Ex-San Mateo Co. Community College District Chancellor Faces Felonies

SAN MATEO COUNTY, CA — The former chancellor of the San Mateo County Community College District was charged with 21 felonies including tax evasion, public corruption and perjury.

Ronald Galatolo, who stepped down in 2019 after being appointed by the district’s board of trustees in 2001, was one of the subjects of an investigation of the district following a whistleblower complaint alleging public corruption against members of the executive leadership.

Prosecutors accused Galatolo of fraudulently reporting a $10,000 charitable donation to a fund towards victims of the 2017 Tubbs fire in Santa Rosa in his own name when it was actually a donation from the college district’s foundation.

Galatolo also directed construction projects to be awarded to vendors who had given him gifts such as tickets to concerts and sporting events, according to the complaint. Prosecutors said that Galotolo failed to disclose gifts from construction firms who were doing business with the district.

Prosecutors also accused Galatolo of underreporting the purchase price of high-end classic cars in his own capacity to the California DMV.

Galatolo is set to be arraigned on April 15 in Redwood City.

Related: San Mateo Co. Community College District Official Faces Charges

The charges were part of an ongoing investigation into the use of funds at the community college district, according to the district attorney's office.

The district has three schools in San Mateo County and serves more than 25,000 students.

In January, Jose Nunez, the Vice Chancellor of Facilities of the San Mateo Community College District, pleaded guilty to two felony counts related to using school funds for political purchases.

Jose Nunez, who has worked at the district for 21 years, used school district resources to support a candidate's campaign for a spot on the district's board of trustees and to support Proposition 13, a bond measure that provided $2 billion in funding for community college capital projects across California.