Endorsements: Liddell, Lowe for McHenry County College

McHenry County College, like all educational institutions in Illinois, faces the challenge of maintaining a viable, relevant curriculum in a time when government funding is decreasing.

Four candidates are seeking two 6-year terms on the college's board. Incumbent Linda Liddell of Crystal Lake is joined by newcomers Diane Evertsen of Harvard, George Lowe of Cary and David Schenk of Marengo.

So far, the Crystal Lake-based college has been fortunate to maintain a balanced budget without significant changes to its offerings.

All four candidates agree the rising costs of education should not be borne entirely by students, and all make a good case for the college to continue looking into options like expanding online offerings, government/business partnerships and grant programs as ways to offset rising costs. None supports increasing taxes, though Liddell notes that option could not be ruled out in the future.

Liddell, who is currently the board's president, has proved to be an active leader and advocate on the board, and therefore gets our endorsement. For the second seat, all the newcomers have excellent backgrounds and would be good representatives. We prefer Lowe, who was a member of the MCC board several years ago. His experience would be a plus for the college at this juncture.