Rio Hondo College - History

History

Rio Hondo College District was established in October 1960, encompassing the boundaries of Whittier Union High School District. As it expanded to include the El Rancho Unified and El Monte Union High School Districts, it established a Board of Trustees in April 1962. In May 1963, the Board named the proposed community college Rio Hondo, named after the neighboring Rio Hondo River.

While voters in the district approved a $12 million USD to build Rio Hondo College in October 1963, classes were temporarily conducted at Sierra and El Rancho High Schools. The present campus, off Workman Mill Road, was opened for classes in Fall 1966.

In October 2011, the Rio Hondo College Board adopted a "No Cuts" budget, while neighboring community colleges were suffering from across-the-board budget cuts due to insufficient state funding. In October 2011, the college's president, Ted Martinez Jr. filed a formal grievance against 3 professors at the school (who were active union leaders), for creating a hostile work environment that caused him to suffer a stroke. The president requested that the Board of Trustees hire a consultant for an initial payment of $5,000, without telling the Board that it was for an independent investigator for the claim. The cost later blossomed to $40,000. The independent investigator Angela J. Reddock found that the claim had no merit. Ted Martinez, Jr. "retired" when the Board of Trustees upheld the findings of the investigator. An action against the Rio Hondo Community College District was filed by the California Teacher's Association for an unfair labor practice.