3 FINALISTS REPORTED FOR PIERCE JOB\Hunt for college president believed narrowed to 2 in area, one\from N.Y.

Byline: Mary Beth Alexander Daily News Staff Writer

An administrator from Orange Coast College, another from Long Beach City College and a third from a Brooklyn technical college are the three finalists for the Pierce College presidency, sources close to the selection process said Wednesday.

The finalists are Kamiran Badrkhan, vice president of academic affairs for Long Beach City College; Chris O'Hearn, vice president of instruction at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa; and Bing Innocencio, assistant provost for New York City Technical College, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Badrkhan and O'Hearn are former Los Angeles Community College District employees. Both confirmed they applied for the job, but said district officials hadn't told them they were finalists. Innocencio could not be reached for comment.

Adhering to a vow of silence, members of the selection committee - which eliminated acting Pierce President Mary E. Lee as a finalist - refused to comment on the individual candidates Wednesday.

Committee Chairwoman Evelyn Wong would only say the group sought qualities like strong interpersonal skills and consensus-building abilities, outlined in a brochure distributed nationwide, advertising the position.

"Very much throughout the process, the criteria and qualifications, the personal traits, the qualities (advertised), guided the selection process," Wong, who is president of West Los Angeles College.

Lee, who has been acting president for nearly two years, declined comment on the selection process.

The recommendations now are being considered by District Chancellor Neil Yoneji and the board of trustees, which has the final say about who will lead the Woodland Hills campus.

District spokesman Blair Sillers said the board could disregard the recommendations altogether if it finds the selection process was flawed, and seek new candidates.

The board discussed the finalists at its regular meeting Wednesday, according to officials, but took no action.

Faculty members at Pierce said they weren't surprised Lee was out of the running.

"The president lacks compassion, sort of a feeling for individuals," said Sid Elman, political science professor and chair of Pierce's teacher's guild, who was not on the selection committee.

Elman said Lee has made some improvements since she took the helm at Pierce, which has struggled in recent years with declining enrollment and financial setbacks.

But, he said she has created turmoil by frequently bypassing the shared governance process that requires her to consult with faculty and staff about major changes on campus.

One candidate, Badrkhan, said building a strong working relationship with all campus constituencies would be among his goals if he was selected.

"Working with the faculty and staff, you can make changes," said Badrkhan, who has been vice president of academic affairs at the 23,500-student Long Beach City College for 2-1/2 years.

No stranger to the Los Angeles Community College District, Badrkhan said he served for three years as an assistant dean at Los Angeles Trade Technical College in the mid-1980s, and earned an associate's degree at Los Angeles City College in his teens.

Badrkhan holds bachelor's degrees in industrial education and philosophy; a master's degree in instructional technology and a Ph.D. in educational administration.

O'Hearn has been vice president of instruction at the 24,000-student Orange Coast College since Dec. 1991, college spokesman Jim Carnett said. Before that, he said, O'Hearn worked at Los Angeles Harbor College.

O'Hearn refused to comment.