Endorsements: Carlin, Hamilton for College of DuPage board

Six candidates seek two 6-year terms on the College of DuPage board. They are incumbents Dave Carlin and Joseph Wozniak and challengers Katharine Hamilton, a CPA; Edward Agustin, a retired architect; Frank Flores, an education consultant; and Mike Lanners, a retired COD employee. The college has just emerged from contentious faculty contract negotiations and an expensive legal battle with the village of Glen Ellyn over everything from signage to building inspections. The former resulted in a three-year contract; the latter produced five-year deal in which the village will provide water and sewer, but the permitting and inspection process will be assumed by DuPage County. Carlin, the board president, says the board needs members who are independent and free of any hint of influence by the faculty union, which is backing Agustin and Flores. Carlin also played hardball during the acrimonious battle with Glen Ellyn, but he can quickly offer examples of why the struggle proved valuable to the college in the long run. For the second spot, we like Carlin’s running mate, Hamilton. She candidly shared her battle to overcome dyslexia and become a numbers cruncher. She also strikes us as smart and articulate. A vote for Carlin and Hamilton is clearly a vote for the status quo at COD. And that’s certainly not a bad thing — the college bustles with new construction, boasts an innovative Homeland Security training center and is planning a Midwest Regional Training Center, an off-campus training facility for first responders for local, state and federal agencies. COD is among the few community colleges that is growing, with a 3.8 percent increase in full-time staff this past year.