STOCKTON — Delta College Board of Trustees President Richard Vasquez is leaving the college’s governing board after serving as a trustee since 2014. Vasquez represented Area 4, which includes Lodi, Woodbridge, Galt and a portion of the Delta as far west as Rio Vista.  He decided to move to a residence outside of that area, which resulted in a vacancy of his office (CA Government Code Section 1770).

At their regular meeting today, trustees were presented with the options for addressing the vacancy in a manner consistent with policy and the state Education Code. Vasquez’s seat will remain unfilled until the November election, after which his term would have ended. In the meantime, Vice President Steve Castellanos will act as board president. “I am thankful to Richard for his contributions to the Board and I wish him well in the future,” Castellanos said.

In a letter issued to the superintendent/president and the Board, Vasquez described his work as a trustee for three and one-half years as “exciting and engaging” and expressed his intention to continue to work in education and serve the community.

“I want to thank Richard for his service to Delta College and the community,” said Superintendent/President Kathy Hart. “As with all Board members, we appreciate his willingness to dedicate his time and energy for the betterment of our students. Trustee positions are very critical to the success of the college and I highly encourage qualified members of the public to apply for and actively campaign for seats on our Board.”

Three seats in the seven-member Board are up for reelection in November: Area 3 (North Stockton); Area 4; and Area 7 (Lathrop, Manteca and South San Joaquin).

Members of the public interested in running for all open positions have until August 10 to file papers with the San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters. For more details on the process, visit sjcrov.org or call (209) 468-2885.