Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo Endorses Geoff Baum for PCC Board

PASADENA, Calif., August 31, 2026 — Mayor Victor M. Gordo, who began his own education at Pasadena City College, today endorsed Geoff Baum for the Pasadena City College Board of Trustees in Area 1.

Gordo was the first in his family to attend college. He started at PCC, continued at Azusa Pacific University, and later worked his way through the University of La Verne College of Law while holding a full-time job.

“The education I received at Pasadena City College prepared me for a career as an attorney, a member of the Pasadena City Council and, ultimately, Mayor of Pasadena,” Gordo said. “The professors and counselors there gave me the skills and the confidence I needed to move forward in law and in politics.”

“As one of our city's most treasured institutions, PCC provides the first step toward becoming a doctor, a teacher, or a business leader,” he added. “For other students, it provides the training for a good career or the skills to start a business. There is no single path to success, and PCC needs to be there for all of them. Geoff Baum understands that mission and has the experience to help the college deliver on it. I am proud to endorse him for the PCC Board of Trustees.”

Generations of PCC students have taken the same route as Mayor Gordo to a four-year degree. It ranks first in Southern California in awarding Associate Degrees for Transfer, which guarantees admission to the California State University system and to participating UC, private, and historically Black colleges and universities. PCC also offers certificate programs in more than 100 fields for students entering the workforce, as well as courses for people building new skills or changing careers.

“People across our region know Victor Gordo as a leader who shows up, listens, and gets things done,” Baum said. “We have worked together for years, and I have seen firsthand the commitment he brings to public service. I am grateful for his friendship, his leadership, and his support.”

Baum served on the PCC Board of Trustees for three terms, including twice as board president, and five years as an officer of the Pasadena City College Foundation. He served 12 years on the California Community Colleges Board of Governors, including two terms as its president. During those years, the board inaugurated the Associate Degree for Transfer program statewide, and in March 2015, with Baum presiding as president, approved the first 12 community colleges in California to offer bachelor's degrees. He has since pushed for zero-textbook-cost degree pathways and worked on their implementation.

Gordo will join Baum on Thursday, Sept. 3, at a private residence in West Pasadena, for the first in a series of community conversations Baum is holding about Pasadena City College and its role in the region. For more information, contact geoff@geoffreybaum.org.

The Pasadena City College Board of Trustees election is nonpartisan. Trustee Area 1 covers La Cañada Flintridge and the Pasadena neighborhoods of Linda Vista, San Rafael, West Pasadena, Downtown Pasadena, and Madison Heights. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026.

For more information, visit geoffreybaum.org.