August 20, 1999
Solana Beach resident Rodolfo "Rudy" Fernandez, who just completed a six-year term as director of the Governor's Office of California-Mexico Affairs-- California Trade and Commerce Department, had been appointed to the MiraCosta College Governing Board. He will represent Trustee Area 1, which incorporates areas of Del Mar and Solana Beach.
Fernandez will fill the vacancy on the seven-member board left by longtime trustee Carol V. Smith, who retired June 30. Smith's term would have expired December 2002; the seat is up for election Nov. 7, 2000.
Fernandez served in the Marine Corps for four years, and earned a B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin. He is a retired partner from one of the "Big Five" public accounting firms, Deloitte & Touche LLP. During his 22 years as a certified public accountant with Deloitte & Touche, he worked in New York, Baja California, Texas, and California, and traveled to countries all over the world to review firms, train personnel, and monitor their progress. Fernandez has also served as an audit partner in San Antonio, Texas and in San Diego, working with international clients, municipalities, and non-profit organizations.
In his role as director of the Governor's Office of California-Mexico Affairs, Fernandez developed ties with elected officials at the federal, state, and local level in the United States and Mexico. His projects included development of the NAFTA implementation plan called "Globalization of the Region." He was also instrumental creating the Border Environment Cooperation Commission of the Californias, which works to get financing for environmental projects on both sides of the border.
Fernandez is currently working as an international consultant, helping American and Asian companies that want to do business in or with Mexico, and with Mexican companies that want to do business with the United States. He is also serving on the advisory committee for the UCSD Extension Program, developing a U.S.-Mexico Business Certificate Plan. Fernandez will teach part of the class.
Fernandez's affiliations include the Mexican-American Business and Professional Association, Border Trade Alliance Board, San Diego Youth Symphony Board, and the District Export Council of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
"I have received a lot from the community, both professionally and personally, and that is why I believe that in being active in professional and social organizations I can give something back to the community," says Fernandez. "I have a great interest in helping the youth of our country get a good education because they represent the future of this country. I am also very interested in helping adults making career changes and people who want to keep current in their job requirements and educated in the latest technology."
Both Fernandez and his wife have taken a number of business and computer courses at MiraCosta, and his daughter-- who is currently studying music at UCLA--took piano classes at the college. Their positive experiences influenced Fernandez's decision to apply for the trustee position.
"I like MiraCosta College, and with my background I believe that I can, in some way, make a contribution to MiraCosta."
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