Barbie Duncan, former Assistant Dean of Student Services, seeks equity and proper “seat at the table” for the Verde Valley for the first time in 50 years
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arbie Duncan, former Assistant Dean of Student Services, asked the Governing Board at its October meeting to delay a decision on a new College president until January. She argued that if the election changes the composition of the Board, the newly elected members should participate in the final selection of the president. Under the present scheme as announced by the College, the current Board members will make the final selection of a College president regardless of the outcome of the November election.
Ms. Duncan also commented on the Attorney General’s investigation, suspension of the Verde Valley Board Advisory Committee, the excellent faculty, and poor administrative leadership in some quarters. She asked for a “voice at the table” for the Verde Valley.
You may view Ms. Duncan’s three minute speech to the Governing Board below.

Camp Verde citizen Carol German pleaded with the Yavapai Community College Governing Board at its October meeting to use some of the $22 million in tax dollars paid every year by Verde Valley residents in property taxes to build a centralized Career and Technical Education Center over here. Ms. German said that she appreciated the efforts made so far in the Valley by the College in its fledgling CTE effort but “they needed to be expanded.”
Yavapai Community College Performing Arts Center offers pre-show dinners for select performances. In its marketing advertisement the College says that you can “dine in elegance, without rushing to the Theatre — because you’re already there! Join us for dinner in the upstairs lobby of the Performing Arts Center. An elevator is available to access the upstairs.”
into the alleged politically tainted postcards masquerading as a newsletter Yavapai Community College was preparing to send out just prior to the November election. It is alleged that the postcards hyped the current Governing Board members including Ray Sigafoos and Connie Harris who are running in contested elections in their districts.
The Cottonwood Journal was the first newspaper in the Verde Valley to report on the Arizona Attorney General’s investigation into Yavapai Community College’s plan to mail individual postcards masquerading as newsletters that laud the College and the current Governing Board members. Many consider the material to be a subtle political effort by the College to help Ray Sigafoos and Connie Harris in their bid to keep their seats on the Board.
Everyone is invited to the Yavapai Community College Verde Valley Campus (601 Black Hills Drive, Clarkdale) on Saturday, Oct. 20 to celebrate the College’s 50 years (this is when it first opened in Prescott) of serving the County. The events and activities are free of charge.
The annual Yavapai Community College Wine & Dine in the Vines fundraiser will be held on the Verde Campus Saturday, October 27 beginning at 5 p.m. The event features over 30 winemakers, restaurant owners and chefs who will provide tastings of their favorite edibles and drinkables at the event.
The Southwest Wine Center, located on the Verde Campus in Clarkdale, announced October 15 that it had completed its most successful harvest of grapes from its vineyard since it began. The Center picked 24.8 tons of grapes.
Those critics who were suspicious that Yavapai College was attempting to influence the outcome of the District One Governing Board election for Ray Sigafoos when it issued a press release to the Prescott Courier about a Governing Board decision to apply excess revenue to reduce bond payments obtained more evidence supporting them on Sunday, October 14, 2018. They pointed to a story appearing in the Verde Independent on that date apparently provided by the College.