Laurie Stone, Harper's longest-serving trustee, resigns

After almost 15 years as a Harper College trustee, Laurie Stone has resigned from the board, but she's not really departing from the community college's leadership.

"The way I'm wired, when I have a responsibility, I don't feel comfortable leaving," Stone said last week. "So I never have over all the years. I've always been available."

Stone has been assigned to help launch Harper's bold plan offering two years of free tuition to qualifying public high schools students. More specifically, she and the rest of a special committee will pitch the Promise Scholarship to suburban companies.

Harper needs employers to complete the "promise" - to give priority hiring to graduates of the program. Businesses also could kick in sponsorships.

It's a natural fit for Stone, who, as the founding president, grew the Schaumburg Business Association to nearly 700 members.

"It will be like going home again when I can represent both the business and the college," she said.

The longest-serving trustee, Stone represented the board when employers and high school superintendents set the criteria, requiring students to stay in school, make decent grades and volunteer in order to reap up to four tuition-free semesters at Harper.

"There's accountability built into it in terms of attendance and being on time and developing the right attitude," Stone said. "Businesses can train employees, but they've got to have people who want to be trained and are used to applying themselves, and these students will have that."

Stone's exit will leave the board without two of its most senior members. Rita Canning did not run for another six-year term in last month's election after a decade on the board. Stone was first elected in 2000.

Both will continue to grow Women in Need Growing Stronger beyond the suburbs, with WINGS Metro, a nearly $7 million, 40-bed shelter for women and their children on Chicago's Southwest Side.

Canning chairs the board, and Stone, a former president, sits on the executive committee of the nonprofit, which connects domestic violence survivors and homeless women to housing and job and academic counseling.

"I feel as passionate today as I did when I first began," Stone said.

Yes, the Elk Grove Village grandmother of eight wants to spend more time with family, but she says it's also time for "new ideas, new leadership, new opportunities" on Harper's board.

She says she left her mark on the administration, helping hire President Ken Ender, and on the bricks and mortar. During her seven years as the board president, voters approved the tax-backed construction of the Avante Center for Science, Health Careers & Emerging Technology and, later, renovations to aging buildings.

Stone's term doesn't expire until April 2019. Voters in last month's election would have picked her successor if she had resigned last winter. But she said at that time she wanted to contribute to the college's next strategic plan.

The last plan set out to increase the number of students who complete an associate degree or skill certificate or transfer on to a four-year college. The next plan, expected to be ready this summer, will help students define "pathways," or a course to meet their education and career goals.

Harper is seeking applicants to fill the vacant board spot. The board has 60 days from Stone's resignation to fill her seat, or until June 28. Trustees hope to swear-in their selection during their next regular meeting June 20, Harper spokesman Phil Burdick said. The board's pick will fill Stone's seat until the April 2017 election. The seat would be up again in April 2019, when Stone's term expired.

To apply, hopefuls have to turn in their resumes and other paperwork to the board's liaison office by Friday, May 22. An applicant must be at least 18 years old, a U.S. citizen and a resident of the district for at least one year.

Harper will recognize Stone's tenure with a breakfast before she gives the commencement address at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 16.

Stone says her keynote will be a "heart-to-heart talk" with graduates on success and fulfillment.

"It takes a good combination of being practical without forgetting to dream," Stone said. "It's a matter of keeping your feet on the ground. It's one foot after the other, and when something doesn't work, you try something else."