Smoothing things over: MJC’s new president gets contract extension and $5,000 bonus
The board of trustees over Modesto Junior College held a closed-door meeting Wednesday to smooth things over with the college’s new president.
The conversation was closed to the public. But Santanu Bandyopadhyay emerged as the college’s new president with a vision. He was given a two-year extension on his contract, through June 2024, and was awarded a $5,000 bonus, according to the board report out of closed session.
Yosemite Community College District trustees ratified the employment decision on a 7-0 vote. It glosses over a previous 4-2 hiring vote May 12 that the new president said was upsetting.
Bandyopadhyay was beaming when the board convened in public session on Zoom. “Thank you for the extension on my contract,” Bandyopadhyay said, adding that he was donating the $5,000 bonus to the MJC Foundation in honor of the college’s centennial this year.
Trustee Milton Richards cast one of the “no” votes when Bandyopadhyay was chosen for the job May 12. He said he changed his view after the new president held talks with board members in sets of two. Richards said he made the motion Wednesday to extend the president’s contract.
“We all make mistakes,” Richards said. “He looked me in the eye and sold me that he wants to be here. He has a really good vision on what he wants to do for the college and students.”
Bandyopadhyay, the former Columbia College administrator who was named interim president of MJC in January, created a stir last month when he interviewed for the top post of another community college two days after accepting the MJC position paying $240,548 annually.
Two weeks later, he took part in a May 25 online forum as one of the finalists for superintendent and president of Citrus College near Los Angeles.
Bandyopadhyay, who has a home in the Southern California, had also been a finalist for the top post at El Camino College in that region while seeking the MJC position. But the El Camino job went to another candidate.
Bandyopadhyay told a Modesto Bee reporter last week that the 4-2 YCCD vote to hire him as MJC president and a previous lack of contract extensions didn’t offer him much job security in Modesto, one reason he interviewed for the Citrus College job. “Put yourself in my shoes,” he said.
The administrator, who was hired at Columbia College in Sonora in 2018, was working on a contract set to expire in June 2022. The contract had been extended once but remained the same when Bandyopadhyay was hired for the MJC position May 12.
Last week, YCCD Chancellor Henry Yong suggested a meeting between Bandyopadhyay and board members would clear the air.
The YCCD issued a press release Wednesday evening outlining the new president’s vision for Modesto’s community college. Goals include building a strong partnership with Modesto City Schools and other school districts giving students the opportunity to earn college credits before graduating from high school.
Other goals:
— Developing pathways with UC Merced and Stanislaus State University for MJC students, earning an associate degree, to transfer and complete a four-year degree with minimal student debt.
— Creating centers of excellence for improving teaching and learning in the post-pandemic period.
— Collaborating with local businesses and industries on job preparedness.
— Working with civic organizations to address mental health issues, food insecurity and shelter needs.
“I will strive to accomplish these goals and reassess the situation, once we reach these goals, to carve out the path forward,” Bandyopadhyay said in the news release.
This story was originally published June 10, 2021 at 7:30 AM.
