Parkland College Board Swears in New Trustees

Board of Trustees General Meeting, April 28

Parkland College's Board of Trustees has accepted the results of the April 6 municipal elections, swearing in four trustees.

During their regular meeting Wednesday, trustees administered the oath of office to Timothy Johnson, Maureen Banks, Jarrett Clem, and Jim Voyles. Voyles was appointed during a special meeting Tuesday night following Trustee Jonathan Westfield's resignation from the board in March. Voyles will serve until the next election in April 2023.

Banks and Clem will serve for six years. The board also completed its annual election of officers: Trustee Bianca Green was elected Chairman, Trustee Jim Voyles was elected Vice-Chairman, and Trustee Jim Ayers was elected Secretary.

After the swearing-in ceremony, President Tom Ramage gave his report to the board. Special acknowledgement went to the success of the Parkland athletic teams this month. In short succession, the golf team won its fourth consecutive Mid-West Athletic Conference championship; women's basketball placed third overall in the DII NJCAA National Tournament; and the volleyball team took NJCAA DII Runner-up honors for the season with an impressive 33-2 record.

Trustees also appointed Mason Madigan as the new full-time Parkland College Peace Officer. Madigan was hired earlier this month following nearly a year of service with the Champaign Police Department. Originally from Lincoln, Illinois, he graduated from SIUE and completed his basic police training at the U of I Police Training Institute in 2020. He will complete his field training at Parkland within the next couple of months.

In other business, trustees approved:

• the purchase of: 

  • simulation equipment and software from Intelligent Video Solutions, $25,903

  • five-year lease and upgrade to Xerox machines, $330,000

  • bid from Diamond Design & Construction for renovation of exterior siding and systems, $307,880

  • bid from Getinge Sales USA for steam sterilizer and reverse osmosis filtration system, $50,974

• the filing of the following grant applications: 

  • Illinois Arts Council Agency (IACA): General Operating Support (GOS) Grant

  • Illinois State Library/Secretary of State: Adult Volunteer Literacy Grant (Project READ)

  • Illinois State Library/Secretary of State: Penny Severns Family Literacy Program

  • Illinois Community College Faculty Association: Dr. Joseph T. Cipfl Faculty Research Grant

• the acceptance of funds from external sources: 

  • U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA): Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program--Education and Workforce Development Program

  • American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS): Mellon/ACLS Community College Faculty Fellowship

• personnel appointments: 

  • Alexis Grady-Coburn, TRiO/SWFT

  • Nathan Knipfer, Campus Technologies

  • Virginia McMath, TRiO

  • Paula Prather, Admissions

  • Anna Runck, Admissions

  • Peyton Abernathy, Public Safety

  • Mason Madigan, Public Safety