Moorpark College Official Says Retirement, Trouble Unrelated

Lawrence Lloyd, Moorpark College’s vice president for administrative services, said Wednesday that his decision to retire in June, 1992, has nothing to do with a recent move by college trustees to reprimand him.

Lloyd, 57, said he wants to take advantage of the Ventura County Community College District’s “golden handshake” retirement incentive program. Under the program, veteran administrators are encouraged to retire early in exchange for higher pension benefits.

Trustees voted last week to notify Lloyd that they plan to reprimand him. Although the trustees will not discuss the matter, Lloyd came under fire from the college district’s attorney for his role in paying two college employees for work out of funds from the college’s foundation, rather than college funds. The district’s attorney has contended that the funding arrangement violated state education and government codes.

Lloyd has maintained that the arrangement to pay the employees was proper and had the blessing of district officials and members of the foundation board.

He said Wednesday that his retirement decision “did not have anything to do with” the proposed reprimand. “I’d still planned to do exactly the same thing.”

Lloyd can argue against the reprimand at a closed hearing with the trustees before they take final action. But he said he hasn’t decided what action he will take, referring to the reprimand as simply “a nasty letter in my file.”

Lloyd, who earns $81,020 annually from the college, said he went to work as a faculty member at the college in 1967, the year the college was established. He said he wants to stay on another year to see construction of the new performing arts building get under way on campus.