Lynda C. Paul: Candidate Profile

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:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: GurneeWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: College of Lake CountyAge: 45Family: Married, 25 years to Cliffton Paul, Police Officer with the Village of Buffalo Grove 3 Sons; Cliff Jr.(22), Brandon(19) and Darius(16) Cliff Jr is a senior at the University of Illinois - Champaign; Brandon is a sophomore at U of I, Mens Basketball Team.Occupation: President and Chief Investment Advisor of Sound Money Management, Inc., a Fee-Only Asset Management Firm; Certified Financial Planner Professional; Former Lead Corporate Accountant at Abbott LaboratoriesEducation: B.S. Finance and International Business, Ball State University, Muncie IndianaMasters in Finance from Keller Graduate School of Management (MBA)Certified Financial Planner (CFP)Certified Public Accountant (CPA)Civic involvement: CLC Foundation Board Member - 12 Years (Current)Basketball Coach - Youth Travel BasketballMember of The ChapelFounder of RAW - A Young Men's MinistryGurnee Chamber of Commerce MemberFormer YWCA Advisory Board MemberAuthor of Ms. Money Matters - Personal Finance ArticlesElected offices held: NoneHave you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Affordability for local students: In these economic times, Board Members will need to be creative and have thoughtful insight, vision, and be fiscally responsible as well as demonstrate capable, competent and courageous leadership to ensure the College of Lake County continues to provide quality education at an affordable and reasonable cost.Key Issue 2 Innovation for the Future: The Board Members will need to work with all of the college stakeholders, especially the business community to ensure CLC graduates enter the job market qualified and able to meet the challenges of the economy. It is important to get students prepared today to meet the challenges of tomorrow; to become innovative problem-solvers.Key Issue 3 Responsible Expansion: Smart Growth for the Future - incorporating Green Technology where appropriateQuestions Answers With enrollment up at my many community colleges, it can be challenging to keep pace as far as available classroom/lab space, the number of qualified teachers and available course work options. How would you manage that?Create a Smart Strategic Plan - incorporating a Top-Down / Bottom-Up College-wide need assessment as well as a plan for each individual campus. Investigate shared community resources like high schools for needed space and usable corporate facilities. Facilitate a Shared-Talent Pool with other community colleges / local universities to ensure there are always qualified teachers available. Working Together Works!In tough economic times, many students (and working professionals) turn to a community college for its educational value. How do you ensure that a person's financial sacrifice equates into an educational benefit?Many Studies have already been completed on the economic value of higher education: Earning an associate degree from an Illinois Community College adds $345,000 in lifetime earnings; taking just one course adds $360 per year for life (source: ICCTA). Data tells the story of ""Why"". We need to concentrate on the ""How"". CLC should continue to partner with local businesses and corporations to match talent with need, to keep the communication lines open as to which skills are in demand or will be in demand, then educate and prepare the supply of qualified individuals or ""human capital"" to meet those demands. CLC should track and monitor graduate job / career success - to encourage the creation of job-friendly courses. Working Together Works!Is a tax rate increase needed and, if so, how do you justify it?The state income tax rate increase is already a reality.I think CLC will need to be more creative in identifying and developing financial resources to fund educational needs. By working with the fundraising arm of CLC - The Foundation Board - the college will be in a position to identify the needs and begin the discussion on how best to attract the needed financial resources. Corporate Partnerships, Faith-based Partnerships, Community Charitable Gift Planning Campaigns, Non-cash gifts from alumni and friends of the college are all viable options. Working Together Works!After incorporating these partnership initiatives and a tax rate increase is still needed, then CLC would be in a position to demonstrate that the pieces are in place for a robust learning environment - thereby justifying the need for the additional funding. If the college does its part, then I believe the community will do its part. Working Together Works!Community colleges provide many services to a diverse population. Is there a service your college should be providing that it is not, or reaching a segment of the population that it is not?Partnering with the local school districts to improve the graduation rates of male students, particularly males of color. CLC recently conducted a Male Student Success Conference called ""Man Up 2010"". Under the leadership of Dr. Weber, President of CLC and Darl Drummond, Vice President of Student Development, the program was very successful in beginning the dialogue to get our male students back on track.Graduation from high school is one of the most important indicators of student success in later life, while failure to graduate from high school leads to numerous ""costs"" for both the individual and society.""Man Up"" - An outstanding idea, for an outstanding cause.If you are a newcomer, what prompted you to run for the park board? If you're an incumbent, list your accomplishments or key initiatives in which you played a leadership role.I believe:Education is the great equalizer - everyone should have access to quality educationWe will need to work hard to ensure courses at CLC remain affordableCLC should work closely with the Business Community to ensure Graduates are ""Job-Ready"" upon graduationThe Board should represent all segments of the communityStudents and Staff should be innovative problem-solversWorking Together Works!