Al Austin, Janis Krantz, Patricia Lofland, Phillip Q. Shrotman” captionposition=”center”] The first African-American to serve on the Long Beach Community College (LBCC) District Board of Trustees, a Long Beach city councilmember, a successful local business owner and a nationally published financial advisor have been named as LBCC’s 2016 Hall of Fame inductees, the college announced this week.
This year’s honorees are: 8th District Long Beach City Councilmember Al Austin; Janis Krantz, owner of J & L Jewelry and community volunteer; former Long Beach Community College District Board of Trustee Member Patricia Lofland; and Phillip Q. Shrotman, former LBCC business professor and businessman.
The Hall of Fame program is sponsored and coordinated by the LBCC Foundation.
“The Alumni Hall of Fame is Long Beach City College’s most prestigious alumni honor,” said LBCC President Eloy Ortiz Oakley. “This year’s honorees have all contributed extensively to the betterment of our community. We are proud that they are LBCC alumni and look forward to publicly recognizing their accomplishments.”
Established in 1972, the Hall of Fame recognizes former LBCC students who have made outstanding contributions to their chosen fields and communities. The 2016 honorees will join 163 other alumni in LBCC’s Hall of Fame.
Austin began his career in aerospace at McDonnell Douglas and Boeing in Long Beach. He served as an aide to a state senator in Los Angeles for four years. He served on the Long Beach Citizen Complaint Commission for four years. In 2012, he won the seat as the Long Beach city councilmember representing the 8th District and was re-elected in 2016. He received the Long Beach NAACP Advocacy Award in 2010 and the LBCC Distinguished Alumni Award in 2014.
Krantz is owner of J & L Jewelry in Long Beach. According to LBCC, she regularly contributes generous gift certificates and jewelry to the college’s events and to other organizations’ fundraising events. She is a member of the nonprofit Steel Magnolias, which contributes funds to the Geraldine Stramski Children’s Developmental Center at Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach. Krantz is a LBCC Distinguished Alumna, and she received the Steel Magnolias Founders Award in 2015.
Lofland was the first African-American member and president of the LBCCD Board of Trustees. She was a member of the Personnel Commission of Southern California, on which she served as a member of the Grand Jury and as secretary. She was also a member of the LBUSD Personnel Commission and the National Council of Negro Women. Lofland was part of the “Breaking Through, Lighting the Way” project and exhibition as an African-American female leader. She is also a retired educator and travel agent.
Shrotman is the president/CEO of Principal Planning, Inc., a financial-planning firm in Long Beach. His articles and commentary regarding investments and financial matters are featured regularly in national media publications including USA Today, Morningstar magazine, CNN and CNBC. Shrotman spent 30 years as a professor of business at LBCC and served on the Foundation Finance Committee. As an LBCC student, he received the Viking Award and was editor of the Viking newspaper.
The Hall of Fame induction ceremony and luncheon will be Friday, Oct. 14 at noon at the LBCC Liberal Arts campus. For more information, contact Nancy Yoho at (562) 938-4203 or nyoho@lbcc.edu.
