Training Seminars Are Placed on Hold

The Oxnard city manager’s plans to hold the city’s first Advanced Leadership Academy--a series of comprehensive training seminars for city workers--have been put on hold until the City Council reviews the curriculum and decides whether to renew his employment contract.

The leadership sessions, which would have included 25 to 30 city employees every week for a month, were proposed by City Manager Tom Frutchey.

The weeklong problem-solving sessions, which were scheduled to begin Jan. 27, would have included about 30 pages a day of reading and some homework assignments.

“It’s important for the council to review them and . . . [decide] if they want to proceed,” said Frutchey.

The leadership academies have been praised by some in the city who say they sharpen the skills of city employees and increase their effectiveness.

Critics contend, however, that the leadership academies are “brain-washing sessions” to convince employees that Oxnard’s current restructuring of city government--where department heads are replaced by team leaders and departments with programs--offers the best results.

Frutchey’s employment contract expired in October, and council members have pledged to make a decision to either renew it or end his tenure immediately following their retreat, which will be held at the River Ridge Golf Club on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.

Frutchey has been praised by some council members and Oxnard residents for what they say is his innovative and business-friendly approach to managing the city.

But his critics, who include Mayor Manuel Lopez and Councilman John Zaragoza, say the restructuring of the city’s bureaucracy creates leadership vacuums where no one is held accountable.