Comments/Board Business

Land Acknowledgement:  President of the Board Dr. Robertson read the District’s land acknowledgement recognizing our area’s Indigenous Peoples as the original stewards of the land that College of the Redwoods occupies. 

We acknowledge that the land on which we are gathered today is unceded territory of the Wiyot, Hupa, Karuk, Mattole, Tolowa, Wailaki, and Yurok. We honor them and all neighboring tribes by our ongoing commitment to developing trusting, reciprocal, and long-lasting partnerships.

Organizational Procedures

Discuss Potential General Obligation Bond: The focus of this board workshop was to discuss a potential bond to include in the November 2024 general election. The workshop began with our bond consultants reviewing the initial bond survey results that were discussed at a previous meeting.

The Board appreciated that the 82% of the residents who responded to the survey expressed such a staunch support for College of the Redwoods and the programs we offer. Our consultants and pollsters work with dozens of community college districts across the state, and they have stated that the 82% favorable rating we saw in the polling was rare. This remarkably high rating is because 72% of the community indicated that someone in their immediate family has taken coursework at College of the Redwoods.

I am happy to report that the Board directed me to move forward with exploring a potential $150 million bond that would include basic repairs/renovations, upgrading and expanding training facilities for public health, renovating our aging student housing facilities, and completion of the community stadium renovation. The list of potential construction projects that the Board and the administration identified as initial priorities align with our Education Master Plan and the Facilities Master Plan and are high on the priority list of what residents are looking to support in the survey.

One of my next steps will be to work with Molly Blakemore and our consultants to create informational materials and talking points that will explain why the bond is needed, identify potential projects that would be funded, and add specificity to what our community members should expect to pay for the bond. I will also develop a list of key community leaders to discuss the potential bond.

I fully supported the Trustees’ interest to make sure that our faculty, staff, and management colleagues have an opportunity to discuss the potential bond with me. I committed to hold open forums with each of the constituent groups and to share my colleagues’ feedback with the Trustees. It is vitally important to the Board and to me that we acknowledge our institution’s history with Measure Q and not repeat the mistakes of the past.  We need everyone's support to get a bond measure passed. 

I am also committed to discussing the potential bond with the Foundation Board. Our Foundation Board is comprised of several active community leaders, from various backgrounds, who believe in the power of CR to transform lives.

We will conduct additional research in May to confirm community support prior to the July/August deadline for the Board to place a measure on the November 2024 ballot. If a bond measure appears on the ballot, the College will be limited to providing purely neutral educational information and any advocacy for passage of the measure will need to be funded by a private campaign.