New contract approved for Antelope Valley College president
Annual salary is blended with annuity and other funds
Antelope Valley College trustees recently, unanimously approved an amended contract for campus President Jackie L. Fisher that bumped his annual salary up to $211,807 per year from $200,007.
But according to the trustees this increase is not a raise.
The increase came because his yearly salary was blended with several annuities and other funds.
Trustees said this is not a raise, because salary increases are frozen for everyone at the college.
They said they combined his salary with the $10,000 a year that the college had been paying into a tax-sheltered annuity fund, and also included the $1,800 stipend he received each year as a certified employee with a doctorate degree. That is paid to all faculty members and educational administrators with a Ph.D.
“It’s no additional cost to the district,” said trustee Betty Wienke, who noted Fisher requested the change. “It’s just a different way of dealing with that amount of money. It didn’t matter to the board.”
Fisher’s contract, signed on March 3, cited his annual salary at $200,007. Another clause stated, “The board shall establish on behalf of Dr. Fisher a tax-sheltered annuity in accordance with the applicable requirements of the United States Internal Revenue Code, and for the duration of this agreement shall contribute to the tax-sheltered annuity annually the sum of $10,000.”
The college board amended that contract at its July 12 meeting to omit the annuity clause, and to state, “Dr. Fisher’s annual salary as Superintendent/President shall be $211,807, payable monthly, following accrual of the pay period.”
At OW press time, Dr. Fisher was on vacation and could not be reached for comment.
Asked when the board began the annuity contributions for Fisher, Board President Steve Buffalo said, “I think the annuity was in there as far as I recall.”
Buffalo said he saw no problem in the contract amendment since it costs the college no more money. “It’s not a financial change from the standpoint of the board,” Buffalo said. “It’s a change in the language as to how he receives the money. As long as it does not cost the district more, it’s not a problem.”
“We’re looking at it in terms of the bottom line,” Buffalo said. “It’s not uncommon for managers to restructure their contracts.”
As far as the stipend, Wienke explained, “it’s part of the salary schedule, not something the board has an option on.”
Wienke and Buffalo said the challenging times facing AV College as a result of the California budget crisis are likely to continue for a while, before the freeze on salaries can be lifted.
“Until the state gets its financial act together, it’s just difficult,” Wienke said. “The faculty hasn’t received any increase, or the classified (workers), or confidential management, or anyone.”
Buffalo noted that staffs roles have expanded. “The people we have are wearing two and three hats now,” he said. “With the economy the way it is, and the difficulties in budgeting at the state level, it makes it difficult to increase salaries to compensate for them carrying a heavier load than normal.”
According to Wienke, the short-term outlook does not look bright. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take before things turn around,” she says, “but predictions do not look promising.”
LANCASTER, Calif.—A former Antelope Valley College accounting assistant has been arrested on suspicion of embezzling $500,000.
Mandy Borquez, 33, was charged with six felony counts of grand theft/identity theft after a 10-month investigation by the Commercial Crimes Bureau of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, said Sgt. Pauline Panis of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The investigation started after “the college reported the embezzlement in 2010 discrepancies in their accounting,” Panis said.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—A state appellate court panel is set next month to hear arguments in the case of an ex-security guard convicted of murdering an 18-year-old woman in a Palmdale park-and-ride lot, where he worked more than a decade ago.
On Oct. 27, the three-justice panel from the 2nd District Court of Appeal is set to consider an appeal filed on behalf of Raymond Lee Jennings, who was convicted in December 2009 of second-degree murder for the Feb. 22, 2000, slaying of Antelope Valley College student Michelle O’Keefe.
PALMDALE, Calif.—It’s election time again in the city of Palmdale and this time, incumbent Mayor Jim Ledford has competition. Running against him are two A.V. locals, both of whom have tried their hand at politics in the past.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—The Board of Supervisors approved a $10,000 reward today for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a hit-and-run driver who struck an 18-year-old Lancaster woman, leaving her hospitalized on life support.
The collision happened about 8:45 p.m. on June 20 in the 300 block of East Avenue J in Lancaster.
LANCASTER, Calif.—Because California is known for lawsuits and other types of court cases, mediation and peer mediation is becoming a growing option for individuals, families, feuding friends and companies. In fact, most cases that choose mediation settle at a reasonably happy medium.
Allan Stitt, author of “Mediation: A Practical Guide,” writes that 70-80 percent of cases that voluntarily go to mediation settle.
