June 2019 Board Report

Illinois Valley Community College’s agriculture, industrial maintenance, welding and nursing programs will receive an infusion of new instructional talent this fall following Thursday’s board meeting.

Trustees approved the hiring of Kathryn Lillie, a recent graduate of the University of Illinois’s master’s program in crop science, as an ag instructor to work alongside program coordinator Willard Mott.  

At the U of I, Lillie was a graduate teaching assistant and graduate research assistant in the Weed Molecular Biology and Genomics Lab. She interned for BASF in Germany and Illinois.

Stephen Gibson will teach industrial maintenance and electricity. He has a bachelor’s in industrial electricity from Illinois State and an AAS in electronics technology and a certificate in industrial electricity from IVCC. He worked 14 years as a maintenance/electrical technician.

 IVCC’s welding program will be led by American Welding Society certified inspector and educator Anthony Sondgeroth. Praised as a “skilled welder, fabricator and leader with experience as a part-time welding instructor and program coordinator,” he also has years of industry experience.

Amber Robertson, who has her MSN and BSN and is a graduate of IVCC’s nursing program, was hired as a nursing instructor. Robertson has worked seven years as an RN for OSF and was already teaching part-time at IVCC.

Last month, trustees approved Richard Marko as automotive technology instructor. 

“I could not be happier with these additions. These instructors bring industry experience, high-energy, passion and innovative ideas to IVCC,” said IVCC President Corcoran, who meets with full-time faculty candidates before their appointments go to the board.

Trustees also approved the appointment of Eric Johnson as Director of Financial Aid to replace the retiring Patty Williamson. Johnson was director of financial aid and student accounts at Midstate College in Peoria.

In other action, the board approved:

  • Submitting the proposed $4.1 million Agriculture Center to the state’s RAMP list for capital improvements. If eventually approved, the state would pay approximately $3 million and IVCC about $1 million for a 5,100-square-foot facility housing a classroom, wet lab, conference center, student space and offices.
  • Authorization to continue payment for standard operating expenditures from July 1 through adoption of the budget.
  • Renewal of VMWare maintenance and support from CDW for three years for $64,060. VMWare provides software that allows IT to run multiple virtual servers and desktops from a redundant group of physical hardware.
  • Inclusion of an annual one-third student aid match in the Project Success grant application for the next five year cycle, 2021-26.

The board also learned:

  • Capital bill support from State Sen. Sue Rezin and State Rep. Lance Yednock was crucial to the college receiving $675,000 in deferred maintenance funding to repave the perimeter road and parking lots and an additional $150,000 for construction of an agriculture program storage and routine maintenance facility, Corcoran said.
  • In fiscal 2019, female student athletes had a combined 3.3 GPA and males 2.9. Overall student athlete GPA was 3.1.
  • Part-time anatomy and physiology instructor Craig Castaneda was honored Friday as IVCC’s nominee for the Illinois Community College Trustees Association’s Outstanding Adjunct Faculty Member Award at the organization’s convention in Itasca.
  • Streator’s Results Companies and its Results University was also honored at the convention as IVCC’s nominee for the Business/Industry Partnership Award. Results was represented by Shalanda Rabadan and Jean Grimes, IVCC by Business Training Center Specialist Jennifer Sowers.
  • Longtime financial aid employee Ida Brown has been appointed financial aid reconciliation and compliance specialist.
  • Custodian Dennis O’Shea will retire July 1 after 31 years; part-time Continuing Education administrative assistant Jessica Beem will resign July 25; part-time developmental math instructor Debra Cooper retired May 31 after 13 years; part-time welding instructor Christopher Winn resigned May 20; and theatre technical coordinator Matthew Boehm was granted an additional 30-day leave of absence through July 20.
  • Shipping and Receiving Coordinator Sarah Morgensen will assume the additional duties of duplication center operator following the June 30 retirement of Sandy Kosciewicz after 33 years.
  • A total of 389 spring graduates earned 469 degrees and certificates compared to 465 graduates earning 582 degrees and certificates in spring 2018.
  • IVCC’s Business office has again won the Government Finance Officers Association Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Financial Reporting for its 2018 financial report. In addition, the office also earned the GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its comprehensive annual financial report.