News Release

Rancho Santiago Community College District Names Dr. Linda Rose as Santa Ana College’s Next President

(Santa Ana, CA) - At a regularly scheduled board meeting on May 31, Rancho Santiago Community College District’s (RSCCD) Board of Trustees approved the appointment of Linda D. Rose, Ed.D., as Santa Ana College’s president. Rose will succeed Erlinda J. Martinez, Ed.D., who retires on June 30, 2016. Rose will begin her duties at Santa Ana College (SAC) on July 18, 2016.

Linda D. Rose“We are extremely pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Linda Rose as Santa Ana College’s next president,” said Raúl Rodríguez, Ph.D., RSCCD chancellor. “Dr. Rose is a veteran educator with over 23 years of leadership experience in higher education with a demonstrated passion for helping and engaging with community college students in their pursuit of academic achievement. She also has a proven ability to connect with faculty, staff, administrators, and surrounding communities to advance the colleges she has served. I am pleased to welcome her back to the Rancho family.”

After a nationwide search, 45 candidates applied for the position during the February to mid-April application period and nine semi-finalists were selected. The screening committee narrowed the field to three finalists. Rodríguez interviewed the finalists and made his recommendation to the RSCCD Board of Trustees, which unanimously approved the appointment.

“We commend the selection committee for their hard work and for moving Dr. Rose candidacy forward,” said RSCCD Board of Trustees President Claudia C. Alvarez. “The Board of Trustees is thrilled to have Dr. Rose lead Santa Ana College on its continued path to excellence. Dr. Rose has a true understanding of the community we serve and the experience necessary to overcome the challenges presented. She will serve our students, faculty and staff well and in turn, enhance the quality of life in our community.”

Since August 2014, Rose has served as president of Los Angeles Southwest College (LASC). There, she has provided leadership in the management, supervision, and development of instructional programs, student, and administrative services that support student achievement and progress. She has also overseen the development of activities that involve faculty, staff, and students in consistent planning, accreditation self-evaluation, improvement of instructional programs and student and administrative services. Rose provided direction and leadership in the development and operation of the college’s $28 million budget and in the planning and utilization of existing and new bond-funded facilities.

Before joining LASC, she was vice president of academic affairs at Santa Ana College from 2011-2014, serving as the college’s chief instructional officer. In that role, she provided leadership and advocated for collaboration in a participatory governance environment in support of college administrators, faculty and staff as they planned, revised, evaluated, and delivered all instructional programs and activities. She supervised and directed the college’s accreditation self-evaluation process and provided leadership in ongoing bond-related construction of instructional facilities. In addition, Rose supported the development of credit bridge programs with SAC’s Continuing Education Division.

Prior to that, Rose held several positions at Cerritos College. She served as dean of the Liberal Arts Division, she was the chair of the English Department, she served as the college’s Puente Program co-coordinator helping to serve educationally underrepresented students, and she coordinated Cerritos College’s Program for Adult College Education (PACE).

Her classroom experience started as a part-time English instructor at Cerritos College where she also became a full-time tenured faculty member. She has taught a range of courses, including transfer level composition and literature, developmental and technical writing, and has provided one-on-one instructional support in Cerritos College’s Writing Center. From 2012-2014, she served as a part-time developmental English instructor at Santa Ana College.

As an academic leader, Rose is a regular presenter at conferences and meetings. Most recently, she was a panel participant for the American Council on Education: Women’s Leadership Network. Earlier, she was a keynote speaker for the American Association of University Women’s Women Hold up Half the Sky Conference. She served as a workshop facilitator for numerous Associated Students of Cerritos College Leadership Conferences. Previously, she was also a co-presenter at the International Conference on the First Year Experience in Southampton, England. She also served as a guest host for KPCC’s Ebony program.

Rose has served on the Los Angeles Southwest College Foundation Board of Directors. From 2013-2014, she was a member of the Taller San Jose Board of Directors. Rose has also served as an appointed member of the California Community College Chancellors Office, Workforce and Economic Development Program Action Committee. Her honors and awards include: the Cerritos College Outstanding Administrator Award; the Cerritos College Outstanding Faculty Award for the Liberal Arts Division; Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers, Fifth Edition; and the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Teaching Excellence Award.

Rose earned an associate degree in liberal arts at West Los Angeles Community College; a B.A. in interdisciplinary studies at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH); a Certificate of Completion in rhetoric and composition at CSUDH; an M.A. in English at CSUDH; and an Ed.D. in educational leadership at the University of California, Los Angeles.

“Santa Ana College just celebrated its first 100 years of stellar service to the community. It is exciting to return to SAC to continue that tradition in its 101st year and beyond. I am thrilled to be coming back to work with the college’s outstanding team of faculty, staff, and administrators and to grow the opportunities for students in STEM, the arts, business, health sciences, humanities, social sciences, human services and technology and more,” said Rose.

About Santa Ana College
Santa Ana College (SAC), which turned 100 years old in 2015, serves about 18,000 students each semester at its main campus in Santa Ana. The college prepares students for transfer to four-year institutions, provides invaluable workforce training, and customized training for business and industry. In addition, another 11,000 students are served through the college’s School of Continuing Education located at Centennial Education Center. Ranked as one of the nation’s top two-year colleges awarding associate degrees to Latino and Asian students, the college is also recognized throughout the state for its comprehensive workforce training programs for nurses, firefighters, law enforcement and other medical personnel. SAC is one of two comprehensive colleges under the auspices of the Rancho Santiago Community College District. Visit www.sac.edu to learn more. For information about Santa Ana College’s Centennial, please visit www.sac.edu/100.

About Rancho Santiago Community College District
Santa Ana College and Santiago Canyon College are public community colleges of the Rancho Santiago Community College District, which serves the residents of Anaheim Hills, Orange, Santa Ana, Villa Park, and portions of Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, and Tustin.. Both colleges provide education for academic transfer and careers, courses for personal and professional development, and customized training for business and industry.

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Contact: Judy Iannaccone

Phone: (714) 480-7503

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