Sonoma State University

Proposal to Nominate Campus President

Resolved: The Sonoma State University (SSU) Academic Senate will sponsor an election to nominate a candidate for SSU’s Presidential leadership position, following the FUSE (Forever United for Sonoma Excellence) principle of community-based academic leadership.

Be it further resolved: The Academic Senate authorizes the procedures and timeline for the presidential election, as outlined below:

  • Upon passage of this resolution in the Academic Senate, the nomination period will begin.
  • The election will take place two weeks after the nomination period begins and will last one week. If no candidate secures 50% of the vote, a runoff election will be held between the top two candidates.
  • All SSU eligible faculty, as defined by the Constitution of the Faculty of SSU, III.3.2., may vote.
  • The Academic Senate will provide a platform for candidates to present statements. Candidates may choose to address the following:
    • their plan for assembling a team of academic leaders to support SSU’s core mission (for example, appointed interim leaders)
    • their support for a presidential salary cap of no more than 130% of the average salary for a mid-career faculty member, annualized to a 12-month figure.
    • their stance on accepting salaries and appointing interim leaders whose salaries align with our elected officials rather than with corporate CEOs
    • whether they will restore the programs currently proposed for elimination, including Intercollegiate Athletics.
  • Any interested persons may self-nominate or allow themselves to be nominated. While FUSE believes a faculty member or local community leader would be the best candidate, eligible faculty can vote their own preferences
  • Once a nominee is selected, the SSU Academic Senate will formally endorse the candidate for appointment as SSU President and communicate this endorsement to the CSU Board of Trustees, the Governor, and Chancellor Garcia.

Be it further resolved: that this resolution and its rationale be distributed to the following for serious and timely consideration, and for even wider issuance:

  • Governor Gavin Newsom
  • Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis
  • U.S. Representative Mike Thompson
  • Senate Pro Tem Mike McGuire; Assembly Majority Leader Cecilia Aguiar-Curry
  • State Senator Christopher Cabaldon
  • Assemblymember Chris Rogers
  • Assemblymember Damon Connolly
  • Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas
  • State Senator John Laird
  • Assembly Education Committee Chair Al Muratsuchi
  • Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee 1 Chair John Laird
  • Assembly Higher Education Committee Chair Mike Fong
  • Assembly Budget Committee Chair Jesse Gabriel
  • Assembly Budget Subcommittee 3 Chair David Alvarez
  • CSU Board of Trustees
  • Chancellor Mildred García
  • SSU Interim President Emily Cutrer
  • SSU Provost Karen Moranski
  • SSU Vice President of Administration and Finance and Chief Financial Officer Monir Ahmed
  • SSU Vice President for Advancement Mario Perez
  • SSU Vice President for Strategic Enrollment Ed Mills
  • SSU Vice President for Student Affairs Gerald L. Jones
  • SSU Senior Director of Athletics Nicole Annaloro
  • SSU Faculty
  • Save Seawolves Athletics, Benjamin Ziemer
  • California Faculty Association
  • California State University Employees Union
  • Teamsters Local 2010
  • UAW Academic Student Employee
  • Academic Senate of the CSU Chair Elizabeth Boyd
  • Emeritus and Retired Faculty and Staff Association (ERFSA)
  • American Association of University Professors
  • SSU Chair of Staff Council Gillian Estes
  • SSU Associated Students President Vanessa Sanchez
  • Students for Quality Education (SQE) Northern California Student Organizing Coordinator Ade
  • Guiterrez-Diaz
  • Sonoma State Alumni Association
  • Joseph Saveri Law Firm
  • Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
  • Rohnert Park Mayor Gerard Giudice
  • Rohnert Park City Council
  • Santa Rosa Mayor Mark Stapp
  • Santa Rosa City Council
  • The Press Democrat, Marissa Endicott, Austin Murphy, and Chris Fusco
  • The Chronicle of Higher Education Editor-in-Chief Michael G. Riley and Managing Editor Evan R. Goldstein
  • Inside Higher Ed Managing Editor Tim Phang and Editor-in-Chief Sara Custer
  • EdSource, Amy DiPierro
  • SF Chronicle, Nanette Asimov
  • CBS News Bay Area, Tony Hicks
  • KGO-TV, ABC7 Bay Area, Cornell Barnard, Monica Madden, J.R. Stone, Lena Howland, and Tara Campbell
  • KQED, Katie DeBenedetti
  • KRCB, Noah Abrams and Michelle Marques
  • CalMatters, Mikhail Zinshteyn
  • LA Times, Colleen Shalby
  • SSU STAR, Austin Metzger, Mackenzie Blosser, and Rylan Valdepena

Rationale:

This proposal, introduced by the faculty of FUSE (Forever United for Sonoma Excellence), reflects the support of many campus members for reducing management costs rather than cutting core programs. FUSE believes faculty and local community members are best suited to address the current budget and management challenges.

For too long, universities have accepted the “reality” of fiscal pressure as a reason to cut core academic programs, while disproportionately funding management. Recent analysis reveals that cuts to management positions during this budget crisis amount to just $700K – whereas the budget deficit is reported as $24M. This discrepancy shows that It is time for us to turn the tide.

SSU has endured three decades of ineffective presidential leadership, marked by numerous votes of No Confidence and resignations. Electing our own leader would be a positive step in asserting our values and priorities, rather than simply rejecting past leadership.

FUSE proposes a salary structure that pays presidents no more than 130% of a mid-career faculty salary, or their current salary. The Press Democrat recently cited a figure of $152K per year for faculty, which, while perhaps a bit high, may serve as a benchmark for a more appropriate presidential salary at Sonoma State. Additionally, FUSE recommends a salary of 120% of the average faculty member’s salary for academic leaders serving current VP positions, and a salary of 110% of the average faculty member’s salary for Deans and Associate Vice President leaders. FUSE does not believe that managers need to be paid more than the talented SSU faculty who provide the teaching and learning environments that are the core mission of this university.

NOTE: While staff and students are not eligible to vote in Academic Senate elections, they are encouraged to develop their own processes to express their positions about presidential leadership.

Approved by the Senate 4/17/2025