As long as we allow people to slurp at the money pit they will. I can see no reason why a car is a perk for an educator. A credit card to Office Depot, perhaps. It's my guess this person thinks of her present job as a jumping off point to an elected political position, and if this is so, she is right on track to enrich her personal life at the public expense. She should be unceremoniously fired, and the cost of the car should come out of her retirement package and then be a parting gift to her. You can be sure she would be royally pissed off at 'wasting' her money on such a perk.

My dad has used this as a rational for why he drives a Chevy Caprice w/ v8 engine, basically police cruiser. And I never understood it, unless you put the seat all the way back and your legs are still uncomfortable bent the whole leg room argument is voided. Unless you are somehow too wide to fit in a regular bucket seat and need a bench seat, the comfort level must be voided as well in that aspect. Which leaves what the seat is actually made of, does it have proper support, is it comfortable, and it seems to me that maybe they just put more comfortable seats in larger cars, so the cheapest solution would be to get a more economical car and simply replace the seats.

But the fact she bought this with community college funds really shines as a huge gap that needs to be plugged. She's probably already making a 6 figure salary for what is arguably a position that does not command that much work. Why the hell do they toss in car funds on that? Being a community college teacher and hearing about how we're low on funding it really chaps my hide to hear stories like this. Even as a student I remember having this huge talk about how tuition needs to be raised to pay for all these programs (of which I didn't use any), and that same year the President (making over $300k) and the 6 vice presidents of the school (each around $200k) got themselves a nice little raise.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Arroyo @ Nov 26 2007, 07:31 AM) [snapback]544228[/snapback]</div>

Hmmm, a "very tall woman" is 5'8", but I'm a very short man at 5'7". I guess my britches are larger than I thought! Don't you just want to slap excuse-givers?

Yeah, but can't blame her, it's her way, I mean a quick google of her name finds that she was fired from her last job as Solano Community College president, and apparently they had to continue to pay her under contract unless she got another job for up to the rest of the year, apparently waited until the year was up and got a new job in the mean time siphoning $200k from another Community college. Why this chick doesn't have a special star on her resume to flag her to other schools is beyond me. Apparently she's among the highest paid school employees in the area! I can't believe this chick who got fired "termination of contract" can get these jobs where the benefits are enormous.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(MikeSF @ Nov 26 2007, 05:30 PM) [snapback]544493[/snapback]</div>

It looks like this isn't the first time the college board of trustees had raised an eyebrow:

"The stealth manner in which the car was purchased for the president of the college - before the board had a chance to even discuss it - mirrors the nefarious manner in which the president herself was selected. The board hired Perfumo after bypassing the two top recommendations of the highly regarded selection committee, which was made up of respected leaders of the college as well as esteemed members of the community. Having served PCC for 40 years as a professor of anthropology, I am greatly disappointed in the cavalier attitude the current board has displayed regarding its responsibility to the college, the community and the environment." - Elvio Angeloni, Letter to the Pasadena Star News Editor

The "buying guide" also made the Pasadena Star News:
PCC President Gets Some Auto Advice

this is interesting because i was just reading over the weekend that the
mayor of Charleston SC drives a black prius...
seems he wishes to be responsible to the voters for fuel efficency and costs.....

froley

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(MarinJohn @ Nov 26 2007, 01:05 PM) [snapback]544278[/snapback]</div>

I love my Prius, but honestly, I am not happy with lack of lumbar support and comfortable seating. I began to ache after about 40 minutes in the seat... I just purchased a special lumbar support system for the seat and it has had a great impact.

Also, "chick" is an interesting term--usually thrown out when putting a woman in her place.

I agree that this person made a very poor choice.

PCC President Rethinks Car Purchase

Perfumo rethinks car pick
PCC's approval of Cadillac questioned
By Janette Williams, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 12/07/2007 11:43:20 PM PST


PASADENA - She's not saying why, but Pasadena City College President Paulette Perfumo is considering her automobile options, including trading in the subsidized, top-of- the-line Cadillac she picked as her personal college-funded transportation.

Her choice of a $54,244.46 Cadillac DeVille Touring Sedan that gets about 14 mpg in city driving raised some eyebrows on the campus when the school's trustees - with one exception - approved the purchase last month.

And her luxury car inspired "The Public Figure's Guide to Buying Cars With Public Funds," written by Roy Nakano, executive editor of the San Gabriel-based online magazine LACar.com.

Nakano wrote in his "Back Seat Driving" column that college presidents aren't expected to be auto experts, but are "often put in the precarious position of having to lead by example." He suggested some eco-friendly options for Perfumo, all costing well under $30,000.

Perfumo, speaking through college spokesman Juan Gutierrez, said Friday there was a "direction of (staff) exploring all the possibilities" of making some changes, which also would have to be approved by the trustees.

"One option is to purchase the car at the same price the school paid and get a stipend like (presidents of) other (community) colleges," Gutierrez said. "Or just give the car back, buy her own car and collect a stipend. The school would return it and use the funds to buy additional school vehicles. Maybe there's a third option. No decision has been made."

Perfumo has explained her choice by saying she had the same car at her last job as president of Solano Community College District and needs a large car to accommodate her 5-foot-8 height and a "bad leg."

Her contract gives her use of a car of her choice - plus taxes, license, gasoline card and maintenance - on top of her $183,000 salary.

Community college presidents who get car allowances include John Nixon, interim president at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, who drives a 2005 Honda Accord hybrid he bought himself and gets a monthly $850 car allowance, and Glendora's Citrus College President Michael Viera, who drives a 1999 Jeep Cherokee and gets about $800 a month in car allowance.

Beth Wells-Miller, the lone anti-Cadillac vote on the seven-member PCC board, said she had "no factual information" that would allow her to comment on Perfumos'a plans.

But, she said, Perfumo "apparently talked about the possibility of getting something other than the Cadillac."

Wells-Miller said when the news got out she'd had some phone calls questioning the board's approval, it had been "an item of interest" on campus and was discussed in the Academic Senate.

"Yes it's been talked about," Wells-Miller said. "I don't know if (a change of car) would defuse things, but I imagine it could."

http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/news/ci_7667224

I believe the expression is "gorging oneself at the public trough".

PCC President Resigns

Well, it looks like the other shoe dropped...

Pasadena City College president Paulette Perfumo resigns

By Emma Gallegos, Staff Writer
Posted: 08/26/2009 08:23:28 PM PDT


PERFUMO (Courtesy Photo)

PASADENA - Nineteen days after Pasadena City College President Paulette Perfumo took a personal leave and stopped corresponding with board members, she resigned from her position, the board of trustees announced late Tuesday night after a closed-session meeting.

Perfumo was not present at the meeting, but board President Jeanette Mann read a statement saying that Perfumo plans to relocate to Northern California and continue to work for the college in an administrative position.

Perfumo could not be reached for comment and calls to her home were not returned.

In this new position as a special projects administrator, Perfumo will "provide focus on projects related to legislation, advocacy and new grant opportunities with the goal of creating potential additional revenue streams to benefit the district during this time of statewide fiscal upheaval," according to the statement.

Neither the board nor PCC's human resources department had any details about Perfumo's new contract. They also would not say if she will be paid under the terms of her previous contract.

Perfumo's salary and benefits in this new position have not been finalized nor has the board established how long this assignment will last, Mann said.

"It's going to be a continuing position until some of these things are hammered out," said college spokesman Juan Gutierrez. "Those details will be forthcoming, and those will be coming from the trustees and the college."
Mann said that Perfumo was resigning for personal family reasons.
"It wasn't surprising to me that she would want to go back to Northern California to be with her family," Mann said.

Perfumo grew up in Northern California and has family members that still live there.

She intends to retire when she finishes her assignment, Mann said.
"She's going to Northern California to be closer to her family," Mann said.

Mann said that she still has not talked to Perfumo since the former president took a personal leave.

Lisa Sugimoto, vice president of student and learning services, will continue to serve as president in the interim.

The board will discuss selecting a new president at its next meeting on Sept. 2, Mann said.

Perfumo's resignation comes at the end of a personal leave she requested on Aug. 6, a day after her performance was reviewed by the board of trustees. In February, the board extended Perfumo's contract through 2010-11.

Perfumo was named PCC's 11th president in August 2007. She replaced James Kossler, who had worked at the college for 19 years and served as president for 12 years. Perfumo applied for the job after Kossler retired. She was not one of the four finalists named during the six-month search but was chosen to succeed him anyway.

Before her stint in Pasadena, Perfumo served as president of Solano Community College.

She started in December 2002, but left the college in December 2007 after the board voted 4-2 to buy out her contract, which had more than a year remaining. Trustees never explained their reason for the action, saying that they could not comment on a personnel matter.

Before that, she worked as the deputy superintendent of educational services for Ohlone Community College district for five years.

Perfumo stirred up controversy early in her tenure at PCC when she chose as her company car a $54,000 Cadillac DeVille Touring Sedan that averaged about 14 mpg in city driving.

She will keep the car, which she purchased using an automobile allowance provided by the college, Gutierrez said.

Pasadena City College president Paulette Perfumo resigns - Pasadena Star-News

Re: The Public Figure's Guide to Purchasing Cars with Public Funds

Many years ago, I grew up in the Pasadena area and graduated from PHS (Pasadena High School) and also graduated from PCC. PCC was an excellent junior college - I have no regrets. I'm very happy to hear that Ms. Perfumo resigned. By her irresponsible actions, she was a disgrace to our financially stressed educational system.

Keith

I think the more relevant concern is why "we" keep placing people with such hubris into higher and higher positions of authority? It's been my experience that many who aspire to such positions are inherently narcissistic, a characteristic that seems to accompany those who behave more aggressively than the average individual. Though aggressiveness is an important tool that has it's place in a leadership role, I find that our culture seems to confuse this with being a strong leader.