PHOENIX (By Robert Anglen, Arizona Republic) June 7, 2007 — An Arizona congressman steered more than $1 million in federal grants to a Maricopa Community Colleges scholarship program four months after his daughter was hired as one of its directors.

Rep. Ed Pastor had secured a similar grant several years earlier for the colleges' program, which gives at-risk high school students a chance to get a college degree. But the amount per year increased substantially after his daughter got the job in 2005.

The lawmaker, who has been credited with making the scholarship program a success, says it is a coincidence that his daughter sought the job at the same time he secured a large federal grant for the program.

His daughter, Laura Pastor, is now touting her leadership of the scholarship program in her bid for a Phoenix City Council seat this year.

Pastor, 37, insisted that her father had no influence in her employment.

"I get criticized for any job that I attain," said Pastor, a former middle-school teacher with a master's degree in public administration. "You need to look at my credentials and qualifications."

The college district also says its hiring of Pastor had nothing to do with her father's role in the funding.

Pastor is the third Phoenix City Council member or candidate to be employed by the district while running for or serving in office. The district, which has many dealings with the city, denies hiring anyone to curry political favor. Three complaints over Laura Pastor's hiring in 2005 alleged that her selection was based on "bias, inappropriate influence and unfair employment practices," reported a college investigator, who found no violations.

Two other leading candidates for the District 7 City Council seat criticized the circumstances of Pastor's hiring. Neither Ruth Ann Marston nor Michael Nowakowski were aware of Pastor's job and its relationship to her father until being contacted by The Republic. Both said Pastor should never have accepted a job so closely associated with her father and should have disclosed the relationship in campaign material.

Marston said she is concerned that the circumstances taint the college and the scholarship program with an air of favoritism and nepotism.

Officials deny favoritism

College officials deny showing any favoritism when they hired Pastor to run the Achieving a College Education, or ACE, program at South Mountain Community College. They said she was the best qualified of 51 applicants for the job, three of whom were selected as finalists for the position.

The college has refused to release the names, resumes or applications of the other finalists, saying the information is confidential.

Records show two phone calls and a letter were lodged with the college over Pastor's selection. The college Equal Employment Opportunity officer dismissed the grievances as unfounded, saying there were no violations of laws or regulations.

Records show that Pastor was hired at a salary $16,000 above the maximum range for the director's job. A job description advertising the job in 2005 said it paid $42,423 to $50,378.

Pastor makes $66,816 a year.

Chris Chesrown, spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Community College District, said salary ranges are not absolute. Depending on individual circumstances, an employee could be paid more or less than the salary window listed on job descriptions, she said.

The decision to hire Pastor at the increased salary was made by Ken Atwater, president of South Mountain Community College. He said he based it on recommendations from a search committee and interviews with the three finalists.

"By far, Laura was the best person, and she has done a great job for us," Atwater said, adding that it would have been unfair not to consider Pastor's application simply because she was the daughter of a college benefactor. "How could we not consider any qualified person for the job?"

Atwater said he fully expected questions to arise over Pastor's appointment and made sure the hiring process was fair and equitable.

He acknowledged that Ed Pastor has used his position to help to fund programs at South Mountain. Atwater also confirmed that Laura's mother, Verma Pastor, sits on a volunteer community advisory panel that makes recommendations to his office.

Neither parent's involvement with the college influenced Atwater's decision to hire their daughter, he said. He added that neither parent lobbied him, pressured him or discussed Laura's application.

Atwater said he was aware that Ed Pastor was attempting to get a $1 million grant for the scholarship program. But he said he didn't worry that Pastor would withdraw his support from ACE if the college rejected his daughter's application.

"That never entered my mind," Atwater said.

Funds prop program

College officials credit Ed Pastor with delivering enough federal funds over the past several years to put an ACE program in all 10 of the community colleges. In April they named him the 2007 Hero of Education for his efforts.

ACE, which began at South Mountain in 1988, targets low-income and minority high school sophomores by enrolling them in college classes. When the students graduate, they have already earned 19.5 college credits and will, officials hope, stay in college.

The program focuses on average students with B or C grades whose parents did not attend college, who work up to 30 hours a week or who come from single-parent or foster homes.

"I have been working with that program for many years," Pastor said. "I knew if that program doesn't get money, then it is going to go to heck."

Pastor said he was impressed by the program, and when he saw a chance in the late 1990s to get a Department of Housing and Urban Development grant, he lobbied for it and delivered.

The grant gave the college program $998,000 over five years, or about $200,000 a year, beginning in 2001.

Pastor, whose district includes south and central Phoenix and parts of Glendale, has been in office for 15 years. He serves on the House Appropriations Committee and on three subcommittees, including Energy and Water Development.

In 2005, Pastor said he had another chance to help ACE and lobbied for a $1 million grant through the annual Energy and Water Appropriations Act, which earmarked funds for education projects. The grant provides $1 million over three years, or $333,000 a year.

Pastor said he was working on the grant when he learned his daughter had interviewed for the ACE director's job. He is seeking an additional $300,000 Energy Department grant for the program.

"I can tell you with all sincerity that her job was not connected," Pastor said, pointing out that he had no say in whether she was hired. "The decision was not mine. I did not get involved in the process."

Pastor said his daughter's job had no bearing on whether he went after the grant.

"I never talked to anybody," he said. "Not the board members, not the chancellor, not the college president."

'Going after Dad'

Laura Pastor said she has lived with questions about her father's influence all her life. As with other jobs where someone accused her of using him to get ahead, this is without merit, she said.

"I don't think it's fair, and I don't think it is right," she said. "To have my name is a double-edged sword."

Pastor said if she avoided working for any agency helped by her father, then she probably would not be able to work. "You name it, and he has touched it: Local, county or state."

She said her father had no idea she was even applying for ACE director until after she had gone for an interview. She said it was the second college job she applied for after being turned down for an intergovernmental affairs position.

Pastor said she sought a position with the community college after working two jobs in two years with the state of Arizona . She said she wanted to go back to working in education as an administrator.

Less than two years after getting the job, Pastor has now taken a leave of absence to run for City Council. She said her father has wholeheartedly endorsed her campaign.

Pastor believes her father's opponents are using the controversy to derail her campaign and attack her father.

"This is a way of going after Dad," she said.

Eight candidates have expressed interest in running for the District 7 seat, which is being vacated by Doug Lingner because of term limits. The district stretches from downtown to South Mountain and encompasses Laveen and Maryvale.

In her campaign material and in interviews, Pastor said the ACE job has helped give her the experience needed for the City Council.

"(Voters) are going to vote on who has the best qualifications and quality of character," she said. "I am fortunate enough to have the family that I've had, which has done enormous good for this community."