Illinois Community College System Foundation

It was an honor for the Foundation to present the Roy Harris Scholarship last week to five Carbondale Illinois High School Seniors who will be attending John A. Logan Community College this fall.
The history of this scholarship dates back to 2009 when Roy and Joanne Harris gave a significant sum of money to the foundation for the scholarship. Roy Harris is 94 years old now and living in Colorado. He is one of the finest gentleman alive and his desire to help young people succeed is overwhelming. This scholarship that he established has helped out many students over the past 15 years. We also have a teacher education scholarship in honor of his wife Joanne.
The five individuals below each received $1500 awards.
Co-President Dr. Barry Hancock presented the awards to these five Carbondale High School Seniors. From left to right in the picture is; Macy Munoz, Amelia Heath, Highlie Drue, Ian DePalma, Dr. Hancock. (Te'lla Scott was not present)
In addition, a USS John A. Bole Scholarship was awarded to Mikayden Green. Dr. Ray Hancock, a former sailor on the Bole, presented this award. The USS John A. Bole was a United States Destroyer and was commissioned in early 1945 and served in combat roles in World War II, the Korean war, the Cold War (Formosa patrol), and Vietnam until it was leased to Taiwan in 1970. The Bole association is made up of thousands of sailors who served on this great warship. Funds for this scholarship are donations from that group of sailors. Many of those sailors are now deceased and the association decided to pass along what was left in their treasury to the ICCSF for scholarships to young people entering the Navy/Military and who will be attending a community college!

We had a recent testimony from a young lady who thinks a lot of our Illinois Community Colleges! Hope Pearcy, a graduate of Shawnee Community College (SCC), said "SCC provided me with great opportunities. The staff and all of my professors were very kind and helpful and college had a small and homey culture. During my time there I was able to decide on my career path and what degree I wanted to pursue at a 4 year university. I was fortunate enough to earn a scholarship to Shawnee Community College after winning the title of Miss Metropolis Outstanding Teen. A few of my instructors even helped me prepare for the Miss Illinois competition by giving feedback on my talent, interview, and presentation skills. I experienced significant growth while attending SCC and would recommend an Illinois community college to anyone." ICCSF appreciates the nice words from Hope about our Illinois Community Colleges!

Congratulations to William Rainey Harper College for being recognized as an Aspen Prize semifinalist for the third consecutive time.

Harper recognized as Aspen Prize semifinalist for third consecutive time: Harper College Harper College is one of 25 institutions vying for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s most prestigious recognition for community colleges.

In celebration of # CCMonth this April, thanks to the Illinois Community College Board and the Illinois Community College Trustees Association, we are proud to recognize the many success stories that begin at Illinois community colleges and the outstanding individuals who go on to make a lasting impact.

The Illinois Community College Trustees Association's EQUITY AND DIVERSITY AWARD recognizes exemplary commitment by an Illinois public community college board of trustees and its chief executive officer to achieve diversity, equity, and inclusion in the college’s education programs.

Congratulations to the 2026 Nominees!

Dr. Clyne Namuo - Joliet Junior College

Joianne Smith, Ph.D. - Oakton College

Howard Spearman, Ph.D. - Rock Valley College

Dr. Lynette Stokes - South Suburban College

The Illinois Community College Trustees Association’s GARY W. DAVIS ETHICAL LEADERSHIP AWARD honors individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the pursuit and support of ethical leadership and decision-making in their fields of work and volunteer service.

Congratulations to the 2026 Nominees!

Kenneth Ingersoll - Kaskaskia College

Murneka Davis - Morton College

Chris Schmersahl - Richland Community College

The Illinois Community College Trustees Association's PACESETTER AWARD recognizes the many success stories of Illinois' more recent community college students.

Congratulations to the 2026 Nominees!

Victor Dantas - Carl Sandburg College

Jacqueline Bkes - College of DuPage

Jazmine Stubblefield - Illinois Central College

Zulma Guzman - Illinois Valley Community College

Nic Turner - Lake Land College

Ryan Wilson - Lincoln Land Community College

The recipients of the awards will be announced at ICCTA's June 5 awards banquet in Lombard.

Thanks to the Illinois Community College Trustee Association for sending this announcement. Congratulations to all the nominees!

In celebration of this April, we are proud to recognize the many success stories that begin at Illinois community colleges and the outstanding individuals who go on to make a lasting impact.

The Illinois Community College Trustees Association's OUTSTANDING ADJUNCT FACULTY MEMBER AWARD recognizes the high achievement of Illinois’ part-time community college instructors.

Congratulations to the 2026 Nominees!

Sherry Maurer - Black Hawk College

Becky Echelberger - Carl Sandburg College

Amy Washko - College of DuPage

Carlotta Conley - College of Lake County

Jeanne Anderson - Elgin Community College

Mary Horstman - Harper College

Sonja Workman - Heartland Community College

M'Kenzee Smith - Illinois Valley Community College

David Shaw - Joliet Junior College

Jennifer Roberts - Kishwaukee College

Jackie Cooper - Lewis & Clark Community College

Jon Churchill - Lincoln Land Community College

Ashley Givhens - Malcom X College

Olivia Ridge - McHenry County College

Paul Ross Thomas - Morton College

Michael Doocy - Oakton College

Jeremy Jang - Parkland College

Ralph Moore - Prairie State College

Garrick McConnell - Rend Lake College

Jennifer Thompson - Rock Valley College

Elisa Gatz - Sauk Valley Community College

Brianne Foster - Southwestern Illinois College

Magdalena Kruszynska-Piper - Triton College

Audrey Farrell - Waubonsee Community College

The recipient of the award will be announced at ICCTA's June 5 awards banquet in Lombard.

Thank you, Illinois Community College Trustees Association, for sharing this list of talented faculty!

In celebration of this April, we are proud to recognize the many success stories that begin at Illinois community colleges and the outstanding individuals who go on to make a lasting impact.

The Illinois Community College Trustees Association's OUTSTANDING FULL-TIME FACULTY MEMBER AWARD recognizes the high achievement of Illinois’ part-time community college instructors.

Congratulations to the 2026 Nominees!

Gary Werkheiser - Black Hawk College

James Sanders - Carl Sandburg College

Robert Plank - College of DuPage

Joana Pabedinskas - College of Lake County

Ben Jun - Danville Area Community College

Margaret Bilos - Harper College

Chris Miller - Heartland Community College

Michael Skwara - Highland Community College

Jonathan Hubbell - Illinois Valley Community College

Rebecca Corbit - John A. Logan College

John Reinhardt - John Wood Community College

Meaghan Callan - Joliet Junior College

Adam Hughes - Kishwaukee College

Michael Beavers - Lake Land College

Laurenn York - Lincoln Land Community College

Sherece Thompson - Malcom X College

Bob Mihelich - McHenry County College

Amani Wazwaz - Moraine Valley Community College

Tom Pierce - Morton College

Ji-Hyae Park - Oakton College

Janice Grewatz - Parkland College

Chad Vlietstra - Prairie State College

Elizabeth Bailey-Smith - Rend Lake College

Jerry LaBuy - Rock Valley College

Theresa Wood - Sauk Valley Community College

David Black - Shawnee Community College

Herman Stark - South Suburban College

Sabrina Stout - Southeastern Illinois College

Carla Bills - Southwestern Illinois College

Todd Thompson - Spoon River College

Rebecca Fournier - Triton College

Lisa Fozio-Thielk - Waubonsee Community College

The recipient of the award will be announced at ICCTA's June 5 awards banquet in Lombard.

The Foundation staff recently met for a board meeting and enjoyed lunch afterwards. From left to right: Dr. Bradley Griffith, Board Member; Dr. Barry Hancock, Co-President; Bobby Womack, Facilities Director; Dr. Terri Winfree, Co-President; Will Davis, Financial Advisor; John Goetz, Board Chairman.

Congratulations to the recipients of the 2025 Illinois Community College Administrative Leadership Scholarship! The Illinois Community College System recently recognized two winners of the Scholarship on November 21 at the annual Illinois Council for Community College Administrators Conference (ICCCA) at the Embassy Suites in East Peoria, IL. Any of the 1700 administrators in the Illinois 48 Colleges working on a masters or doctorate degree are qualified to apply. Each of the winners received $1500 in recognition of their efforts for the betterment of community colleges in Illinois.
The winners of the 2025 Illinois Community College leadership scholarships are Emily Monte from John A. Logan College & Cierra Morris from Triton College.
Emily is the Director of Academic Programs and Accreditation at John A. Logan College. She is working on her doctorate at Lindenwood University where she has been examining the causes, effects, and solutions related to the enrollment crisis our community colleges are facing. Her research consists of a mixed-methods approach, which will result in both quantitative and qualitative data, including data analysis, interviews, focus groups, and case Studies, and it will provide a comprehensive set of best practices that Illinois community colleges can implement to address declining enrollment and maintain their essential role in workforce development and higher education access.
Cierra Morris is the Director of the Workforce Empowerment Initiative at Triton College. She is pursuing a Doctor of Education in Leadership and Innovation at Purdue University Global. Even with some statewide progress over the years, Cierra will be examining underserved populations—particularly African American, first-generation, and low-income students—and why so many are still e experiencing lower completion and job placement rates in community college workforce programs. The pressing challenge is identifying which leadership practices and structural models most effectively reduce barriers, sustain persistence, and connect
students to meaningful employment. Cierra will be using a mixed methods design, which will include both quantitative and qualitative data, where she will examine enrollment, completion, and employment outcomes at multiple Illinois colleges, and she will also conduct interviews with administrators, faculty, and completers to surface leadership practices linked to improved student success.
The third recipient of a scholarship was Lindsey Nemcek from the College of Lake County. Lindsey is the Public Relations Manager at CLC, and recently completed her doctorate from Northern Illinois University in the Higher Education and Student Affairs Department and received the second half of her scholarship. Her qualitative multi-site case study investigated the pedagogical approaches employed by faculty in Community College Leadership Programs to prepare students for the role of scholarly practitioners.
The Illinois Community College System Foundation (ICCSF), the ICCCA, the Illinois Council of Community College Presidents (ICCCP), and the Illinois Community College Trustees Association (ICCTA) supports studies being conducted and published related to the Illinois Community College System. To stimulate more studies on this topic, these groups have made available an award of up to $3000. The winners receive half when they are selected as a winner and the remaining half when they complete their degree and present their findings at the annual ICCCA Conference. ICCSF Co-President and Scholarship Chair, Dr. Barry Hancock, says there are always several excellent applications for the scholarship each year. Dr. Hancock says over the past 12 years, the Illinois Community College system leadership scholarship has been able to provide financial support, in the amount of $31,100, to 23 different Community College administrators. Please click on the pics for more details.

Congratulations

The Illinois Community College System Foundation enjoys supporting scholarships that help students who are attending our 48 community colleges in Illinois! Foundation Co-President Dr. Barry Hancock recently attended the Illinois Community College Trustees (ICCTA) annual conference and participated in the awarding of both the Gregg Chadwick Student Service Scholarship established by the ICCTA. In the pic below Ella Brownlee receives the award from (left to right) Patricia Joan Murphy, ICCTA President; Robyn Walters, widow of Gregg Chadwick; Brownlee; and Hancock. Click below for more information about the scholarship the ICCSF supports.
https://www.heartland.edu/news/2025/6.2025BrownleeChadwickServiceAward060725.html