District 117 voters should pick Vickers

Our community is very fortunate that Ron Vickers has chosen to run for District 117's school board. Both Antioch and Lakes high schools will benefit from his excellent leadership. Ron, who has served on the Lake Villa elementary board for six years, is a role model for all of us. While he will be missed on our board as he transitions to the high school board, his legacy will live on in District 41. My regret is that I missed the opportunity to nominate him for the Illinois school board president of the year. He deserves the title and I hope in the years to come we will have another opportunity to nominate him.

While Ron was president we made a financial recovery that has kept us in a good financial position. We implemented policy revisions and the "interactive manual" is now posted on our Web site for all stakeholders to review. Ron's clear understanding of the principals of governance ensured that the board was transparent with the public and that we took responsibility for our actions. We implemented monitoring reports that are reviewed annually and signed by the board president attesting that the policies are followed. Ron was instrumental in opening lines of communication with the public and providing the district with a data dashboard that indicates the health of the district. To ensure that the district focused on education, we hired a data driven superintendent who implemented new methods of sharing information and monitoring progress.

What makes Ron a good board member? He is thoughtful and analytical. He is dedicated and doesn't jump to conclusions. He listens to all available information and asks probing questions. He is a consensus builder, team player and works hard. On one occasion while he was traveling in Japan on business, he called into the board meeting even though it was in the middle of the night. He attends training and meetings when others don't. He is in fact the perfect board member. He speaks when appropriate and doesn't dominate the conversation. He ensures that everyone has an opportunity to speak and express their opinions. Fair, caring of the public and by far the best president of the board has had in years. I cannot even think of a negative attribute that Ron has, except he is too modest.

He will be an asset to District 117 and will represent the public view while on the board.

Joanne Osmond

Lake Villa