MCC board president resigns citing rising taxes in county

McHenry County College Board President Chris Jenner has resigned his post and is leaving the state - a move, he says, that's prompted partly by rising property taxes.

Jenner, 60, now of Crystal Lake, stepped down at the Nov. 16 board meeting. He sold his house in Cary about a month ago and is moving with his family to Fort Meyers, Florida, in the first week of December.

"The prime motivation is my wife's heath, property taxes is a close second, and the weather is a close third," Jenner said. "Those three put together made the decision pretty easy."

Jenner was elected to the community college board in 2013. He previously served two terms on the Cary Elementary District 26 school board since 2005.

During his tenure with the MCC board, the college has seen significant changes including the hiring of Clinton Gabbard, who became its eighth president. The board recently extended Gabbard's contract to Dec. 31, 2020.

"We increased our transparency significantly," Jenner said. "We finally came to an agreement and upgraded the science center expansion. We've had a flat property tax levy for five years now."

Jenner said the college hasn't been the source of rising property taxes in the county.

"The last three years, my property tax payment was higher than my mortgage and that's ridiculous," he added. "We were on the market for six months. We had to lower the price of our house way more than we thought we would have to. Very few people are willing to put up with that kind of tax burden."

Jenner also was laid off last year from Nokia during massive corporate downsizing. He worked for many years with Motorola, which sold its division to Nokia in 2011, he said.

"I probably won't work full time again," he said.

The MCC board is seeking candidates to fill the remainder of Jenner's term until the April 2019 consolidated election.

Eligible candidates must be a U.S. citizen, resident of the community college district, and at least 18 years old. Interested applicants can submit a cover letter and resume to pkriegermeier@mchenry.edu or via fax at (815) 455-3684 or by mail to McHenry County College - Office of the President, ATTN: Pat Kriegermeier, 8900 U.S. Hwy 14, Crystal Lake, IL 60012-2738. For information, visit communitycolleges.org. Deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Sunday.