According to a press release from Santa Barbara Community College (SBCC), Dr. Erika Endrijonas has been selected as their new Superintendent-president. Her employment is pending contract negotiations with the SBCC Board of Trustees, where a formal contract will be presented and voted on at their BOT meeting on June 15. Ongoing contract negotiations between the PCC Board of Trustees and Endrijonas spurred the job search, as accusations about the Board President attempting to invalidate the contract resulted in high legal fees, The Courier previously reported. …
PCC Pride Center receives $10,000 for new support programs
The PCC Pride Center, which serves queer students, is about to go through a revamp, as a $10,000 grant was awarded to the center. According to Enith Reyes, the grant will be used in service to PCC’s students, faculty and staff, and create spaces of intentional diversity, equity, and inclusion. “This program aims to promote the awareness of the sexual and gender diversity at Pasadena City College (PCC) and to make the LGBTQIA+ support network more visible to the rest of our students, staff, and …
Altadena community opposes proposed Poly sports complex
In what is likely to be one of the biggest LA County land disputes in 25 years, the community of Altadena and Pasadena private school Polytechnic, are at odds over a 78-acre property. The property has been owned by world famous Nuccio’s Nursery, for almost ninety years and is now where Polytechnic has publicly presented plans to build a sports complex and environmental facilities. Local Altadena group, AltadenaWILD, began in early 2023. As the community that lives closest to the disputed property, they rallied against …
Superintendent’s contract negotiations divide trustees
The PCC Board of Trustees is divided over the retention of additional legal counsel and the potential extension of Superintendent-President Dr. Erika Endrijonas’ contract. Endrijonas’ current contract, which extends through 2024, was verified by Resolution 761 in a 5-2 vote on Feb. 15. A contract verifying the employment of Endrijonas for the 2024-2025 academic year remains unconfirmed, leaving her future at the college in question. The resolution aims to cure potential Brown Act violations surrounding the evaluation of the Superintendent-President which occurred in closed session …
PCC student arrested for wielding a knife in the PCC library on Wednesday
Apr. 29: In an update, the individual identified as the person threatening students with the knife was confirmed to be a PCC student, according to PCC Spokesperson Alex Boekelheide. Boekelheide also said that the student would be disciplined through PCC’s Student discipline process, but the exact nature of the outcome is currently unknown due to this being an ongoing investigation. Apr. 28: In an incident on the evening of Apr. 26 a group of students and library staff were threatened by an individual assumed to …
Board officially recognizes Armenian Genocide in vigil
The Armenian Genocide was over 108 years ago, but Armenians still fight in local communities to have recognition of this killing and deportation of 1.5 million Armenians. Pasadena City College held a vigil in remembrance of those who lost their lives and celebrated the Armenian-American students who attend the institution in a vigil hosted by the Armenian Student Association (ASA). The vigil began with ASA Vice President Andre Dionsyan explaining the history and importance of the day and introducing PCC Superintendent-President Erika Endrijonas to make …
Impending law threatens athletic transfers and lifelong learners
The Student Transfer Reform Act, AB-928, passed in 2021 and is going into effect on May 31, leaving community colleges like Pasadena City College (PCC) without lifelong learning and self-development programs, possible cuts to faculty, and harder transfer requirements for student-athletes. This bill established an Intersegmental Implementation Committee to facilitate coordination for Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) to improve student transfer outcomes. PCC has a direct correlation to the bill as the institution provides students with ADTs. The bill was introduced to the governor by …
New grant strives to make enrollment easier for PCC students
Pasadena City College’s enrollment services has recently been awarded a $50,000 grant to streamline its current enrollment process and remove some of the barriers that many students face while trying to enroll at PCC. The current enrollment process requires students to keep track of many different dates and deadlines that are easy to miss with the current system. “The current process is convoluted, we ask our students to do a lot of tasks on their way to starting studies and also continuing their studies and …
Board President accused of attempting to terminate Superintendent-President
Former PCC Trustees and the Management Association voiced concerns about Board President Sandra Chen Lau’s alleged attempts to overreach and terminate the current contract of Superintendent-President Dr. Erika Endrijonas at the joint Board of Trustees (BOT) meeting with Associated Students on April 19. Following the election of new trustees Steve Gibson, Kristine Kwong, and Alton Wang and the promotion of Chen Lau to Board President in June 2022, the Board did not formally extend Endrijonas’ contract another year, former PCC President Jack Scott said in …
Board of Trustees end Covid state of emergency
The Pasadena City College Board of Trustees passed a resolution to end the Covid state of emergency for the Pasadena Area Community College District in a meeting on April 19. The passing of this resolution will end the vaccine requirement and measures like masking, social distancing, and other Covid modifications for the PCC community by Oct. 31. This decision comes following the Pasadena City Council’s vote to end the local state of emergency on March 6, L.A. County’s declaration to end the state of emergency …