Three-way rematch in LCC Zone 1 race.

Byline: Greg Bolt The Register-Guard

Voters will see a rematch in the race for the Zone 1 seat on the Lane Community College Board, where the ballot will feature the same three names as appeared two years ago.

As in 2003, the incumbent is Florence real estate broker and former newspaper publisher Paul Holman. Challenging are Florence magazine publisher Rob Spooner and disabled insurance broker Rich Cunningham of west Eugene. Ballots for the mail-in election begin arriving soon and must be returned to the county elections office by 8 p.m. May 17.

The ballot also will list two candidates running unopposed for open seats. They are Pat Riggs-Henson in Zone 3, which is primarily Springfield, and Susie Johnston in Zone 4, which is east Lane County.

Cunningham has perhaps one of the boldest plans should he be elected: a partnership to create the state's first new medical school since the 1800s, along with medical technologies and nursing schools. He proposes giving land around LCC to the University of Oregon and in turn asking the university to use its endowment and bonding authority to finance the buildings.

He says he would form a partnership with LCC, the UO, PeaceHealth and Triad Hospitals to support the new medical schools. He also says he would work to create a light industrial park along the I-5 corridor north of LCC and recruit businesses that could employ graduates of LCC's professional-technical programs.

Although the idea most likely would cost many millions of dollars and require state tax support, as do all other public universities, Cunningham said he believes it can be done.

"The time is right for there to be a medical school in south central Oregon," he said. "The opportunities are there, the opportunities are great to kick it off and get it going."

Cunningham said another reason he is running is to displace one of two board members he sees as too far to the political right. He criticized Holman and board member Jay Bozievitch for their opposition to a campus policy that would have restricted concealed weapons carried by licensed gun owners.

He also said board members haven't done enough to carry the demand for better funding to the Legislature.

"Board members are not taking the responsibility to scream, scream, scream and then scream louder for more funding," Cunningham said. "The squeaky wheel gets the oil. I would consider it my primary obligation."

Holman agreed that funding is the greatest challenge facing the district and said it will require convincing legislators they have a responsibility to fund higher education. But he said it will take more than just a squeaky wheel to get the job done.

"I think we need to work at the Legislature to come around, and it's going to take a movement by the people more so than just one board member," he said.

Holman said one thing he favors would be moving back toward the old model of community college funding, where more of the budget came through local property taxes. Under the current system, the state takes half the local property tax money from all 17 community college districts, pools it with state general fund money and then redistributes it based on a formula.

That formula attempts to even out the funding to each district, which has hurt Lane because voters here typically approved more funding for the college than other communities.

Also, state funding has declined sharply as the recession eroded income tax revenue, and the result has been big tuition increases and program cuts. Holman thinks Lane would be better off under the old funding system.

"It would be great if that money that is taken and sent to the state doesn't go to the state and instead is left here," he said. "I think that's the direction we're going to have to get to, and I think it's not outside the realm of possibilities."

Holman defended his stand on the concealed weapon policy, saying the proposal conflicted with state law. He said legislation to give individual colleges and school districts the power to ban legal concealed weapons would create too much confusion and said the Legislature should simply ban guns at all schools or leave them legal at all schools.

Spooner said one of his priorities would be to challenge the assumptions of college administrators and push for more efficient and effective use of existing college resources. A main effort would be to increase the number of offerings in high-demand classes by cutting classes that don't fit the college mission.

As an example he cited the lack of enough sections of the basic writing sequence while still offering 14 different literature courses and two sections of poetry writing. He said that ends up hurting access and enrollment because students who can't get the basic classes they need don't enroll.

By adding more high-demand sections, Spooner said, the college also could impose a penalty on students who register for a class but withdraw in the first two weeks of the term. Students often do that to save a place in one class in case there's no room in another, but Spooner said the effect is to leave empty seats in classes that otherwise would be filled.

"When you're done, you end up with seats available in classes that two days before the start of classes were totally full," he said. "That means that people who wanted to come to the college looked at the classes, couldn't find one, gave it up and two weeks later the seats are available but it's too late. That's a bad and correctable situa- tion."

Spooner also believes that Lane's budget process needs an overhaul to allow more involvement. He called the current system a "black box" that leaves little time for staff and public involvement and is simply rubber-stamped by the board.

He said the current board doesn't ask enough hard questions and said he would make sure that the administration fully justified its decisions.

"I think it's unhealthy for no one to ask pointed questions and follow up with an intelligent response if the answer is not adequate," Spooner said. "I never saw anybody directly challenge the administration's assumptions on anything. I would be the person that does that."

LANE COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD, ZONE 1 SEAT

RICH CUNNINGHAM

Age: 46

Occupation: Disabled, formerly insurance broker

Civic experience: Former school board chairman and local advisory committee on special education in Rhode Island, vice chairman Rhode Island Private Industry Council

Why he's running: "Because the incumbent in Zone 1 has brought the board to right-wing extremism."

PAUL HOLMAN

Age: 60

Occupation: Associate real estate broker

Civic experience: LCC Florence Advisory Committee, LCC Board, Florence City Council

Why he's running: "Because we're making progress on some of the goals that took me into the race to being with, and I want to be there to help move it forward."

ROBERT SPOONER

Occupation: Publisher, Oregon Coast magazine

Civic experience: LCC Florence Advisory Committee

Why he's running: "When I ran two years ago, The Register-Guard called me the candidate most likely to challenge the administration's assumptions. I think that role still needs to be filled."