Between April 8 and Aug. 20, nine emails were sent to the Occidental student body, each announcing the departure of a different administrative staff member. In addition, six previous administrative employees who worked during the 2018–2019 school year are no longer listed as staff on Occidental’s website as of Sept. 18, bringing the total administrative turnover to 15. President Jonathan Veitch announced Jan. 27 via campus-wide email that he would not renew his tenure as Occidental College’s president and will step down at the end of 2019.
In the distributed emails, many administrators cited work-related opportunities or personal affairs as reasons for their departures.
Veitch’s April 17 announcement of the resignation of former Chief Diversity Officer & Vice President for Inclusion and Equity Rhonda Brown was the first of many campus-wide emails sent about administrative departures.
The department of Residential Education and Housing Services (REHS) experienced multiple employee departures, including Assistant Director of Student Conduct Tom Wesley, Assistant Dean of Students and Director of REHS Chad Meyers, and REHS Office Manager Tatiana Barzaghi.
The Office of Student Leadership, Involvement and Community Engagement (SLICE) had two resignations: Associate Dean of Students Ella Turenne and Department Coordinator Katja Livingston.
In a July 29 email to the Occidental community, Veitch announced the departure of Title IX Director Jennifer Broomfield. Veitch stated that Broomfield’s departure occurred out of her need to address family health concerns.
Veitch expressed regret about her departure and commended her leadership and dedication to the Occidental community.
“The patience, skill, and empathy she has displayed in this very challenging job have made a real difference,” Veitch said.
The departure of Human Resource Director Danita Maxwell was unannounced. Maxwell joined the college in June 2015. As of June 19, she is the new president of Human Resources for the Texas Rangers baseball team based in Arlington, Texas.
Additional administrative departures included the Associate Director Chris Gilman of the Center for Digital Liberal Arts, General Counsel Samantha Sandman in the Office of the General Counsel, Coordinator of Community Programs Allegra Padilla in the Center for Community Based Learning and Senior Administrative Assistant Terry Perez in Information Technology Services.
Other departing administrative employees included Sustainability Coordinator Jenny Low, Clery Act Compliance Coordinator Elizabeth Diliberti and Circulation and Reserve Manager Mandlenkosi Daley.
Out of these 15 administrative faculty members, three — Chad Meyers, Tatiana Barzaghi and Mandlenkosi Daley — are now listed as staff at the Los Angeles extension of Massachusetts-based Emerson College.
