President's Update

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Feb. 9, 2026

Welcome to the spring 2026 semester! As we begin a new academic term, I am introducing a new section to the Monday Report. Every month, (more often, if needed) I will provide an update on topics and issues that faculty, staff and administrators have told me are among their highest priorities.

To kick things off, we’ll review the ongoing efforts to address the findings from the 2024 campus climate survey. Many of you have asked me for an update on this topic, and I’m happy to share with you the progress we have made to reshape our campus culture.

First, a quick recap to bring everyone up to speed. In spring 2024, the College worked with the RP Group to administer a climate survey among all employees, and the results identified several areas for improvement. Our own Institutional Research office conducted a follow-up survey that asked employees to prioritize the areas in which we should begin our work, and five areas of focus emerged:

1. Campus Climate/Experience – Ability for employees to report concerns or provide critical feedback about the college without fear of retaliation
2. Leadership Effectiveness – Trust and confidence in the District Executive Leadership
3. Campus Climate/Experience – Employee feeling that complaints & concerns will be taken seriously and addressed promptly
4. Employee Engagement – Perception that District Executive Leadership is open and transparent about the decision-making processes
5. Institutional Effectiveness – Promotion of employee well-being

Over the last 18 months, we have made significant progress in each of these areas, and it is a privilege for me to share the highlights with you.

Ability for employees to report concerns or provide critical feedback about the college without fear of retaliation.

• To ensure employees can bring information forward without fear of retaliation, Human Resources receives concerns and complaints with the utmost confidentiality. They work diligently to ensure every complaint is heard, thoroughly evaluated, and resolved. Those bringing complaints may not agree with the resolution, but they can be certain that everything was fully vetted.
• We will continue to review policies related to complaints to ensure employees can quickly and easily make reports.
• Ongoing conversations with union leadership help resolve emerging issues before they rise to the level of formal grievances. By being proactive, and working together in good faith, we can get ahead of problems and find solutions that satisfy everyone involved.

Trust and confidence in the District Executive Leadership

• Former Interim President David Andrus began the process to change how leadership works with campus constituencies. We designed and implemented a new governance structure to foster transparency, and we continue to work collaboratively with Academic Senate and Classified Senate leaders to enhance trust and strengthen relationships.
• Our negotiating teams implemented Interest Based Bargaining. Teams work collaboratively to share end goals, improving dialog and growing understanding.
• The non-executive cabinet managers started a management group to share their perspectives. New committees enable administrators to discuss and review their priorities and share feedback with Executive Cabinet.
• Working in collaboration with our partners from Gensler, we have developed an integrated planning framework, known as Canyons Compass, to identify priorities, facilities guiding principles, design standards, and more to ensure our focus is clear for the next 10 years.
  • Dr. Daylene Meuschke, along with our partners from Gensler, provided a presentation to the Board on December 17. It is available here to watch at minute 22:19.
  • Erin Tague and I presented to the Board on January 21 information related to facilities, particularly capital projects. That presentation is available here at minute 19:00.
  • More information will be shared here in future Monday Reports as that work continues.

Employee feeling that complaints & concerns will be taken seriously and addressed promptly

• Human Resources staff actively investigate every complaint that comes forward. A full investigation is completed before a decision is rendered and shared with the parties involved.

Perception that District Executive Leadership is open and transparent about the decision-making processes

• The new Shared Governance Model was developed in Fall 2024 by David Andrus, Lisa Hooper, Michael Monsour, Wendy Trujillo, and Daylene Meuschke along with input from the former College Planning Team, Institutional Effectiveness & Inclusive Excellence committee and many other stakeholders. The 2024/25 academic year was spent redesigning the governance model with implementation commencing in fall 2025. The 2025/26 year is our year to refine this process to ensure it is working for us. We have eliminated the College Planning Team and have now implemented Project Advancement Teams and the Shared Governance Council. 
• A video produced by Wendy Trujillo and our PIO team provides an overview of the new process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LH4tq0TgIV4
• All projects are on the Shared Governance website. As projects make their way through the teams, they are updated on this website. Responses from campus constituent groups can be found on the website, along with the CEO’s final determination for the project, which explains why we will (or will not) move forward with a project.
• We partnered with Dr. Al Solano to help us implement Student Equity and Achievement (SEA) plans. We held the first session in fall 2025 and we will continue to engage in that work over the next semester to ensure activities align with our goals to reduce disproportionate impact in access, persistence, completion of math and English in the first year, degree/certificate completion, and transfer.
• As the CEO, I will also send information regularly to the campus community and to the Board of Trustees to ensure the decision-making process is transparent.

Promotion of employee well-being

• In fall 2025, consultant Brandy Thomas led a session for the Equity-Minded Practitioners group on healing, joy, and listening. We will continue working with her this semester, hosting more sessions for the campus community aimed at reshaping our campus culture.
• Professional Development, Student Health and Wellness Center, and other departments on campus are hosting a variety of activities, from hiking to pickle ball, and you are invited to join your fellow employees in having fun.
• We established a Campus Culture Advisory Team that will help ensure we continue making progress on addressing the Climate Survey results and sharing our progress with the college.

As we begin this semester, I want to thank you for your openness, your patience, and your willingness to stay engaged in this work. The steps we’ve taken represent real progress, but more importantly, they reflect our shared commitment to creating a campus where people feel heard, supported, and valued. Culture change is a thoughtful, ongoing process. I’m encouraged by the momentum we’re building and remain committed to listening, communicating, and keeping this work moving forward. I look forward to sharing more updates in the months ahead—and to continuing this journey with all of you.