate the opportunity to represent the Central Valley and look forward to working with my colleagues to bring Vision 2030 to implementation across the State.”

She brings more than 30 years of experience in serving the disinvested rural student populations of Kern County in various roles, including as: a tenured faculty at Porterville College; an interim president and vice president of Instruction at Bakersfield College; a director of Bakersfield College’s Delano Campus; and the associate vice chancellor for Kern CCD Child Development Centers.

Upon her retirement from BC’s administration, Gomez-Heitzeberg was first elected to serve on the Kern CCD Board of Trustees in November 2018.

Kern CCD Board of Trustees President John Corkins noted that the Southern San Joaquin Valley had been lacking representation on the Board of Governors for a long time.

“Trustee Gomez-Heitzeberg has a deep understanding of what our students here in the Central Valley need to be successful,” Corkins said. “Through her appointment to this important governing body, she will be a tireless advocate for Central Valley students and a voice for higher education in the Valley up in Sacramento.”

Former Kern CCD Chancellor, Tom Burke has worked with Trustee Gomez-Heitzeberg in a variety of roles over the last 25 years.

“Her extensive experience working to provide higher education opportunities for students in the San Joaquin Valley will serve the Valley well as she joins the Board of Governors as the only representative from the Southern Central Valley,” said Burke who is now a regional coordinator for CVHEC helping lead its Kern Master’s Upskilling Program and Central Valley Transfer Project.

Villavicencio, a Delta College Political Science professor and co-chair of the Department of Political Science who will assume one of two faculty seats on the board, said he is “deeply humbled” by the Governor’s appointment.

“I will help represent and elevate the voices of 1.9 million California community college students, as well as 56,000 of my fellow faculty colleagues,” said Villavicencio who received Delta’s Distinguished Faculty Award in 2020.

“While our system faces many challenges from artificial intelligence to closing equity gaps among our underserved and disproportionately impacted students, I know there are many opportunities to improve our system and the lives of our students.”

Dr. Villavicencio has over 18 years of experience in higher education and has been active in local, state, and national politics, including serving as a staffer for the California Asian American Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus in the state Capital. He was elected twice as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in support of former President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012.

“We are so very proud of Dr. Villavicencio and his commitment to serve the entire community college system in California,” said Delta College Superintendent/President Dr. Lisa Aguilera Lawrenson, a CVHEC board member.

“The fact that he was selected to represent professors from all over the state speaks to the high quality of our Delta College faculty and their determination to help students succeed,” President Lawrenson added.

The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges was established in 1967 to provide statewide leadership to California’s 73 community college districts, which operate 116 community colleges.

 

The Board has 18 voting members as specified in statute. Twelve members are appointed by the Governor, require Senate approval for six-year terms, and must include two current or former local board members. Five members are appointed by the Governor to two-year terms and include two students, two faculty members, and one classified member. The lieutenant governor also serves as a member of the Board.

 

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See:

Announcement from the California Community College Chancellor’s Office
Announcement from Gov. Newsom’s office

Kern press release [checking with KCCD PIO to see if they will post it. If not, we can post the pdf)

Delta press release