Rudy Besikof, Ed.D.
As a finalist for Chancellor of the San Mateo Community College District, Dr. Rudy Besikof brings leadership that includes a demonstrated commitment to the success of California’s rich, diverse community of higher education students.. He has served at Laney College since 2018, first as Vice President of Instruction before becoming its President in July 2020, a position he still holds.
During this time, he has guided the College to reaffirmation of accreditation, full investment in Guided Pathways, two separate rebounds in enrollment, and Free College initiatives that have helped Laney and the greater Oakland community in their emergence from the global pandemic. Focusing on critical student barriers around poverty, the College has enjoyed enrollment increases, especially among its Latinx, African American, and AAPI communities. Throughout his presidency, he has emphasized relationship building with community, business, education, and political leaders, work that has led to his appointment to the Oakland Workforce Development Board and his election to serve as President of the Northern Alameda Adult Education Collective Executive Cabinet’s President. Dr. Besikof’s external engagement efforts are not unique to his time in Oakland, as he had previously served on the California Inland Empire’s Chapter of the United States Department of Commerce’s District Export Council. Details about his college’s partnerships with industry, civic leaders, fellow educators and students may be heard on his podcast, The President’s Desk, which airs on radio and television.
President Besikof earned his Doctorate as a 2010 graduate of UCLA's Educational Leadership Program. His dissertation, focusing on effective fundraising practice, earned the UCLA School of Education's Outstanding Dissertation Award. He will be continuing his growth as an educator this year, having been accepted to the UC Davis’s Wheelhouse Institute’s 2024 cohort.
Dr. Besikof has been in higher education since 1990, first as an instructor and then tenured faculty member of 7 years at Long Beach City College before becoming an administrator in 2011. In total he served five years as a Chief Instructional Officer and five as a Dean before becoming President. While in the classroom, Dr. Besikof taught second language students English in California, Colorado, France and Japan, while preparing the teachers and leaders of tomorrow who took his graduate courses in Education, Applied Linguistics, and Educational Leadership.
Dr. Besikof is excited at the possibility of becoming the next SMCCD Chancellor, as the role would represent a culmination of a professional journey as an educator and leader that has already been incredibly fulfilling..