Both Chico State University and Butte College saw the selection of new leaders this year, as popular presidents retired and were replaced in the midst of a worsening budget crisis.
Manuel Esteban emerged from a decade of leadership generally praised and well-liked. The California State University Chancellor's Office and Board of Trustees embarked on a search that was, from its outset, controversial. First, the CSU put off Chico State's search for several months, so it could first fill slots at two larger universities--not a way to make friends in Chico. When they finally got around to Chico State, one of the three finalists dropped out to vie for the presidency at another CSU campus.
The man who was ultimately selected, Paul Zingg, formerly provost at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, seems like a good sort, friendly, smart and communicative. He'll have to be, as the university braces itself to deal with a budget that will increasingly hurt both the school and the economy of the Chico community.
Meanwhile, at Butte College, popular President Sandy Acebo announced her retirement after five years.
A nationwide search turned up Diana Van Der Ploeg, a community college veteran who has vowed to include the campus community in budget decisions. With less money and more students, this should be no easy task. On the up side, the bond-funded Chico campus is now under construction.