{"id":381009,"date":"2026-06-30T18:55:34","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T18:55:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/381009\/"},"modified":"2026-06-30T18:55:34","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T18:55:34","slug":"how-scccd-chancellor-carole-goldsmith-lost-faculty-trust","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/381009\/","title":{"rendered":"How SCCCD chancellor Carole Goldsmith lost faculty trust"},"content":{"rendered":"

When the State Center Community College District named Carole Goldsmith chancellor in November 2021<\/a>, she described herself as \u201chumbled\u201d and \u201cgrateful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Four years later, 250 union members packed a meeting hall to declare they had no confidence in her leadership \u2014 hours after she announced a retirement they say came only because of the confidence vote.<\/p>\n

SCCCD is now searching for her replacement<\/a>, with the job description outlining priorities including openness to artificial intelligence, commitment to antiracist pedagogy and dedication to closing equity gaps.<\/p>\n

Goldsmith\u2019s trajectory from celebrated insider to embattled executive has played out in board chambers, courtrooms and union halls across Fresno County.<\/p>\n

In a statement to The Fresno Bee for this story, Goldsmith said any leader in a public role will face criticism, but she remains focused on SCCCD\u2019s mission during the remainder of her tenure.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of it may be fair, some of it may not, and some of it simply reflects disagreement over priorities or decisions. The presence of criticism is not, by itself, a measure of leadership effectiveness. The more meaningful measure is the district\u2019s performance, its service to students, and results achieved over time,\u201d Goldsmith said.<\/p>\n

A Fresno-rooted ascent<\/p>\n

Goldsmith was 56 when she was appointed to the role at SCCCD. She had earned a bachelor\u2019s degree from Fresno State, served 13 years at West Hills College Coalinga and led Fresno City College since August 2016. The board picked her over two outside finalists. Her contract took effect Jan. 1, 2022, placing her atop California\u2019s fourth-largest community college district, which serves Fresno City College, Clovis, Madera and Reedley.<\/p>\n

Early on, Goldsmith pointed to pandemic recovery, fiscal solvency and Measure C construction projects as her priorities. At the time, State Center Federation of Teachers President Keith Ford called out in an open letter that she would earn \u201cat least $60k more annually\u201d than her predecessor and urged better pay for adjuncts.<\/p>\n

The cracks appear<\/p>\n

In 2023, a Fresno City College professor and former basketball coach, Ed Madec, was arrested during his class on accusations that he had threatened students and faculty, including Goldsmith.<\/p>\n

A judge dismissed the case in January 2025 for lack of evidence. In August 2025, however, an Office of Administrative Hearings judge affirmed<\/a> SCCCD\u2019s decision to terminate Madec for \u201cimmoral conduct, dishonesty, and evident unfitness for service\u201d in June 2024.<\/p>\n

In a lawsuit filed in October 2025<\/a>, Madec alleges Goldsmith \u201cabused her power\u201d and orchestrated the false arrest in retaliation. His attorneys say a judicial finding that Madec was arrested without probable cause strengthens his claim.<\/p>\n

SCCCD spokesperson Jill Wagner said to The Bee for this report that the district doesn\u2019t comment on lawsuits.<\/p>\n

The vote that broke open the discontent<\/p>\n

By November 2025, faculty described the college as having over-centralized leadership, in ethical turmoil and having \u201ca culture of retaliation and fear,\u201d according to Ford, in a climate survey conducted by the State Center Federation of Teachers.<\/p>\n

About 250 union members \u2014 more than double a quorum \u2014 attended the faculty meeting and voted unanimously for no confidence<\/a>. The resolution called for Goldsmith\u2019s immediate dismissal.<\/p>\n

Ford cited specific grievances: an ethics complaint alleging nepotism over a $161,000 consultant Goldsmith frequently referred to as her \u201cgoddaughter,\u201d as well as a tripling of the district\u2019s annual legal expenses tied to lawsuits alleging retaliation, wrongful termination, discrimination and First Amendment violations.<\/p>\n

Hours before the meeting, Goldsmith announced she would retire in September 2026. In a statement to The Bee at the time, she said her decision was made on her own terms and unrelated to union actions. Goldsmith called no-confidence votes during bargaining \u201csymbolic, nonbinding.\u201d<\/p>\n

The board\u2019s silence \u2014 and a $9,000 raise<\/p>\n

On Dec. 2, 2025, the board called a special meeting to discuss Goldsmith\u2019s status through retirement.<\/p>\n

Supporters and critics packed the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat faculty have been saying to you, the board, for over a year now is that we have a breakdown of participatory governance and an incredible fear of retaliation,\u201d said Madera Community College math instructor Hillary Biehler.<\/p>\n

After roughly 90 minutes in closed session, board members exited without Goldsmith<\/a> and reported no action. Ford called the result \u201cdisappointing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weeks later, the board approved a 2.3% cost-of-living adjustment for administrators, including Goldsmith. The raise, retroactive to July 1, 2025<\/a>, lifted her salary by nearly $9,000 to $392,934. Wagner, the spokesperson, said such raises are typical annual adjustments tied to inflation for non-bargaining-unit employees.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next for the district<\/p>\n

Amid calls for her dismissal, Goldsmith says she is \u201cnot going anywhere yet.\u201d In her retirement statement, she cited enrollment growth past 70,000 students, 110 added faculty, 78 added administrators and voter approval of the $698 million Measure Q bond.<\/p>\n

\u201cI plan to press forward, full speed, until my final day in September 2026,\u201d Goldsmith wrote.<\/p>\n

This story was originally published June 29, 2026 at 5:30 AM.<\/p>\n

Related Stories from Fresno Bee<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Nick Fenley<\/a><\/p>\n

The Fresno Bee<\/p>\n

Nick Fenley is a reporter covering education, lawsuits, breaking news and more for The Fresno Bee. He\u2019s originally from the Imperial Valley and has been with The Bee since 2025.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When the State Center Community College District named Carole Goldsmith chancellor in November 2021, she described herself as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":381010,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[112,114,113],"class_list":["post-381009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fresno","tag-fresno","tag-fresno-headlines","tag-fresno-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381009"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381009\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/381010"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}