Cuesta College President Gilbert Stork discusses his upcoming retirement after 50 years of employment.
Photo by Alexander Bissell/Cuestonian
By Garrett K Smiley
Editor-in-chief
Cuesta College’s longest serving employee recently announced he is set to retire June 30, 2018.
This will make the second time Gilbert Stork has retired – but he says this time’s for real.
Stork has served as the school’s superintendent/president since 2010, and began his tenure with the school in 1967.
Stork originally started his career at Cuesta as an assistant football coach and physical education instructor after teaching at San Luis Obispo High School, where he taught math.
Stork worked his way up to associate dean, dean of instruction, and vice president until the first time he retired in 2004. However, his love of teaching, he said, is what brought him back to the college and out of retirement.
His term as superintendent/president came at a turbulent time in Cuesta College’s history.
Stork signed a two-year agreement as the interim superintendent/president in 2007, which meant solving Cuesta’s accreditation issues while weathering California’s recession.
Under Stork’s supervision, the school passed Measure L, a $275 million general obligation bond which repaired college buildings and facilities that had not received major maintenance in more than 40 years.
Stork’s tenure also produced the realignment of the college’s budget due to reduced funding from the State “while minimizing the impact on students and staff.â€
Cuesta College administrators said they plan to launch a nationwide search to fill the position of superintendent/president.
