Superintendents on the move
Delta College stays in house, selects Lawrenson to be next superintendent
After a more than sevenmonth search, the San Joaquin Delta College Board of Trustees has found the school’s next superintendent.
The board announced late Tuesday that it has entered into contract negotiations with Dr. Lisa Aguilera Lawrenson to become Delta’s 12th superintendent and president.
“I am truly honored to have been selected to serve Delta College and the community as its next superintendent/president,” Lawrenson said in a media statement. “I look forward to working with the Board of Trustees, as well as community and campus leaders to provide excellence in education and workforce training in support of economic development in our region.”
Lawrenson will succeed Dr. Omid Pourzanjani, who stepped down from the post last September. Although his last day on the job was June 30, 2022, Pourzanjani asked to be placed on a leave of absence for the remainder of his contract.
The board named Lawrenson interim superintendent immediately following his departure.
A former English professor with nearly three decades of community college experience, Lawrenson most recently was Delta’s assistant superintendent and vice president of instruction.
Lawrenson has 28 years of experience as a community college professor and administrator, as well as a social justice educator and trainer in California and Washington.
She has expertise in culturally relevant curriculum design, social justice strategic planning and mentoring, and her dissertation focused on the experiences of Hispanic students in developmental English in community colleges, the college said.
Prior to coming to Delta in 2020, Lawrenson served as a tenured English professor at South Puget Sound Community College in Olympia, Wash., and was an executive administrator at American River and Cosumnes River colleges in Sacramento.
In addition, she has led initiatives in basic skills and curriculum, equity, international education, strategic planning, college redesign, and governance.
She will be the first Latina and the first woman of color to serve as Delta’s superintendent and president,
the school said.
“After a comprehensive search, Dr. Aguilera Lawrenson rose to the top,” board president Dr. Charles Jennings said in Tuesday’s media statement. “Her background and experience have prepared her for the tremendous responsibility that lies ahead,” he said. “She has proven her commitment to student learning and success. We really feel she’s the right person at the right time to move the college forward as we grow and serve our community.”
Lawrenson completed her general education requirements at American River College, and she holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in English. She also earned her Ph.D. in education with an emphasis in community college leadership from Oregon State University.
Her dissertation was titled “Hispanic Community College Student Empowerment: Developmental English Participants Describe Their Educational Experiences” and included research conducted at Delta College.
In 2011, she was awarded the California Community College Dr. John W. Rice Diversity and Equity Award.