Parkland College Trustees Approve FY25 Tax Levy, President's Contract

The Parkland College Board of Trustees held its regular board meeting Wednesday.

The Parkland College Board of Trustees approved the fiscal year 2025 property tax levy and extended the president's contract at its regular board meeting Wednesday.
 
Trustees approved a contract extension for college President Pamela Lau through June 30, 2028. Lau started at Parkland College in 1995 as a part-time faculty member teaching developmental reading. She became president of the college in January 2023 under an initial four-year contract. 
 
The board called for a public hearing before approving the proposed property tax levy. Parkland College's requested levy is $37.3 million. This new amount would support the college's educational ($22.2 million), operational and maintenance ($8.5 million), protection, health and safety ($2.7 million), and tort liability ($2.2 million) funds, among other expenses.
 
In addition, the trustees moved to abate the tax levied for the year 2024 on the $5.86 million of general obligation bonds it issued to help fund the College Master Plan. The Series 2018C bonds are to be retired through revenues raised from a student facility fee.
 
In other business, trustees approved:

• the 2026-2027 Academic Calendar
• the contract with Pauly Group of Springfield, Ill., $62,000
• electricity and natural gas utility service from Constellation Energy of Chicago
• bids for the Electrical Distribution Panel Safety Improvements - Phase I project from Bodine Electric of Decatur, Ill., $712,395
• the purchase of:
  • furniture and installation from Kruger International, Green Bay, Wisc., $42,476
  • a 2025 Tesla Model 3 vehicle from Tesla of Fremont, Calif., $58,630
• the filing of grant applications:
  • Illinois Community College Board (ICCB): FY25 Innovative Bridge and Transition Grant
  • Community Colleges for International Development (CCID): Technical and Vocational Educational Training (TVET) Exchange to Advance U.S.-Singaporean Relations Program
  • ICCB: FY25 Noncredit Workforce Training Initiative Grant
  • ICCB: Mental Health Early Action on Campus Support Expansion Project
• funds awarded to Parkland from external sources:
  • ICCB: FY2025 Federal Postsecondary Perkins Basic Grant - Career and Technical Education
  • ICCB: Adult Education and Literacy: Integrated English Language and Civics Education (IELCE)
  • ICCB: Illinois Community College Board (ICCB): Adult Education & Family Literacy Activities (AEFLA)
  • ICCB: Workforce Equity Initiative (WEI)— Support for Workforce Training (SWFT)
• personnel appointments and modifications:
  • Troy Burns, Director, Physical Plant
  • Karen Talbott, Associate Director, Child Development Center
  • Maureen Wietecha, Associate Director, Marketing and Public Relations
  • Sarah Gamel Buck, Telecommunicator, Public Safety
  • Vivian Rushing, Operations Assistant, Division of Arts & Sciences
  • Camden Payan, Assistant, Accessibility Services
  • Jamaria McDonald, Assistant Teacher, Child Development Center
  • Claire Gonzalez, Assistant Teacher, Child Development Center
  • Jorgi Jones, Academic Success Advisor, Advising Services