February 2010 Board Meeting Report

The Illinois Valley Community College board Thursday chose the future face of the college by selecting final design concepts for the $25 million Community Technology Center expected to open in 2013.

The board chose a flaring front entrance design in silver metal with a lower-level stone façade on the west end of the 77,000-square-foot facility. The football-field-long building will be topped by a “clear story” of glass.

“The front area is very transparent,” said Dominick Demonica of Demonica Kemper Architects who presented the schematic designs with Paul Basalay of Basalay, Cary & Alstadt Architects. “It has a much more enlightened feel. It will create a new image for the college and your community.”

IVCC President Jerry Corcoran was elated with the end result.

“We’ve had a number of individuals working very hard on the Community Technology Center project and I’m thrilled with the results,” Corcoran said. “This is another example of good people coming together for a common cause and great things happening.”

With the schematic design and budget approved, the architects will now move on to the design and development phase, said Basalay. Part of the plan unveiled Thursday calls for the creation of a wetlands area where the tennis courts now sit.

In other action, the board approved a $6 increase in the combined tuition and universal fee rate beginning this summer. Tuition will be $75.75 per semester hour, a figure the college believes may be the lowest rate in the state. Students enrolled in 15 hours next fall will see a $90 increase over fall 2009.

The board also approved changes in fees for 182 courses and a $193 increase in the cost of the Truck Driver Training program. At $3,400, IVCC’s program will remain among the lower cost programs in the region, said Dr. Rick Pearce, Vice President for Learning and Student Development.

The board also approved a letter of support for the $21 million LaSalle County Broadband Initiative, a project led by the city of Ottawa to use federal stimulus dollars to provide unrestricted high-speed broadband access across the county.

Trustees approved:

  • The $526,000 bid of Vissering Construction for the Building A biology lab remodeling this summer. The board also approved the purchase of $307,804 for Fisher-Hamilton lab casework including wood and steel casework, lab tables, fume hood accessories and cabinets from Thermo-Fisher Scientific.
  • Seeking bids for $53,000 in audio-visual equipment for the Ottawa Center building at 321 W. Main St. The equipment includes screens, projectors, document cameras, speakers, amplifiers and microphones.
  • Tenure for instructors Bonnie Campbell and Julie Hogue, nursing, Christine Dove, sociology and Elizabeth Klopcic, psychology. “Bonnie, Christine, Julie and Betsy have worked hard to position themselves for this appointment, and I’m looking forward to each of them doing their very best to carry on the excellent reputation of our faculty for many years to come,” said Corcoran.
  • Budget-related issues such as designation of the 2011 fiscal year for July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011, the designation of Dr. Corcoran as the district’s fiscal officer and the 2011 budget calendar.
  • The transfer of $20,000 from the ICCB Workforce Development Grant and $5,000 from the Illinois Manufacturing Extension Center fund to support the Small Business Development Center.
  • Reduction in force notices effective June 30 for eight IVCC employees at Sheridan Correctional Center. The college issues the notices each year until it secures state funding for its educational program at the prison.
  • 2010 Illinois Community College Trustees Association award nominations for Dr. David A. Kuester, Outstanding Faculty Award, Mary Black, Part-Time Faculty Member, and Daniel D. Janka, Distinguished Alumnus.

The board also learned:

  • Part-time accounting instructor Rick Shields and many of his students, working in conjunction with the United Way of Ottawa’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, have been providing tax return filing assistance to low-income, elderly district residents. Their work has helped capture $35,000 in federal tax refunds and $2,700 in state tax refunds, while saving participants $6,400 in preparer fees, Corcoran reported.
  • IVCC has been chartered with the Future Educators Association, a professional organization that provides students interested in education-related careers with activities and materials that help them explore the teaching profession in a variety of ways. Instructor Jill Urban-Bollis and her students took the initiative to launch the local chapter, Corcoran said.
  • IVCC librarian Frances Whaley is one of 30 Illinois librarians selected to participate in Synergy: The Illinois Library Leadership Initiative, a yearlong program designed to develop future leaders in the library professions.
  • Dr. Manuel Gomez, Dean of Humanities, Fine Arts and Social Sciences, was recently elected President of the Illinois Valley Hispanic Partnership Council.
  • IVCC’s Continuing Education Center recently assisted Dr. Lori Scroggs, Vice President for Planning and Institutional Effectiveness, in facilitating a Streator Area Chamber of Commerce strategic planning session.