Phillip DeRuntz: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: GrayslakeWebsite: www.StudentAdvocacySpecialists.comOffice sought: College Of Lake County School Board Age: Candidate did not respond.Family: Happily married to the same beautiful woman for more than twenty years. She's my best friend and favorite traveling companion.Occupation: University Instructor Business OwnerEducation: B.S. Finance, University of Illinois M.Ed., University of Illinois C.S.B.O., Northern Illinois University Ed.S. -candidate, Chicago School of Professional Psychology C.B.T. Alexian Brothers Center for Professional EducationCivic involvement: -Lake County Underage Drinking and Drug Prevention Task Force -Lake County Opioid Initiative Coalition -Lake County Sheriff's Senior Advocacy Group -Lake County Children's Advocacy Center -Community Emergency Response TeamElected offices held: -President Treasurer, Warren-Waukegan Fire Protection District -President Treasurer, Oakwood Homeowners' Association -Elected Trustee, Lake County Regional Office of Education -Elected Trustee, Northern Illinois Alliance of Fire Protection DistrictsQuestions Answers With enrollment up at my many community colleges, it can be challenging to keep pace as far as available classroom/lab space, the number of qualified teachers and available course work options. How would you manage that?As a trustee, I would work with the Board to develop professional standards and practices to operate the College in an efficient business-like manner. This would include developing accurate and transparent strategic plans that would account for local birth rates, high school graduation rates, future business needs, space utilization statistics, and operating costs. I believe the Board's role is to establish the strategic vision and policies of the College and hold the administration accountable for implementing the procedures to achieve the desired results. In the case of the College of Lake County, the Daily Herald recently reported a 14% decline in the enrollment over the past four year period. The trustees need to hold the administration accountable for managing the costs associated with maintaining three campuses in the face of this declining utilization.Are you currently employed by or retired from a school district, if so, which one? Is any member of your direct family - spouse, child or child-in-law - employed by the school district where you are seeking a school board seat?I am not currently employed by or retired from a school district.Is a tax rate increase needed and, if so, how do you justify it?Absolutely not. I constantly hear from my neighbors and business colleagues in Lake County that we're over taxed. Homeowners are appalled at their high property tax bills. Seniors tell me that they can't afford to retire in Lake County because it costs them too much to live here. Business leaders tell me they can't afford to open businesses in Lake County because of the exorbitant taxes. I personally know of existing businesses in the area who are suing local municipalities for unreasonable tax rates. Higher taxes aren't the answer. Better government is. Adopting the same "Best Practices" as our successful industries will lead to greater transparency, accountability, and performance. I have been a proven leader in producing greater governmental cooperation and efficiencies through the adoption of proven business practices and inter-governmental synergies.Community colleges provide many services to a diverse population. Is there a service your college should be providing that it is not, or reaching a segment of the population that it is not?I would like to see the College of Lake County foster a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) incubator for all of the Lake County high schools. STEM career fields will grow by more than 17% in the next four years and pay more than 26% higher salaries than non-STEM careers. The College is in the unique position of having the professional staff and facilities centrally located in Lake County to encourage and support advanced curricular programming by our high school teachers in the STEM fields. By working in partnership, a synergistic and therefore more cost-effective model of education can be formed and then offered to even more our students. By developing a stronger STEM workforce we encourage business development in Lake County and retention of our well educated citizenry. A College of Lake County STEM incubator could also foster business partnerships between our high schools and Lake County businesses such as Abbott, Baxter, CDW, Zebra Technologies, Condell Northwestern Hospitals, as well as medical schools like Rosalind Franklin University. What better way to promote promising careers than by bringing their professionals on-site to describe needed skills and to be guest lecturers in our high school classrooms.What do you think of President Obama's proposal for offering two years of free community college education?I think an educated populace promotes democratic principles and economic opportunities. Offering two years of free community college education will strengthen our workforce and economy, though I would follow the European model of also tying it to two years of concurrent/compulsory community service.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?It seems that you can't read the Chicagoland newspapers without seeing another community college scandal being reported. In the case of the College of Lake County, it has been reported that certain trustees: regularly miss scheduled meetings, don't follow proper procedures for filing expenses, file expense reimbursements that are unauthorized, and resist attempts to amend Trustee expense policies. This to me is unacceptable behavior and a violation of the public's trust. To resolve these differences, I would support a change in the "entitlement" culture of a few of the Board members. I would support the Board adopting a culture of "modeling" professional behavior for its administration, staff and students. The College of Lake County Board should follow the "Best Practices" of other public bodies like the Lake County Board which doesn't allow for any alcoholic beverages to be expensed by taxpayers. Additionally, I would support stricter rules on what travel expenses are allowed and well defined per diem limits on all food and beverages.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Mark Curran, our Lake County Sheriff, inspires me with his humility, intelligence, and courage to challenge the people, policies, and practices of the established system.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?"For those whom much is given, much is expected." and service to your community is both an honorable duty as well as a privilege.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have earned a PhD in Child Psychiatry when starting my career. The worldwide shortage of child psychiatrists means millions of children go untreated.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?I thoroughly enjoyed my contemporary literature courses at the University of Illinois. They certainly helped me to develop better comprehension, analytical, and writing skills.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?I'd tell them to follow their passions and use their abilities along with our wonderful education system to achieve their dreams and serve their communities.