Local Opinion: PCC board members should be honest, decent

My campaign for the Pima Community College Board focuses on three values: keeping the college affordable, accessible and accountable.

It’s time for voters to hold elected officials and candidates accountable to modeling the honesty and decency we all deserve. I was deeply saddened to learn of the anonymous, threatening letters sent to local Democratic Party officials and the personal attacks made against Demion Clinco, a current PCC board member running for reelection.

I am a father of four, and if being a parent has taught me anything, it’s that what I say and do is a model for their behavior. I routinely see some PCC board members from the dais launching deeply personal attacks against other board members’ character. If my children said anything like what I routinely hear watching PCC board meetings, I’d be mortified.

I’m not surprised to see people following that lead by printing vile, false signs. While Mr. Clinco and I were both at a candidate forum discussing issues impacting the college, these signs were going up not only on our city’s street corners but at Mr. Clinco’s private home. The board needs to model the behavior we want to see and that means focusing on keeping the college affordable and accessible to students instead of petty grudges and personal attacks.

The Higher Learning Commission, the college’s accreditor, recently announced it will monitor the most significant threat to the college: the board’s behavior. The Arizona Attorney General recently found two board members had routinely violated open meeting laws, and if you watch any board meeting, you’ll see those same individuals showing blatant disregard for parliamentary procedure and the board’s bylaws.

We shouldn’t be surprised when signs pop up that violate Arizona law from a group that isn’t registered with any electoral governing body, as the law requires. If some members of the board can’t be bothered to follow the law or the rules of the board, why would we expect their allies in the community to do the same?

The entire board needs to start leading by example, condemn the lies that continue to threaten the college’s progress, and commit to focusing on how to best keep PCC affordable, accessible, and accountable to students and the community. The board must continue to invest in cutting edge career and technical programs that lead directly to good-paying jobs. The board also must hold the college accountable to remaining aligned with Arizona’s four-year universities so credits earned at PCC can be easily transferred, creating a more-affordable path for students to access four-year degrees.

When elected, I will put aside petty politics and ego to remain steadfastly focused on student success.