Editorial: College of DuPage board appointment should go to Sandra Pihos

Last spring, 12 people sought three seats on the College of DuPage board in a very hard fought and bitter campaign. The Daily Herald participated in the process by interviewing all candidates and making our endorsements.

Of our three choices, one was elected - patent attorney Deanne Mazzochi of Elmhurst. She won along with two others on the so-called Clean Slate.

Fast forward to this week and at least 20 people now are seeking to replace Kathy Hamilton, the former COD chairwoman who resigned unexpectedly last month, creating a 3-3 split among the two sparring factions on the board. Of those 20, there are two who have applied who ran last year and won our endorsement: Naperville banker Matt Gambs and former state Rep. Sandra Pihos of Glen Ellyn. Gambs finished a distant ninth in the April election. Pihos, however, finished fourth, 1,267 votes behind the third-place finisher and 9,264 votes ahead of the fifth-place finisher.

Given that the election was just nine months ago and that Pihos - who we still believe is among the most qualified to serve - was next in line, we believe she is the right choice to replace Hamilton.

"Pihos has the strongest background in education of all the candidates running. She is a devoted public servant and a common sense candidate whose experience would make her a great addition to the board," we said in our endorsement editorial last March.

Combine that with the fact she is not aligned with either faction on the COD board that currently can't even get a quorum for a meeting, she has the best chance of working with both sides to actually get something done.

""After working in Springfield - as you can imagine, working with 117 other legislators on legislation, getting bills passed - you learn effective compromise," Pihos told the Daily Herald's Steve Zalusky. "I believe that there is common ground. But it's going to take compromise on everybody's part."

To that end, she said she prefers the current board make the choice for Hamilton's appointment, saying "they should prove they can provide the leadership to at least make this decision."

A quick decision by choosing Pihos - a candidate who can provide a positive influence and hit the ground running - could be the start of a new era.

However, if they can't by Feb. 11, then we encourage Laz Lopez, chairman of the Illinois Community College Board who would then be the person to make the appointment, to look at Pihos as the best option.