SANTA MONICA : College Narrows President Hunt to Four Finalists

Santa Monica College has narrowed its search for a new college president to four finalists, all except one from out of state.

The candidates are Judith S. Eaton, president of the Council for Aid to Education in New York City; Steve Maradian, president of Lamar University-Orange in Orange, Tex.; Piedad F. Robertson, secretary of education for the state of Massachusetts, and Rocky Young, Santa Monica College vice president.

The finalists emerged in a nationwide search that began after former college President Richard Moore resigned in October to become president of the Community College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas. Chief business officer Thomas J. Donner has served as interim president.

Each candidate will be interviewed by the college’s Board of Trustees and will meet with college employees and the public. The community meetings are scheduled for May 16-19 at 5:30 p.m. in the Santa Monica College Board Room, 1900 Pico Blvd.

Eaton headed community colleges in Philadelphia and Southern Nevada and served as vice president of the American Council on Education in Washington before taking her current post. Maradian previously served as president of a college in St. Clairsville, Ohio. Robertson became Massachusetts’ chief educational officer after previously serving as president of Bunker Hill College in Boston.

Young has been Santa Monica College vice president since 1986. He was a professor of business at the college in 1971, and later held a number of administrative positions.