VOTE NO ONROSAELVA LOMELI
AND OSCAR VALLADARES

Strong colleges need stable leadership. Since Lomeli and Valladares joined the Board in 2018, Rio Hondo has experienced six Superintendent/President administrations or appointments involving four individuals.

The Board selects, evaluates, and oversees the Superintendent/President. Repeated turnover raises questions about continuity, long-term planning, institutional priorities, and construction oversight.

In May 2025, Lomeli and Valladares voted in a 3–2 decision to dismiss President Marilyn Flores. The public deserves a clear explanation of the circumstances surrounding her departure and whether disagreements involving construction, contracting, or Measure RH played any role.

Rio Hondo subsequently brought Teresa Dreyfuss back for a one-year appointment while conducting a national search. Dr. Don Moya-Miller’s appointment began another leadership transition.

Construction oversight is one of the Board’s most consequential responsibilities. Measure RH promised audits, public disclosure, and independent citizen oversight.

On November 12, 2025, Lomeli and Valladares supported Del Terra’s selection as Program Manager in a 3–2 Board vote. The agreement covers Measure RH and remaining Measure A projects.

The agreement assigns Del Terra responsibilities for schedules, budgets, cost estimates, consultant screening, bid review, construction oversight, change orders, and reporting. Compensation is described as 4% of project costs paid from applicable funding sources.

• Selection transparency: Questions remain about the scoring and records behind the recommendation.
• Alum Rock: An FCMAT audit concluded that sufficient evidence existed in the areas reviewed to indicate that fraud, misappropriation, or other illegal activity may have occurred. The California State Auditor also criticized the incentives created by percentage-based compensation.
• Montebello Unified: A fiscal review described weak contract oversight and concerns involving contract terms, services, and invoices.
• Bassett Unified: In 2022, prosecutors charged Del Terra president/CEO Luis Rojas and former Superintendent Alejandro Rojas in an alleged school-bond scheme. Prosecutors alleged that more than $1 million in invoices were approved for work that was never performed.
• Rio Hondo’s L Tower: In litigation, Pioneer Construction alleged that Del Terra intentionally delayed construction to generate additional compensation. These are allegations, not findings established here.

A former president and other administrators and staff have alleged that Lomeli and Valladares attempted to influence recommendations involving contractors or consultants.

Trustees establish policy and exercise oversight. Professional procurement processes should determine which contractors offer the best qualifications and value for taxpayers.

The public deserves answers and documentation:

• Were administrators pressured to recommend particular contractors, consultants, or vendors?
• Did trustee advocacy occur before evaluations were completed?
• Were higher-scoring firms passed over, and if so, why?
• Have relevant campaign contributions and financial relationships been disclosed as required?
• Will the District release scoring sheets, rankings, staff recommendations, and related records where legally permissible?

In August 2020, sexual-harassment allegations against Valladares became public while he was Board President and Lomeli was Vice President. The Board subsequently ordered an investigation.

Lomeli became Board President in December 2020 while the matter remained publicly unresolved. The supplied account identifies no publicly located final investigative report, findings letter, or other disposition. The absence of a publicly available report does not establish the outcome of the allegations.

The District should explain what was investigated, whether findings were reached, and what action resulted, subject to applicable privacy and legal restrictions.

• If Valladares was cleared, the public record should establish that.
• If allegations were substantiated, the public deserves to know what accountability followed, to the extent legally disclosable.
• If findings were inconclusive, that should be explained as well.

Rio Hondo exists for students—not contractors, consultants, or Board politics. Enrollment, persistence, completion, and transfer should be central measures of the College’s progress.

Audited 2024–25 Full-Time Equivalent Students (FTES) totaled 12,368.43, compared with a 2019–20 baseline of 12,940.6. The reporting year included 1,120 summer FTES shifted under permitted accounting treatment. That treatment complicates comparisons of enrollment recovery and should not be characterized as falsification.

A comparative report cited approximately 17,441 students in 2024, compared with 19,948 in 2017–18. It reported full-time enrollment of 22.9% at Rio Hondo, compared with 33.4% at Mt. SAC, 35.5% at Pasadena City College, 37.1% at Long Beach City College, and 39.3% at Citrus.

Rio Hondo’s 2025 Student Equity Plan identifies continuing challenges involving persistence, transfer, and gateway Math and English completion for several student populations.