The new vice president of business services, Silvia Barajas, started on Sept. 21 and has begun familiarizing herself with her new home at Moorpark College.

Barajas is in charge of the business aspects of the college, including the Student Business Office, the bookstore and the food vendors. She oversees contract negotiation with the vendors, their rent payments, and making sure that they have all the services and utilities that they need.

“I like working with the business side of the house,” said Barajas.

Barajas said it would be premature for her to come up with a specific goal to improve Moorpark, since she just started, but she and President Luis Sanchez share a few common goals.

They will work together to hire staff and faculty to start restoring services to students as well as keeping a balanced budget while providing the current services. They also share a long-term goal, which is to develop a better campus center with a range of food choices for students.

“She brings a wealth of experience, a collaborative and transparent leadership style that will complement our culture and our goals,” said Sanchez.

Lori Bennett, the executive vice president, said Barajas’s position is important to run a good college because it leads to students’ success.

“That’s a huge piece of the college,” said Bennett. “It’s mostly the behind-the-scene part that students don’t think about or see.”

Iris Ingram, the previous vice president of business, held the position for seven years before resigning to work in Los Angeles and be closer to her family. Between Ingram’s departure and Barajas’s arrival, Darlene Melby temporarily held the position as the college searched for a candidate.

Barajas, who came back to California after leaving her position at Tacoma Community College in Washington to be closer to her family, saw an opportunity at Moorpark and applied.

Before coming to Moorpark, Barajas was the vice president of administrative services. She received two recognitions at the previous college, one as the financial executive of the year for the public sector and the other a recognition for leadership.

She and her family were migrant farm workers in Imperial Valley, Calif., where she grew up. She graduated from the University of California, Irvine and entered the workforce straight after school. She worked as the director of administrative services at Santa Ana College for over six years before moving to Washington to take a job at Tacoma.

Barajas feels welcome in her new home, and even had a particular moment of excitement when she helped the zoo acquire a new animal, shortly after her arrival.

“I helped procure a baboon for our zoo and his name is Bobby,” said Barajas. “How often do you get to do that as a vice president?”

Bennett was confident that Barajas’s past experience will help her transition to Moorpark.

“She’ll fit in wonderfully because she’s a great team player and because she has her heart focused on students,” said Bennett.