Trustee questions why LBCC should reimburse board member for trip to D.C. celebration

A Long Beach City College trustee questioned this week why the college district would reimburse one of her fellow board members more than $2,100 to cover a solo trip she took to attend a celebration in Washington D.C. this summer.

The issue, raised at an LBCC board of trustees meeting Wednesday, centered around Trustee Herlinda Chico’s attendance at a federal Pride event at the invitation of Congressman Robert Garcia, D-Long Beach. Held at the White House south lawn in June, the event included a live band and DJ, as well as remarks made by the First Lady Jill Biden, and her daughter, Ashley.

Chico said her attendance represented an act of solidarity with the LGBTQ community on behalf of the college.

Trustees ultimately decided unanimously to reimburse Chico $2,158.07 for food, travel and lodging and pay her the trustees’ normal $400 monthly stipend, even though she missed the June 26 meeting to take the trip, but the vote didn’t come without a contentions back-and-forth — highlighting longstanding divisions among some trustees .

Although she eventually voted in favor, Trustee Sunny Zia questioned the reimbursement request, suggesting that she didn’t see how attending the “Pride party” directly benefited students of the college.

“I can’t tell from the resolution and forgive me if I’m missing it, what the reason for the absence was and what the benefit for the district was, for the students,” Zia said.

In response, Chico said it was “more than a Pride party.”

“I was offered the opportunity, (so) I said yes,” Chico said. “It’s a huge deal for the LGBTQ community and for those of us who have been fighting for a long time, so to represent our college and the students and our faculty and the work that we’ve been doing to be an inclusive college was wonderful.”

Several board members swiftly came to Chico’s defense: Trustee Uduak-Joe Ntuk assured the public that the invitation “reaffirms” the college’s position of inclusivity; Board President Vivian Malauulu explained that Chico intended to join the board meeting she missed virtually, but encountered technical difficulties. She then reduced Zia’s claim as “pettiness” that is “just one example of the hundreds of examples of things we have to deal with.”

Board members have previously clashed with Zia over her defense of fired Superintendent-President Reagan Romali, who is suing the district alleging she was terminated for filing a whistleblower complaint against board members. They have denied the allegations.

“I have no problem supporting this,” Malauulu said of the travel reimbursement. “Hey everybody, to the public, Long Beach City College was asked to attend an event at the White House by our city’s congressman who used to work at LBCC, who is an openly gay man and advocate of LGBTQ. We’re not going to decline that invitation, pass that opportunity, and the fact that we have to sit here at the dais and waste our precious time defending that decision just blows my mind.”

According to board documents, Chico has missed four of the eight trustee meetings this year.

Trustee Chico could not be reached for comment Thursday, while Malauulu declined to speak and said that inquiries should be directed to the district.

At the heart of Zia’s questioning was not whether a board member should attend the event, but whether the college should have paid her for it.

Trustee Virginia Baxter chimed in, saying that while it is an “honor” for LBCC to send a liaison, the fact that the college planned to cover the cost was “never explained” to her.

According to some board members, an expense sheet detailing the costs of the trip was not provided to trustees prior to the vote.

“And that’s where I have a problem,” Baxter said. “I’m voting yes but I do have a problem that expenses were involved. I don’t know how much because nobody has told me but I know there were expenses involved.”

District Superintendent-President Mike Muñoz did note that the district has previously reimbursed for these forms of travel. In 2023, the district paid to send a DACA student ambassador to join Congressman Garcia for the State of the Union address.

“And we did cover his expenses,” Muñoz said. “Our philosophy is that if you are (out) on college business representing the district in these different opportunities that provide advocacy opportunities for the district, it makes sense to support.”

Decisions over personal expenses and reimbursements remain largely insulated within the district board.

California code only stipulates that an absent board member can be paid for a meeting if the board finds they are ill, grieving, on jury duty or “performing services outside the meeting for the community college district.”

A spokesperson for the California Community College District said their office does not regulate local reimbursement processes.

“Each college/district is governed locally and has their own set of rules,” said CCCD spokesperson Melissa Villarin. “It’s up to local officials to ensure compliance with the applicable rules.”

The post Trustee questions why LBCC should reimburse board member for trip to D.C. celebration appeared first on Long Beach Post .