Omits the one person who for the last several years has been a constant public voice and elected leader urging greater Community College investment in the Verde Valley
Robert Oliphant, Editor
Opinion. Yavapai Community College has just issued a slick public relations/marketing publication boasting about how it is “Investing in The Verde” Valley.” You may read the entire “Special Verde” Spring 2022 publication by clicking here.
One assumes that the persons prominently pictured on the front cover (see below) and featured throughout the publication of the “Special Edition” (see below) were carefully selected to show Verde Valley citizens the faces of those who have been and are the driving political and administrative forces behind investing in the Verde Valley. Otherwise, why were they chosen?
There is, however, one person who is conspicuous by his absence from the publication. That person is Yavapai Community College District Three Representative, Paul Chevalier. In truth, Chevalier has been a vocal driving force behind efforts to persuade the Community College to invest in the Valley for at least the last seven years.
When interviewed about his conspicuous absence from the publication, Chevalier said he was not contacted to participate and was not involved in any way with it.
Chevalier’s omission is all the more puzzling because his District makes up most of the Verde Valley including Jerome, Clarkdale, Cottonwood, Sedona, and the Verde Villages. Governing Board Representative and Chair Deb McCasland’s District encompasses only a portion of the Verde Valley, which includes Cornville, Beaver Creek, and Camp Verde. She also represents a portion of the west side of her District, which includes the Prescott Country Club, Stoneridge, Sugarloaf, and Verde Lakes.
Chevalier’s vocal and political efforts directed at encouraging the College to increase its investment in the Valley began in 2015 when he was the Chair of the Verde Valley Governing Board Advisory Committee. That Committee consisted of a group of outstanding local residents who represented every corner of the Verde Valley. It was created in 2015 by former Third District Representative Al Filardo.
Over a period of more than a year, the Advisory Committee held dozens of community meetings in the Verde Valley with local educators and educational experts. The result was about twenty recommendations sent to the District Governing urging greater investment by the College in the Valley. Regrettably, virtually all of the recommendations were rejected by the Governing Board, which was and is completely under the political control of a West County Governing Board Representative voting bloc.
By September 2016 most suspect the West Side politicos on the Governing Board were seething because of the number of public recommendations for investment in the Valley streaming from the Advisory Committee chaired by Mr. Chevalier. The West County dominated Board either had to publicly reject or quietly ignore them, which was embarrassing. In retaliation, during the final hour of an all-day retreat on September 11, 2016 at the Prescott Campus, the West side voting bloc Board members in stealth-like fashion joined together to quash the Verde Valley Advisory Committee. Quickly, and without adequate notice of their intentions to the public, they voted 3-2 to abolish the Committee. Just like that, it vanished and was never heard from again.
However, in 2018 Chevalier returned to the public arena on behalf of Verde Valley citizens. This time he won a hotly contested election for the six-year term for the Third District Governing Board seat on the Yavapai Community College Governing Board. He pledged to advocate on behalf of the Verde Valley and the entire County.
Going into his third year on the Board, Chevalier has been true to his word. He is a constant strong voice for additional Community College investment in the Verde Valley. At times his efforts appear to irritate some Governing Board members.
Most close observers of Governing Board activities have found that Chevalier is by far one of the most well prepared, if not the best prepared, of the Board members when attending either a workshop or meeting. He is always present.
There is no question about his efforts to constantly persuade the College to make a greater investment in the Verde Valley. And he has been quite successful in his efforts, as the “Investing in the Verde” publication so beautifully illustrates. Yet, that publication contains not the slightest attribution to Mr. Chevalier.
It is not totally clear, of course, why the Community College chose to completely overlook Chevalier in the “Investing in the Verde” publication. It is not that they are ignorant of his efforts. Maybe he is seen enviously as far too devoted to his constituents. Or, that he is too focused in his persistent efforts to ensure that every penny of a local taxpayer’s annual contribution to the College is equitably returned to the Verde Valley. Who knows?
As René Descartes is quoted as saying: “The last rule was to make enumerations so complete, and reviews so comprehensive, that I should be certain of omitting nothing.” This is apparently not a rule followed by Yavapai Community College.
(L to R): Verde Valley Dean, Dr. Tina Redd; Vice President Dr. Diane Ryan; District Governing Board Chair Deb McCasland; Yavapai College President Dr. Lisa Rhine; and YC Foundation Board President Valerie Wood. Photo for Yavapai Community College publication by Bill Leyden.
