Mt. San Jacinto College is getting a bit closer to naming a new president after more than eight months of having a temporary administrator in that top post, two members of the college's board of trustees said recently.

Trustees Eugene Kadow and Dorothy McGargill said in separate interviews that the board is planning to interview a candidate soon. The president oversees operations at the college's two campuses in San Jacinto and Menifee.

"We are committed to finding a strong president," Kadow said.

The college's applicant screening committee recommended the candidate to the board. The committee consists of administrators, faculty and a few trustee-appointed community members. Review of an applicant at the board level is the final step in the interview process, Kadow said.

College leaders launched the search about five months ago, McGargill said. The board appointed John Tyler as interim president in February. He remains in the position temporarily.

Tyler said he is not interested in taking the job permanently. He declined to say how many people applied for the president's position. Tyler helped form the screening committee, but he does not serve on it, Kadow said.

McGargill said she is not surprised that the hunt for a permanent president has lasted for several months so far.

"There are about 33 community colleges looking for presidents as of last spring, I think," McGargill said. "So, potential presidents out there have a lot of options to choose from. But then again, we also had a president let go without cause."

McGargill referred to the dismissal without cause of Mt. San Jacinto College's former president, Mark Zacovic.

Zacovic's termination in late February 2006 was the result of a 3-1 board vote taken in closed session that month. Voting for the dismissal were Kadow and trustees Joan Sparkman and Gwendolyn Schlange. McGargill opposed the dismissal. Trustee Ann Motte was out of state on a business trip and not at the meeting.

Weeks before the vote, the board put Zacovic on administrative leave. At that point, Zacovic had held the college's top post for about 10 months. Based on the terms of Zacovic's contract, the board could terminate Zacovic without cause but had to give him at least 90 days' notice and a settlement of 18 months' worth of his salary.

Kadow said he didn't believe Zacovic's dismissal would hamper the college's efforts to find a permanent president. He said the high number of colleges with openings for presidents is the bigger concern.

No matter that the search has taken as long as it has, McGargill said she remains optimistic about the selection process.

"Finding a good fit could take a while. But I do believe there are qualified people for the job," she said.

Kadow emphasized the importance of getting a strong president.

"We need someone in that position who can deal with the growth we're seeing," Kadow said about both campuses. "Over the last decade, we've tripled our faculty from 50 to 150 full-timers and more than tripled our enrollment, going from 6,000 to 20,000.

"We've got our work cut out for us," Kadow added.