ECC to get one new trustee, at least
The Elgin Community College board of trustees will have at least one new member in the spring.
Phyllis Folarin, first elected in 1999, announced in December she will not seek re-election. That leaves two incumbents, board Chair Eleanor MacKinney and longtime Trustee John Duffy, in the race.
MacKinney and Duffy are running on a slate with Elgin attorney John Dalton; they call themselves “Three for ECC.” Dalton ran unsuccessfully for 16th Circuit judge last year.
Two other newcomers, Richard Geary and Robin Lisboa, round out the field of five candidates. There are three open seats.
Duffy brings the most experience to the race. First elected in 1975, he is the longest-serving community trustee in ECC’s history. Duffy is a retired teacher and administrator; he has served on the boards of several community college associations, including the American Association of Community Colleges.
In a candidate questionnaire, Duffy said he has been an effective trustee, pointing to years of balanced budgets and his work on the college’s master plan, which includes a new academic library (under construction) and a recently-completed multipurpose building.
“When I first ran for the board, I wanted to help the board meet the needs of the students we serve,” Duffy wrote. “I believe I have helped make a difference in their lives, and I would like to continue to do so.”
MacKinney, a retired administrator for Elgin Area School District U-46, was first elected in 1999. In a Daily Herald endorsement session, MacKinney said she originally ran for the board because of her background in career and technical education.
“I feel like I’ve made a difference in those areas of the college,” MacKinney said. “I really am here to continue the good things that are going on.”
Dalton said he decided to run after the incumbents approached him to replace Folarin.
“When I ran for judge … I said all the time that I really wanted to serve,” Dalton said. “This provided me with the opportunity to do that.”
Lisboa, a former teacher and administrator at ECC, ran unsuccessfully for the ECC board in 2009. She says her experience in community colleges and the education world at large (she is an administrator for the Illinois State Board of Education) gives her a leg up on the other candidates.
“I’m intimately informed of the workings that occur within the college,” she said. “I feel that if I am not the most qualified person for this position, I’m definitely the most passionate person for this position.”
Geary has been a groundskeeper at Harper College in Palatine for more than 30 years. He has attended ECC board meetings for many years and said it’s time for him to get more involved.
“I figured it’s time for me to participate in the decision-making of the school and to see if I can help in the decision-making of ECC due to my years at Harper College,” he said. “I feel I can contribute to that.”