SAN MARCOS — As per the District’s Governing Board approval on Tuesday, December 6, 2022, Palomar College will welcome Dr. Todd McDonald as the new Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Finance & Administrative Services (FAS).
Dr. McDonald will begin his work at Palomar on January 23, 2023.
“We are excited to welcome Dr. McDonald to Palomar College, and we are confident his 30 years of experience will result in significant contributions to the finance and administration division of the District,” said Dr. Star Rivera-Lacey, Palomar’s Superintendent/President.
The Finance & Administrative Services Division represents a large portion of the Palomar Community College District’s (PCCD) structure, including the following departments:
- Business & Contract Services
- Campus Police
- Facilities
- Fiscal Services
- Information Services
Dr. McDonald comes to Palomar from the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District, based in El Cajon, where he served as Associate Vice Chancellor of District Business Services. In that role, he was responsible for developing and managing the annual budget and a variety of other business operations, such as contract oversight and auxiliary service management.
Dr. McDonald began his career in the private sector in the Midwest during the early 1990s, before switching to public service as an accountant and then Business Services Manager for the Rockford, Illinois Park District.
He recalled transitioning to public service and realizing he wanted to spend the rest of his career serving the public: “There was meaning behind the work I was doing.”
In 2004, he joined his first community college, McHenry County College in Crystal Lake, Illinois, and has worked in higher education ever since. He holds a Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) from Ferris State University in Michigan and holds various certifications and awards for his decades of public service.
As a long-time business services leader in higher education, Dr. McDonald brings a strong vision of his team’s role in the operations of a college.
“We’re here for whatever the person who is coming to us needs—they might need a couple of classes to skill up in their current position, they might want to shift careers, they might want to transfer to a four-year institution, they might be later in life and realize they want to get a degree, they might need non-credit classes,” he said. “It’s a community resource for whatever someone needs.”
Dr. McDonald also said he is aware that he is joining a new leadership team at Palomar, and added, “I’m looking forward to being part of the team that sets the tone for the next 75 years at Palomar College.”
From the FAS Division’s website: “Finance & Administrative Services is dedicated to providing quality service to the District’s administration, faculty, and staff in support of an engaging teaching and learning environment for our students. We are committed to operating in a manner that is based upon integrity, transparency and equity while recognizing the central role of administrative support services in the success of the institution and in ensuring the public’s trust.”