Thea Morris: 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: Island LakeWebsite: www.voteforthea.com www.facebook.com/votefortheaOffice sought: Island Lake Village Board Age: 48Family: Married, three daughtersOccupation: Owner/Consultant M M Consultants and Sustaining Care Case Manager in PsychiatryEducation: BA Psychology, Luther College, Decorah IA MA Clinical Psychology, Roosevelt University, Chicago, ILCivic involvement: Girl Scout leader, Girl Scout Day Camp volunteer, Island Lake Chamber of Commerce member, District 118 school volunteer, Publicity Director for Wauconda High School Fine Arts Boosters, Band Booster Member, Bulldog Nation Foundation supporter, PTO member, involved in multiple ministries at Living Waters Lutheran Church, previous member of Island Lake Emergency Management Agency, and one of the community members who led a successful fight against the R15 sludge dump in Island Lake.Elected offices held: Trustee Village of Island Lake Executive Board, WHS Fine Arts BoostersQuestions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?As a member of our community for 20 years and an elected trustee for the past 4, I have demonstrated a passion for our community through my volunteerism and involvement with my children and family. I have over 30 years of experience in business and a MA degree in Clinical Psychology. I currently work part time in psychiatry, and am the owner of an Island Lake business, M M Consultants, specializing in training CPR/First Aid. My community involvement includes work as a Girl Scout leader, GS Day Camp volunteer, volunteer in the District 118 schools, WHS Fine Arts Boosters Publicity Director, member of PTO and Island Lake Chamber of Commerce. We are active members of Living Waters Lutheran Church in Crystal Lake. Previously, I was a member of Island Lake's EMA team and was forefront in the successful fight to stop the R15 sludge dump in Island Lake. As a Village Trustee I have served as chair to Police and Public Safety and Building Department, also serving on the Park Recreation, Public Works Water, and Economic Development committees. I want to see our village thrive, not just survive. I have a proven track record showing my commitment to our community and its well-being. I believe there is much more work to be done and I am eager to continue to do this work. My business knowledge and strong educational background, in conjunction with my personal and professional experience, makes me the best candidate for this position.How would you describe the condition of your community's budget, and what are the most important specific actions the town should take to assure providing the level of services that people want?I do not believe the current budget to be healthy as we continue to run very low on liquid assets. It is of great concern to me that we continue to spend monies on added positions and other non-budgeted items while we are also stating that our village budget is running tight. We have a village hall and police department operating in a building built in 1955; one major surprise repair/compliance issue and our resources will be overdrawn. The State continues to not pay municipalities on a timely basis, our businesses continue to struggle to survive in the current economy, and residents continue to feel the impact of the most recent recession. I believe we need to look closely at where we are spending our monies and focus our attention to those areas of greatest need and impact to our residents. We specifically should focus on road improvements and a greater/stronger business presence. By looking at grants and alternate funding options more proactively, we can work to improve our roads within the village. In addition, we need to spend our energy working with our local businesses to help them grow as well as actively pursue bringing new businesses to our village for additional revenue. We must find a way to decrease our spending and increase our revenue stream, without overburdening our residents with additional fees/taxes, if we hope to survive.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?First, we need to look closely at several of the newly created, full-time positions within the village. As a full-time position, the individual receives benefits, including health retirement benefits, which quickly add up to a fairly substantial dollar number for our village. They create an unnecessary draw on our available budget. By looking into making these positions part-time we would not only save village funds on the salaries, but we would also be saving a great deal of monies in the benefit packages. In addition, we need to ensure that we are using competitive bidding for all of our purchases, not only those that are required by statute. Third, we need to look into the resources we already have at hand. What do we have at our disposal, thru volunteers, businesses, and surrounding communities, that can assist us in our projects/events/purchases? These areas need to be more fully explored and developed into viable options.Have village officials done enough to reduce the size of the monthly legal bills? What more should be done?Our legal bills are within reasonable margins at this time. We have been fortunate that Union contract negotiations have been at a minimum, significantly reducing the amount of money spent on legal services. We do have a contract negotiation coming up this year, so I anticipate we will see a rise in these expenses. We will need to be vigilant as we move forward and watch that we do not become complacent with our legal fees or services. In addition, we need to work together more proactively to reduce the amount of litigation that often faces our community and tends to increase our legal bills. In the past, a lack of foresight to do a job completely has wrought litigation that hurt us, financially, later.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?We need to work more with the resources that we already have at our disposal. For example we can look at increasing our inter-governmental agreements and share resources/services with our surrounding communities. We already have a school district, library district, and fire district that involve multiple surrounding communities. As a village we need to tap into these valuable resources and share costs for duplicated services. By working collaboratively with our surrounding communities we will not only reduce our expenses, but we will build even stronger and more functional working relationships with these entities.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?창#128;cent;Professionalism/respect- Although our current board has progressed in this area, we need more. While crucial to have varying opinions and experiences in discussions, it is also important to show respect and courtesy to one another. We must work collaboratively to make decisions impacting our village. This professionalism need extends beyond the board room. Board members should hold themselves to a higher standard, recognizing that they are the face of our village and should conduct themselves as such in their personal/professional persona. 창#128;cent;Transparency- We need to increase transparency by working as a team at meetings rather than having decisions finalized prior to an initial discussion. Additionally, meeting minutes need to be approved and posted on the website faster. 창#128;cent;Communication- We need to more fully utilize the tools we have at hand and improve communication amongst the board itself as well as with our residents, specifically, using Facebook and our website to their potentials. Residents need to know what we are doing, what resources are at their disposal, and what events/situations may impact them. 창#128;cent;Hiring Practices- Before an individual is hired and/or promoted within the village we need to look closely at their qualifications. Ask the difficult questions: Is this actually the best fit? Does this person have the best education and experience for this position? What is the long term outlook for this individual within our village? We do a dis-service to our residents by overlooking these important aspects of hiring/promotions in favor of relying on "who you know."Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Anne Mulcahy, Xerox CEO, came into leadership facing a dire situation of financial crisis/risk. Taking difficult/drastic steps, facing strong resistance, she stood strong and succeeded.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?To treat others respectfully no matter the situation/differences or the way they may treat you in return and to appreciate the diversity of our surroundings.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would like to have immediately continued my schooling from BA to MA and then directly to earning my PhD.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?English and Music-They taught me the ability to read with analytical thought and to be able to communicate clearly and effectively.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Find your joy. Instill a strong sense-of-self and determination, allowing them to find what makes them truly happy, while treating others with respect and dignity.