LCC board votes to censure Zach Mulholland

Presenter: The Lane Community College Board of Education censures its former chair, Zach Mulholland, ‘as a formal condemnation of his conduct and a clear statement that such behavior will not be tolerated.’ Reading the motion, LCC board member Julie Weismann:

[00:00:16] Julie Weismann (LCC Board of Education): I’m just going to read the whole thing.

[00:00:17] Whereas in March and April of 2025, the Board of Education received four complaints of inappropriate behavior, including allegations of race and sex discrimination;

Whereas one of the complaints involved conduct of all then-current board members with the exception of me (Julie Weismann), and the remaining three complaints involved conduct by Zach Mulholland;

[00:00:39] Whereas Lane Community College and the Board authorized an independent investigation of these complaints;

[00:00:45] Whereas the independent investigation substantiated three of the complaints, including the complaint against the then-current board members with the exception of me (Julie Weismann), and the two complaints against Mr. Mulholland;

[00:00:58] Whereas on Sept. 2, 2025, yesterday, the Board of Education considered the possible censure of Mr. Mulholland in executive session due to the conduct identified in the substantiated complaints against him;

[00:01:11] Whereas the Board provided Mr. Mulholland the opportunity to argue, explain, and defend his conduct in that executive session yesterday;

[00:01:19] Whereas on Sept. 3, the board tonight having reviewed the investigative materials, having considered Mr. Mulholland’s additional statements, desires to censure Mr. Mulholland under Board Policy 2715;

[00:01:35] Now therefore, be it resolved by the Board of Education that:

1. Mr. Mulholland’s behavior was inconsistent with the Board’s values and expectations of conduct. His behavior has undermined the Board’s ability to govern effectively and has disrupted the professional working relationship necessary between the Board and the college administration. The Board recognizes the harm done to the individuals named in the investigation report.

[00:02:03] 2. The Board of Education affirms its commitment to the respectful dialogue, ethical leadership, and a safe professional working relationship necessary for all members of the college community. This censure serves as a formal condemnation of Mr. Mulholland’s conduct and a clear statement that such behavior will not be tolerated.

[00:02:25] 3. The Board takes its responsibility seriously and will continue to act in the best interest of the college, its students, and its employees.

[00:02:34] 4. The Board accepts the investigative report, which substantiated three of the complaints. The investigative report shall be posted on the college website for the period of three months, starting with the date of the approval of this resolution of censure.

[00:02:49] 5. The board formally, hereby formally censures Mr. Mulholland, pursuant to Board Policy 2715, due to his documented unacceptable behavior toward President Stephanie Bulger, staff, and students in violation of Board Policy 2715. This resolution becomes effective Sept. 3, 2025.

[00:03:12] Austin Folnagy (LCC Board of Education, chair): All right, we have a motion. Is there a second? (Second.) It’s been seconded. Julie, since you made the motion, any further discussion?

[00:03:21] Julie Weismann (LCC Board of Education): Yes, I have a statement I’d like to read.

[00:03:23] Austin Folnagy (LCC Board of Education, chair): Of course.

[00:03:26] Julie Weismann (LCC Board of Education): During the eight years that I led a domestic violence services agency, I saw firsthand patterns of intimidation, manipulation, and power imbalances can undermine individuals and entire organizations. That experience gives me a unique perspective on the dynamic that we have witnessed here on this board and the impact that they have had on our president, our staff and our students. I feel a responsibility to speak to these dynamics and their consequences for our college community.

[00:03:56] The actions that have brought us to this point are not abstract. They have been real. They have real and tangible consequences. They erode trust, create fear, normalize behavior that should never be tolerated. For our students, especially female students and students of color, this environment can feel exclusionary and unsafe. For staff, it creates doubt about whether leadership will protect them and uphold standards. And for the president, it is demoralizing to witness behavior that clearly undermines not only your leadership, but the mission of this college.

[00:04:31] These are exactly the kinds of behaviors I have seen in organizations where power is misused: intimidation, manipulation and control. And they have serious ripple effects. I want to personally apologize to our president, to staff, and to students for the environment that has allowed this behavior to persist. No one should ever have to question whether their dignity, safety or contributions are respected. This board has a responsibility to prevent harm and to hold anyone causing harm accountable for their actions.

[00:05:08] Despite today’s outcome, whatever the vote will be, I want to be crystal clear: I will use every resource, every voice, and every tool available to me to interrupt racist, sexist, and unprofessional behavior on this board. I will act to protect our students and staff to uphold their dignity and model the behaviors and standards that we claim to value.

Accountability does not end with the vote that we take tonight. It’s ongoing, daily work, and I will not waver in my commitment to ensure that the college is a place where everyone will thrive and can feel welcome and be treated with respect and dignity and equity. Our students and staff deserve leadership that is accountable, principled, and courageous. And I will continue to act in service of that responsibility. And I hope my fellow trustees will join me and vote to censure. Thank you.

[00:06:08] Presenter: Later in the discussion, after other board members indicated they would vote ‘Yes’ to censure Zach Mulholland, a reminder from Julie Weismann:

[00:06:16] Julie Weismann (LCC Board of Education): I just want to remind the board that there was a lot of complaints in that investigative report and they weren’t all about Trustee Mulholland. They included you, Chair (Austin) Folnagy. They included other members of the Board who have spoken to that. It can’t be ignored or overridden. The comments that were in those reports are public. People referred to them in the meeting tonight.

[00:06:47] It is a, I’m not sure how we broach the whole idea where two members of the board, a past chair and a current chair, don’t believe that the president and CEO of this college have a voice at the table or have any contribution to make to the board. It’s appalling to me. And I don’t want to lose sight of that in this century and our responsibility that we just wash over this, that it needs to be brought back up, the board needs to address it as a whole.

[00:07:21] I respectfully ask you, Chair Folnagy, to spend some time in self-reflection, as you just mentioned, and come back at a different meeting and address the complaints that were made of you, because your apology was not an apology either. Zach’s apology was not an apology either. It didn’t take accountability. Pretty much it was like, ‘I’m sorry you felt that way and those things happened to you.’ Google it, ChatGPT will help you can write a nice acceptable reasonable apology that holds yourself accountable.

[00:07:58] So I’m just going to call it out. I mean, I just, I don’t want us to ignore this. I don’t want it to go away. It can’t be whitewashed. It can’t be minimized. This was egregious behavior that can’t just simply say, ‘We’ll learn.’ I still strongly believe, Trustee Mulholland, that you should resign, that your continued presence on this board is a reminder that this is behavior that we have essentially condoned and so I just want to go on record by saying that and I’m pleased to hear that we will have votes for censureship.

[00:08:37] Presenter: With her closing remarks at the very end of the Sept. 3 meeting, Julie Weismann:

[00:08:42] Julie Weismann (LCC Board of Education): So I want to thank the 100 people that showed up for the meeting tonight and also why are all of you guys still here? I mean, I know we have to be here but, ohmigod thanks, I mean, I appreciate the support and your interest and support of the board and LCC. So thanks for being here. It meant a lot for me, it meant a lot to the board, I think meant a lot to the community to actually see this type of pouring of voices and concerns on behalf of LCC.

[00:09:16] I have to kind of rise to the level of Steve’s concern as well. I’ll let him cover the issues that he raised. I’m going to cover some others. Have you been a chair of a lot of boards? I am really appalled by the hit behavior, or lack of facilitation of this meeting. And although I appreciate that you are, the chair is currently on Zoom, our vice chair is the one that was elected to actually play the role of facilitator, and yet he wasn’t doing that either.

[00:09:56] There are many times during the meeting where Robert’s Rules of Order was not followed. There were many times during the meeting that the chair just talked about stuff that we weren’t even sure what was there. So I say all that because I want to make a very formal request that the board chair and the vice chair receive training on how to be a chair of a board of education, that they get training, extensive training on Robert’s Rules of Order, they get extensive training on facilitation, they get extensive training on how not to interrupt someone when they’re talking.

[00:10:36] And I say it that way, with nice little periods in between each word if I were typing it, because I am tired of being interrupted. As a woman on this board, I am interrupted a lot. In our executive session, I was interrupted four times by members of the board. I can’t tell you how often you all talk over me. I can’t tell you how often if I’m just take a pause. I mean, God, three seconds, I take a pause and you step on me.

[00:11:07] So I say this now and I’m just, because I’m tired. This has been a really heavy, emotional conversation around sexism and racism and misogyny and discrimination that if I get interrupted and talked over or you talk over someone else in this meeting, I’m going to ‘point of order’ every time. I’m going to call it out every single time. I am not going to give grace any longer.

[00:11:34] I have asked you all to do it. I’ve told you when it’s happened, you all say, ‘Oh, oh, oh, I didn’t know I interrupted you,’ but yet you continue to do so. I need you to step up and actually participate as my colleagues on this board, that you have respect, that we raise our hands, that we actually talk, we have decorum.

[00:11:53] So please, please chair and vice chair, get training on facilitation so that we don’t ever have the mess of the meeting we had this evening. So with that said, thank you.

[00:12:12] Presenter: That is Julie Weismann speaking Sept. 3, as the LCC Board of Education votes to censure Zach Mulholland.