College President Marchelle Fox described the Nov. 20 board meeting of the West Valley­Mission Community College District board of trustees as lively and lengthy, especially since it ended around 11 p.m. The meeting was attended by more than 40 people—coaches, community college athletes both past and present, high school students and parents—who were all supportive of the college's intercollegiate wrestling team.

After an amended motion made by trustee Jeffrey Schwartz, Fox said the board decided to restore the team—which had been targeted for elimination—and sent the decision back to the college's Academic Senate for discussion.

"The board voted to send it back to the faculty for reconsideration with the department division and the Academic Senate," Fox said.

The convoluted motion does not indicate how long the program will be restored, nor does it specify what the Academic Senate must do about the issue. The motion passed 4-2-1, with Board President Chris Constantin and trustee Bob Owens dissenting, and Vice President Jack Lucas abstaining from the vote.

The program was to be cut because of a growing trend of fewer wrestling community college teams in the area as well as state and district budget cuts. A precedent had been set in the past that when a full-time coach retires—such as wrestling coach Jim Root—the physical education and athletics department administration has to look at the possibility of eliminating a sport because of budget constraints and declining enrollment. Currently, Root will be coaching the team as a volunteer at least until the season's end, Dec. 13.

Vivian Lock, president of the Academic Senate, said there have been many differing perspectives about this issue. The decision to discontinue the team was originally made by leadership in the physical education and athletics department, which is under the purview of the Academic Senate.

"We have to allow the individual departments to make their own decisions about what courses they offer and don't offer," Lock said.

Wrestling is considered a two-unit course or class at the college. While not negating concerns made by the wrestling program advocates, Lock said there's a process that must be followed. When the wrestling team went directly before the WV­MCCD board during the community comment portion of an Oct. 16 meeting with their objections to the team's elimination, they disrupted that process.

In his defense, Root said because the athletic department was opposed to keeping the team, Root, athletes and parents decided they had to go to before the board.

"I found out they didn't know all the way up the line that the program was scheduled to be dropped," Root said.

Root contends the team is serving more than just the WVC area with the program, while attracting a significant Latino population and high enrollment to the sport, second only to football.

In other action at the meeting, 11 faculty members—whose retirements were recognized by the board at a July 30 meeting—are no longer waiting to be paid their pre-banked leave, according to WV­MCCD Public Affairs Director Ruth Carlson. Pre-banked leave, which is similar to accumulated comp time, can be paid out to employees who retire earlier than anticipated.