Delta Board prioritizes Measure K projects and adopts Board Policy 3415

At its two most recent meetings, the Delta College Board of Trustees voted to pass two immigration focused policies and moved forward with prioritizing Measure K projects, focusing on constructing permanent buildings at Mountain House and making improvements to the Stockton campus.

On Feb.18, the board held a meeting study session to heavily discuss Measure K Bond Projects Prioritization, the Education Plan and hiring another acting District Police Chief.

The night began with multiple public comments from faculty over hopes to promote their programs as priority to get their facilities or their equipment established by the Measure K funds.

Associate Professor Amanda Lee on behalf of the Health Science department advocated for “a building that would really support the needs that we have. I work in the simulation lab, so I am a simulation coordinator. And one of our biggest pushes is for realism… But we are really hoping to match what are clinical partners are looking for, what are communities are looking for and what health care in general is looking for in spaces that can accommodate for a growing amount of students.”

Professor Harry Mersmann also requested in public comment that closed sessions be moved to the end of the meetings to prevent people from having to wait outside for the sometimes lengthy sessions to finish. 

The board then discussed, based on Mersmann’s comment, that the closed session scheduled for a public employee performance evaluation for Superintendent/President Dr. Lisa Aguilera Lawrenson, and a public employee discipline/dismissal/release be split into two closed sessions.

After returning from the first closed session the board began its intense discussions on where to start allocating Measure K funds.

Vice President of Administrative Services Augustine Chavez spoke about two plans referred to as the “optimistic blue option” and the “balanced option.”

Each of the plans proposed had multiple projects listed with a description, estimated low cost, estimated high cost and a projected time frame for each project.

Many questions and opinions were brought forward by the board on where to start with the funds.

Vice-President of the Board Dr. Charles Jennings said that Delta College’s South Campus located in Mountain House should be the highest priority project.

“I believe Delta College made a commitment to build campuses in Mountain House 20-something years ago. That commitment led to the purchase of the land and the development of a portable center,” said Jennings. “So I think that our highest priority should be getting the Mountain House project going and get a permanent facility going.”

Jennings said he believes the college has lost enrollment from the “south campus, the west area and the north.”

According to the project summary of both plans the projected high-end cost is $134,805,565 with a five-year timeframe of completion.

The trustees then broke out into discussion on multiple points on the plans such as wanting to build new wet lab buildings on the Stockton campus or Manteca, repaving parking lots and fixing the lights, fixing information technology and Wi-Fi issues, and if these projects can happen simultaneously.

Questions were raised on whether or not IT/Wifi needed to be allocated approximately $144 million for its’ issues due to wanting to make sure it has a long lasting service and what parts of the project counted as capital expenditures vs operational costs.

“I would like you to remember that the IT project also includes cabling infrastructure, which does have a long life,” Chavez said in response.

The trustees also discussed bringing in a singular person or group of people to be the project managers of the Measure K funds and help take the lead on the program.

“We have talked a little bit about getting some projects going that could demonstrate to the voters that their money is being spent now… Something that the public can see relatively quickly versus planning to build a new building that’s going to take three to five years,” said Jennings. “I think that the public felt burned last time, because it took literally years to get a sign up on Pacific Avenue, for instance. Our public deserves better than that.”

After a long discussion a motion was then brought up Dylan Myers and seconded by Dan Wright to start with finding staffing to head the Measure K funds and projects, begin the South Campus permanent facility, fix HVAC issues on the legacy buildings, start parking lot improvements, start fixing the IT problems and the Lodi EVOC Phase 1 track which is a POST Emergency Vehicle Operation Center.

The final resolution was carried in a unanimous 7-0 vote.

On Feb. 4 at the Manteca Farm, the board approved non-consent agenda items include the increase contract amount for Legal Counseling services in an additional amount of $100,000, approve an agreement between State Department of Water Resources Hydroelectric Plant Maintenance and Utility Craft Worker Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee and San Joaquin Delta Community College to and approved an agreement between San Joaquin and Calaveras County’s Electrical Joint Apprenticeship, Training Committee, and San Joaquin Delta College.

The board also approved the proposed adoption of board policy 3415 Immigration Enforcement Activities & Review of Corresponding Administrative Procedure. 

The intent of the policy is for students, staff and faculty to direct Immigration Enforcement to immediately contact the Office of the President/Superintendent before conducting business on Delta College property.

The president/superintendent is the only district personnel that is to “determine what type of authorization is being provided to support the officer’s request for access a U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ‘warrant,’ a federal judicial warrant (search-and-seizure warrant or arrest warrant), a subpoena for production of documents or other evidence or a notice to appear,” read the policy.

The second reading of board policy 5111 Student Directory information is to, “ensure that all student records are maintained in compliance with applicable federal and state laws and implement appropriate safeguards to assure that student records cannot be accessed or modified by any person not authorized to do so,” read the policy.

The policy was brought to the board in December 2024 with a first reading in January 2025. The policy was created to protect student information after the campus declared itself a sanctuary from immigration enforcement. 

The information may not be released by the district, “unless the student notifies the District as specified… student participation in officially recognized activities and sports including weight, height, high school of graduation for athletic team members and degrees and awards received by students, including honors, scholarship awards, athletic awards, and Dean’s List recognition,” reads board policy 5111.

Dr. Kale Braden, Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Instruction & Planning, also presented a report on the San Joaquin Adult Education Consortium.

Braden elaborated the groups next step is expanding the non-credit and short-term credentials, credit for any prior learning, pre-apprenticeship and structural integration and staffing.

Braden also presented an enrollment update about our Full-Time Equivalent Student (FTES), which is a CCCCO calculation that bundles multiple enrollments into the equivalent of a single full-time student which in turn creates more revenue for the college.

According to the spring 2025 census the colleges estimated FTES is up 6.4 percent from Spring 2024 and the “Spring 2025 Headcount is up 9 [percent] from 2024 and up 12 [percent] from 2020,” read the report.

The board ended the meeting with a closed session with plans to discuss Conference with Labor Negotiators (Government Code Section 54957.6) and public employee discipline/dismissal/release [government code, section 54957.6], but no reportable action was taken.