College of the Desert names new interim leader from Inland Empire's Chaffey College

Jonathan Horwitz, Palm Springs Desert Sun
·2 min read
Laura Hope
Laura Hope

The College of the Desert Board of Trustees has named Laura Hope of Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga as COD's interim superintendent/president effective July 1, pending an employment agreement.

Hope was selected from four candidates that interviewed with the COD board at a meeting behind closed doors earlier in June, Board Chair Bonnie Stefan announced Thursday.

The often-divided COD board unanimously approved Hope’s contract agreement for a base salary of $355,000 plus a salary increase after one year of 4% or that which is granted to management staff, whichever figure is higher. Hope will also receive a $1,000 per month housing stipend during the term of the one-year agreement. The agreement could expire sooner if COD appoints a new superintendent/president.

Current Superintendent/President Martha Garcia is leaving COD at the end of this month to assume the presidency of Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.

Hope currently serves as the associate superintendent of instruction and institutional effectiveness at Chaffey College. She also has experience as the executive vice chancellor for educational services at the California Community College’s Chancellor’s Office.

Chaffey College is a larger school than COD, with more than 28,000 students enrolled in 2021-22 versus 15,000 at COD, according to state data.

At Chaffey, Hope serves on the college’s leadership team for the construction of two new campus sites, including improvements to the flagship Rancho Cucamonga campus and a new campus in Ontario. How to manage capital construction projects — notably a $400 million project in Palm Springs — is an issue that has divided the COD board for years. Delays related to that project and others have flustered valley taxpayers who have approved nearly $1 billion in bonds since 2004 for COD to build improvements across the valley.

Hope is a Chaffey College alumna and a longtime Chaffey employee, including nearly 20 years as a faculty member before becoming an administrator.

Jonathan Horwitz covers education for The Desert Sun. Reach him at jonathan.horwitz@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: College of the Desert picks interim president from Chaffey College