Rebecca Oliver: Candidate Profile

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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:BioQA Bio City: Sugar GroveWebsite: www.hrmproperties.comOffice sought: Waubonsee Community College School Board Age: 60Family: Harold, spouse Mason, son Daughter-in-law, 2 grandsonsOccupation: Real Estate Brokerage ConstructionEducation: East Aurora High School 1972 Attended Waubonsee Community College 1973-74Civic involvement: Prior to my election to the Board of Trustees in 1997, I served on the WCC Foundation Board beginning in 1989. I continue my work as Liason to the Foundation and I am committed to the importance of that role. I also served on the Oswego Chamber of Commerce for 6 years, serving as an officer for 4 years and ending my tenure as President. I have never been one to join a great number of organizations but I am dedicated to the ones I do. I will continue to serve WCC with commitment and focus.Elected offices held: WCC Board of Trustees, Vice ChairQuestions 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?With the opening of our Field House in March of 2015, WCC will have completed its 2020 Master Plan five years ahead of schedule. This plan has allowed WCC to become and maintain a 5 campus institution by adding the Plano campus, the new downtown Aurora campus, updating the Copley Campus, and adding a Science building, Student Center and the Academic Professional Center at the Sugar Grove campus. WCC's 5th campus is our Online Virtual Campus which carries an enrollment of 15-20% of our semester enrollments. WCC continues to be a leader in our industry in online learning and delivery to students. The new buildings allow us increased physical space and staff to maintain the highest quality of programming and facilities for our increasing enrollment. WCC is now in the process of determining its 2050 Vision Plan for action and implementation. We believe that we must have a clear vision with defined goals, criteria and parameters to meet the needs of the coming years and generations. We are truly excited with the process and look forward to the completion of the 2050 Vision Plan to share with our district and the public sometime in late 2015 or early 2016.Are you currently employed by or retired from a school district, if so, which one? Is any member of your direct family - spouse, child or child-in-law - employed by the school district where you are seeking a school board seat?No, I have never been employed by a school district.Is a tax rate increase needed and, if so, how do you justify it?WCC is not in need of any type of tax rate increase at this time. We credit this to in depth short and long term financial planning performed on an annual basis. We consider the financial needs and requirements from the Operational Funds as well as the Education Funding.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?WCC continually evaluates its current curricula and enrollments to ensure that our offerings are relevant and adequately serve our transfer students and those in a certificate training or workforce development path. WCC also has its online Virtual Campus which is an area of major and continued growth. This allows us to serve our students at times best suited for the schedules of traditional and non-traditional students. Many students must work to support families and the flexibility of online learning works well for them. We continually look for grants and funding that will allow us to offer programs and classes that keep us on the forefront of programs and training. One example is the TAACCCT Grant (Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training). This has become a major initiative for WCC by offering hands-on science experience to gain basic lab skills that may be required by employers in diverse industries.What do you think of President Obama's proposal for offering two years of free community college education?WCC is thrilled that our President recognizes the importance of Community Colleges in the education and advancement of a large demographic in our nation. Being able to offer two years of free community college would be a direct hit on the target mission of WCC but we must be sure that such a program is fiscally responsible and sustainable. We must navigate between our fiscal responsibility to our taxpayers and bringing relevant programs and classes to those in our district who need us most. If there is a way for the State and Federal government to support and contribute to this program, I know that WCC would be pleased to offer such an opportunity to our district students.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?WCC must navigate through the SURS (State Universities Retirement System) and Teacher Retirement System pension reform without major adverse effect to our budgets and long term financial plans. The current state system is unsustainable and fiscally exhausted and we monitor it closely as the legislative plans for reform unfold. To pass on another unfunded mandate to our local institutions would be a major game changer for the local taxpayers that had no say in the creation of this deficit. Our district taxpayers cannot afford to pay that obligation because of a state mandate that may pass this obligation for pension funding down to the local level when it was caused by mismanagement and non-payment by the State of Illinois for many years. This has left Illinois in a serious financial predicament that could potentially compromise the financial solvency of many in the community college system .Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Chuck Underwood, expert, speaker and author of the Generational ImperativeWhat's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?The willingness to work hard and be a life-long learner will serve you wellIf life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?My mother died when I was a very young adult, I would have spent every moment I could have with her.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Etymology, study of Latin/Greek roots, allows you to determine /decipher the meaning of the words in our English language that are common and otherwise.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?To always be responsible for your actions without exception. Many adults are not able to do that, and though difficult, it is the best path.