Foothill-De Anza Community College District Chancellor Lee Lambert said he and senior leadership started looking for a temporary De Anza College president at his town hall in the Hinson Campus Center on March 24.
“I will keep you informed as that process moves forward,” Lambert wrote in an email later that day. “My goal is to bring someone on board quickly who can work alongside our senior leadership team.”
Although Lambert assumed college leadership on March 17, taking over for Vice President of Instruction Ram Subramaniam as administrator in charge, he said he could not remain in the position so the college can comply with the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges’ rules.
Per its January 2024 guidelines, the commission requires that colleges seeking accreditation or review have a CEO “appointed by the governing board, whose full-time responsibility is to the institution” to stay eligible.
According to the Department of Education website, accredited schools “meet acceptable levels of quality;” its office of Federal Student Aid wrote that students at unaccredited schools are generally ineligible for aid under Title IV, the law that governs federal financial aid, in its 2024-25 handbook.
The deadline to place items on the district Board of Trustees’ April 6 meeting agenda passed on March 26, meaning the board’s next chance to appoint a temporary college president will land on its May 11 meeting. Lambert will have until April 30 to get the appointee on the board’s agenda.
According to a 2011 discussion guide from the Research and Planning Group for California Community Colleges, schools within the system “must engage in accreditation review every six years.”
However, the commission reaffirmed De Anza’s accreditation through 2031 in January 2025, as now on-leave president Omar Torres entered his role. The commission also gave the college a commendation without imposing compliance requirements in its Jan. 21, 2025 letter to Torres.
Still, as the district’s CEO, Lambert oversees De Anza, Foothill College and district central services, which would put De Anza out of compliance with accreditation rules if he serves in Torres’ role.
Lambert wrote that he and senior leadership “identified … priorities for the period ahead,” which include bolstering the Career Technical Education division, hiring a “vice president of Workforce,” clarifying basic aid status and setting “a clear framework” around artificial intelligence at the college.
“I have confidence in the senior leadership team to guide the college through this period of transition,” Lambert wrote. “My role is to support them and to ensure we stay focused on what matters most — our students and our mission.”
The temporary president would serve until June 30. By then, the college expects Torres to return from his leave of absence.
