A proposal was made to rename the Board Room in the Administration Building to the “Kenneth A. Brown Board Room” in honor of the late Board of Trustees president Kenneth Brown, who died on March 23, 2023.
The idea was presented during a Special Board of Trustees Meeting, where Andrea Sala, the executive director of the El Camino College Foundation said she was approached by people in the community who expressed a desire to honor Brown’s contributions at ECC.
“Several people on and off campus that he worked with professionally just said would the campus do something to honor him,” Sala said. “According to the Board policy, the foundation brings forward naming opportunities.”
El Camino’s Board Policy 6620 allows the college may honor or memorialize individuals or organizations by renaming campus facilities or properties.
The ECC Foundation executive director added she collaborated with college President Brenda Thames and decided to choose the Board Room as the appropriate location for the name change, noting the room was a space where Brown worked.
Sala will return to the Nov. 18 Board meeting to present the proposal again, in the hopes it will be approved.
“In a perfect world, we would do some kind of formal recognition at the December Board meeting, so we’ll be moving pretty fast,” Sala said.
Board of Trustees Vice President Katherine Maschler, who was recently re-elected spoke about Brown’s legacy.
“What more I can say is that he’s above and beyond the Board who’s done so much to get students to Black colleges and work part-time at Dominguez Hills, he was an important figure,” Maschler said.
Brown was appointed to fill a vacant position for Area 1 in 2010 representing Inglewood and Ladera Heights for the El Camino Community College District Board of Trustees.
In December 2022, Brown became the president of the Board.
Board Secretary Brett Roberts, who was appointed to fill the Area 1 seat after Brown’s passing said renaming the room is a great idea.
“This is a man who I’ve come to know after his passing through stories by people I’ve met,” Robert said. “I heard nothing but positive things about him as a father, husband, and leader.”
