Bernie Rhinerson, a longtime advocate for public education and community colleges, was elected president of the San Diego Community College District’s (SDCCD) Board of Trustees at the board’s Dec. 14 organizational meeting. Rhinerson pledged to continue the steady leadership provided by Dr. Maria Nieto Senour, who had served as board president since 2015. Senour will continue her board service over the next year as a vice president.
“I am honored to have been elected to lead the Board of Trustees and I join my colleagues in thanking Senour for her steady and resolute leadership during some enormously challenging times, including a pandemic that forced the district to move to 100% remote learning almost overnight,” said Rhinerson. “Our commitment to serving the San Diego community by expanding academic and career pathways through dual enrollment, the San Diego Promise, and partnerships with industry and labor will continue unabated.”
Rhinerson is serving his third term on the San Diego Community College District Board of Trustees. First elected in 2012, Rhinerson has considerable experience advocating for community colleges at the national and state levels. During his time on the SDCCD Board, he has served on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) and as Chair of the Community College League of California’s (CCLC) Advisory Committee on Legislation.
Rhinerson also helped to establish the Board of Trustees student scholarship program, which has provided scholarships for more than 100 students since 2013. In 2013, he retired from the San Diego Unified School District where he worked as Chief of Staff for two different superintendents. Rhinerson has more than 30 years’ experience in public policy, marketing, and communications working in both local government and as a communications consultant. He has also taught as an adjunct professor of Public Administration at San Diego State University (SDSU).
His community involvement includes service on the boards of several organizations including the Cesar Chavez Service Clubs, past Chairman of the San Diego County Water Authority, and Past President of the SDSU Alumni Association. He earned both his bachelor’s in Psychology and master’s in Public Administration Degree from SDSU.
In addition to Rhinerson’s election, Mary Graham was elected as executive vice president of the board, and acting chancellor Gregory Smith was appointed secretary. Board members Geysil Arroyo, Craig Milgrim, and Maria Nieto Senour were named vice presidents for specific functions.
The elected five-member Board of Trustees oversees one of the largest community college districts in the state and the largest higher education and workforce development system in the region. The current board has expanded the tuition-free San Diego Promise program, collaborated closely with the San Diego Unified School District in expanding dual enrollment opportunities and pathways to college, and overseen the expansion of community college bachelor’s degree programs, which now include programs at City, Mesa, and Miramar colleges. In addition, the board has continued to deftly manage the voter-approved, $1.55-billion Propositions S and N construction bond program that has secured some of the highest ratings possible from two of the nation’s benchmark bond-rating services and earned accolades from the San Diego County Taxpayers Association.
In addition to the SDCCD’s elected trustees, student representatives from San Diego City, San Diego Mesa, San Diego Miramar, and San Diego Continuing Education colleges, also serve a one-year term filling a student trustee position on a rotating basis.
Board priorities in the coming year include continuing to grow student enrollment, promoting student success and well-being, supporting local workforce needs, strengthening the district’s financial health, and overseeing facilities improvements to ensure students have access to safe, state-of-the-art instructional spaces.
