Lee Lambert, chancellor of Pima Community College since 2013, is leaving for a new job as chancellor of the Foothill De Anza Community College District near Silicon Valley in California.
“It has been an incredible honor working with the PCC community, as well as the City of Tucson, Pima County and business leaders to transform the College into an award-winning cutting-edge educational institution that is well positioned to take on the challenge of building a highly skilled 21st Century workforce,” Lambert said Tuesday in a news release.
When Lambert, who received a $348,935 annual salary from PCC, took the job a decade ago, PCC was working through serious accreditation issues. Within the first few years of his administration, the college’s accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission, took the school off of probation, and it is now restored to good standing.
Nonetheless, Lambert faced ongoing criticism from some of PCC’s community members, some faculty and members of the PCC Governing Board. Last fall, a group known as People4PCC called for his resignation, claiming that Lambert lacked transparency in leadership.
At the same time, Lambert received regular praise from Tucson’s business community for his efforts to forge partnerships between the college and industry to meet the changing workforce demands of the 21st century. His signature project, Centers of Excellence — now in the final phases of completion — was designed to offer the latest training in the fields of applied technology, health care, hospitality, information technology and cybersecurity, and public safety.
“The Pima Community College Board of Governors congratulates Chancellor Lee Lambert on being selected as the new Chancellor of the Foothill De Anza Community College District,” PCC Governing Board Chair Theresa Riel said in a news release Tuesday. “The Board recognizes there are a limited number of college administrators who have the experience that Lee Lambert has. Over the last ten years, working closely with PCC employees, he has used his vision to assist in the creation of PCC’s Centers of Excellence.”
The board will meet over the next few weeks to discuss the search for Lambert’s replacement.
In a news release put out by the Foothill De Anza Community College District, Lambert said, “The district’s commitment to student success and educational excellence driven by an equity agenda and guided by a set of core values rooted in integrity, inclusion, care for students’ well-being, and sustainability aligns with my personal and professional values.”
Prior to taking the helm at PCC, Lambert served as president of Shoreline Community College in Shoreline, Washington, for seven years. He holds a law degree from Seattle University School of Law and has worked in the higher education sector for two decades.
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