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Doug Otto, pictured above. File photo. 

Current Long Beach City College (LBCC) Board of Trustees President Doug Otto announced he is running for re-election to the LBCC Board of Trustees today.

The election will take place in April of 2016.

“I am excited to launch this campaign to continue my work for the Long Beach community by creating opportunities for students,” said Otto in a statement. “Continuing to improve access to high-quality, affordable higher education in Long Beach will ensure the long-term economic and cultural vibrancy of our city.”

In a release issued today, Otto said that Long Beach “has accomplished a lot, but there is still much more that needs to be done,” citing needed expansion of the Long Beach College Promise program, ensuring on-time graduation rates for students, and building a foundation for low- and middle-income students that helps them build a solid foundation for the future.

According to his release, Otto has been endorsed by Congressman Alan Lowenthal, Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell, Mayor Robert Garcia, former Mayor Bob Foster and former Mayor and former LBCC President Beverly O’Neill.

Otto’s release states his accomplishments as guiding LBCC through the recession, hiring 90 new faculty members since 2013 and offering the highest amount of classes in five years, a total of 2,586 courses.

The Long Beach College Promise program has also been expanded during Otto’s time as president, enabling 12,000 LBCC students to receive a free semester of college, according to the release. The new Promise Pathways program and the Transfer Degree program, helping more students graduate on time and helping them enter the Cal State system with two full years of credit, the release stated.

In addition to his time on the LBCC Board, Otto has served in numerous Long Beach leadership positions, including his tenure as past president of Long Beach Heritage, former chair of the city’s Blue Ribbon Citizens Transportation Task Force, founding Board member of the Aquarium of the Pacific (currently sitting on its executive committee) and serving on the city’s Ethics Task Force in 2002. He has also received community service awards and chaired the Long Beach Strategic Plan in 2010.

Otto received his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University, a master’s degree from Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary in New York City (jointly) and a J.D. from the University of Chicago. He served as an adjunct professor of law at Southwestern University School of Law for 16 years. He lives with his wife, Freda, on the East Side of Long Beach. They have five grown children who have graduated from California universities, according to the release.