MARTINEZ, California – At their December 14, 2016, meeting, the Governing Board approved the contract for Dr. Fred E. Wood to become the 8th permanent Chancellor of the Contra Costa Community College District.
“We are excited to work with Dr. Wood as he leads this District into the future,” said Governing Board President Vicki Gordon. “He brings an exemplary higher education background that will help us grow our transfer rates to 4-year institutions, strengthen our career technical education reputation, and increase our online offerings. The Governing Board looks forward to his leadership and innovation that will contribute to our pursuit of increasing student success.”
Prior to his selection, Dr. Wood served as Chancellor at the University of Minnesota Crookston (UMC). UMC, which was a two-year technical college beginning in 1966 and transitioned to a baccalaureate granting institution in 1993, is a workforce focused campus of the University of Minnesota system of which half of the degree seeking students are on-campus students and the other half are online students. Before joining UMC, Dr. Wood completed a 26-year career at the University of California, Davis (UCD), where he served as vice chancellor of student affairs from 2007 to 2012, leading one of the largest student affairs portfolios in the nation. Prior to UCD, Dr. Wood was a faculty member at North Idaho College. While in graduate school, his first teaching assignment was at Diablo Valley College (DVC).
“I am honored and thrilled that the Governing Board selected me to lead this great district and cannot wait to roll up my sleeves and get to work,” said Wood. “Our future success continues to be dependent on the dedicated faculty, classified professionals, and managers that work in the District. I look forward to joining them as we engage more deeply with our community and business leaders, and fulfilling the District’s mission to transform the lives of our students as they achieve their educational goals with us.”
Dr. Wood will start work on Tuesday, January 3, 2017, and receive a base annual salary of $300,000, with performance-based incentives.
A first-generation college graduate, Dr. Wood earned an A.A. degree from DVC, and B.S. degree and Ph.D. in chemistry from UCD. He is married and has three grown children.
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The Contra Costa Community College District (CCCCD) is one of the largest multi-college community college districts in California. The CCCCD serves a population of 1,019,640 people, and its boundaries encompass all but 48 of the 734-square-mile land area of Contra Costa County. The District is home to Contra Costa College in San Pablo, Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, as well as educational centers in Brentwood and San Ramon. The District headquarters is located in downtown Martinez.
