Murphy, who will be inaugurated as De Anza's third president Nov. 17, brings to the school a deep belief in solid academics and having students become involved with their community.

"We have to start a dialogue [with students]," Murphy says. "We have to get them engaged as part of a broader social concern."

Paul Fong, head of the board of trustees for the Foothill­De Anza Community College District, says this is a big reason Murphy was hired. "Not only does he have an excellent academic experience, but he also has a strong philosophy of community involvement."

Raised in his early years in San Francisco, Murphy says this philosophy is rooted partly because he lived in Afghanistan as a teenager, and partly because of his post-college experiences.

After graduating from Williams College in Massachusetts, Murphy worked for a time administering an eye hospital in Algeria for an international relief agency.

Later, Murphy hewed this international experience to his graduate studies in political science at UC-Berkeley, where he received his Ph.D. While teaching at UC-Berkeley and Merritt College in Oakland, Murphy first encouraged his students to connect academics with society by volunteering with local nonprofit groups.

Later he applied this philosophy as executive director of the Urban Institute at San Francisco State University. In launching the institute, Murphy analyzed the school's curriculum to find ways classes could collaborate with community programs. In his political science classes, for example, he had students work with San Francisco nonprofits. He also worked extensively with San

Francisco's Asian community—an asset Fong believes will be particularly useful in heavily Asian Cupertino.

Murphy sees the connection between academics and life experience as part of students' ongoing engagement with texts ranging from Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone, to Alexis de Toqueville. These authors encourage civic engagement.

"You can't help but be affected by these experiences," he says.

At the same time, Murphy realizes such volunteerism is not for everyone and should not be required. In a community college district such De Anza's, where nearly half the students work full time, such goals may not be pragmatic, or may be already taking place in students' lives.

Overall, Murphy says he cares most of all about ensuring the deepest possible academic engagement of all De Anza students.

"Most students are not here because it's the next step [after high school]," he says. "Most students are here because they want to learn."

He says this is true across De Anza's wide-ranging disciplines.

"Even for those vocationally-focused, we insist on an academic core," he says. "Students have to have critical reading and writing skills."

For example, he says sees De Anza's auto-tech certificate program, with its increasing use of sophisticated technology, as one requiring fundamentally solid academics.

Such skills will not only pave the way for students' transition to four-year schools and the work force, but also help sustain De Anza in the future.

Murphy takes over at a difficult time for the school, due to recent state budget cuts and an unexpected decline in enrollment.

"Right now we are facing a cultural contradiction," Murphy says. "Californians are going to have be persuaded to pay more to get what they want. We have a first-world economy, without an educational system to support it. The schools have to be more robustly funded."

Murphy also sees the need for skilled workers as being a potential savior for community colleges such as De Anza.

"In California, in the long run, strong support will come from the communities and businesses. There is a desperate need for trained people," he says.

In the meantime, Murphy assures that De Anza will not compromise its long tradition of high standards.

Cupertino has also been enormously helpful in making this possible, passing bond measures to improve the school. Measure E, for example, in part funded the construction of new science facilities at De Anza. Next year the college plans to open an innovative new environmental sciences center.

Murphy also credits De Anza's "tremendously hard-working" faculty and staff for helping maintain the school's standards.

"It's hard to divorce our future from the broad political questions," Murphy says. "On the one hand it means having the necessary faculty, equipment and facilities. On the other hand, it means improving students' lives so they believe they can have a powerful affect."

Ultimately, he says, "This will give students an education much more significantly embedded in their hearts."

The inaugural ceremony will be held at De Anza's Flint Center, Nov. 17 at 2:30 p.m. The speaker will be Thomas Ehrlich, a scholar who will discuss moral and civic responsibilities for undergraduates. For more information call, 408.864.8371.