Rich Haney named interim president of College of Lake County
The College of Lake County Board of Trustees named Dr. Rich Haney as interim president at its May 23 meeting in Grayslake. Haney will serve in the role until a national search is completed and a board-appointed replacement assumes the role of president to replace Dr. Jerry Weber. In March, Weber announced his resignation effective June 30 to become president of Bellevue College, Bellevue, Wash.
Haney, who has been provost since 2013, is the chief academic officer, providing leadership for Student Development and all academic programming, including adult education and workforce development. He joined CLC in 1999 as dean of Business and Industry Services and served as the assistant vice president and vice president for Educational Affairs prior to being named provost. Before that, he held leadership and teaching positions at Parkland College and Southwestern Illinois College. Haney received both his master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
"I am honored to receive this opportunity and am looking forward to continuing to work closely with the board on a smooth transition of leadership," he said.
Haney, who begins his duties May 24, reiterated that he will not seek the position of CLC president.
Board authorizes placing FY18 budget on public display
The board authorized placing a proposed a $105 million operating budget for Fiscal Year 2018 on public display in Room E101b at the Grayslake Campus, starting at 10 a.m. May 26. The budget also will be on display at the Lakeshore and Southlake campuses, four area public libraries and online at www.clcillinois.edu/budget. On June 27, the board will hold a public budget hearing at 6 p.m. Following the hearing, trustees will vote on the new budget.
New degree and certificate
The board approved a new 60-61 credit hour Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree in Automation, Robotics and Mechatronics and a new 15-credit hour Automation and Robotics Introductory certificate. The automation, robotics and mechatronics field combines mechanics, electronics and computer technologies to create "smart" products. These range from personal and industrial robots to artificial limbs, automatic teller machines and hybrid cars.
The A.A.S. was created to fill a need for higher-level technicians. Graduates are hired as mechatronics technicians, robotics technicians, electro-mechanical technicians, automation technicians, maintenance and repair technicians and mechanical engineering technicians. The National Science Foundation funded the development of this degree as part of the NSF CollaborATE project.
The Automation and Robotics Introductory certificate is for high school dual credit students interested in the mechatronics field. Students completing this certificate can apply the completed coursework toward the existing 30-credit hour Mechatronics Technology certificate.
FY 19 resource allocation management plan
The board approved submitting the FY19 Resource Allocation Management Plan to the Illinois Community College Board. In the plan, the board requests state support for the following projects: a classroom building at the Southlake Campus, infrastructure repair and replacement at all campuses and a 150,000 square foot Center for Health and Wellness Promotion facility.
Human resources
The board approved compensation and contracts for 245 non-faculty, non-union staff for the 2017-2018 academic year, which includes a 3 percent raise.