Kishwaukee College

Kishwaukee College is holding a kickoff event for its 50th anniversary. 

The college was founded in 1968 on the grounds of an old farmhouse with around 600 students and focused on vocational programs.  Since then, the student body has grown to more than 6,000, with a majority using their degrees to transfer to four-year institutions like Northern Illinois University.  President Laurie Borowicz says the kickoff is a way to celebrate these sorts of gains.

Students at Kishwaukee College will get a financial reward if they earn a C or better in their credit courses this academic year.

Kishwaukee College board members announced the Student Success Scholarship, which will cover half of the ten-dollar-per-credit hour tuition hike they approved in March. The scholarships will be credited to qualified students' accounts after final grades are posted.

The Kishwaukee College Board of Trustees and the faculty union have reached an agreement for their five-year contract, starting this academic year.

College and union officials came to an agreement after four months of weekly meetings. Some terms of the contract include annual salary raises of 2.5 to 3 percent over five years, starting salaries based on certain credentials, and changes to health insurance benefits. 

A website that offers information to those interested in becoming a registered nurse ranked Kishwaukee College’s Nursing Program among the top 20 in Illinois. 

Registerednursing.org ranked Kishwaukee’s program at 14th out of 76 programs it rated in Illinois.

Kishwaukee College trustees unanimously approved an increase to its tax levy.  

The vote increases the local tax levy by 1.45 percent.  This brings the annual total to about $14.3 million. 

A familiar man “behind the scenes” in DeKalb County has a new position at Kishwaukee College.

Bill Nicklas has been chosen to help Kishwaukee President Laurie Borowicz develop strategic partnerships with businesses and communities. He'll also evaluate the school's strengths and opportunities for expansion. The position is temporary: he'll report his findings in six months.

Several students at Kishwaukee College will get to show off their technical skills in a national contest next month.

Skills USA is an organization for students enrolled in technical programs including welding or nursing. Every year, the group holds competitions that give those students an opportunity to showcase their talents in events like mock crime scenes or repairing a dent in a car.

Northern Illinois University recently signed an agreement with Kishwaukee College Wednesday making it easier for students studying manufacturing to earn a four-year degree.  Kishwaukee students can take additional courses online and after a third year of instruction, transfer to NIU.  After the final two semesters, they will receive a Bachelor of Applied Sciences degree. 

Kishwaukee College is talking with its faculty and staff unions about possible layoffs. The Daily Chronicle reports the college’s board will discuss possible job cuts next week, and could vote on them at its March 8 meeting. 

Both the college and the unions blame the state budget impasse for the situation. The school has yet to receive $5 million it is owed by the state for this fiscal year. That amounts to nearly a quarter of the college’s budget.

The Kishwaukee College Foundation announced this week Paige Schons, Genoa, as the winner of the Tuition Giveaway for Spring 2016, a value of $1428. 

According to a news release, Paige, a 2010 alumnus of Genoa-Kingston High School, will be graduating from Kishwaukee College in May 2016 with her Associate in Science degree and plans to transfer to a university to pursue a career in the healthcare field.

The Board of Trustees at Kishwaukee College reached an agreement with Laurie Borowicz, Ed.D., to become the school's next president. 

According to a news release, Borowicz is currently the Vice President of Student Services for Northcentral Technical College, Wausau, WI. Previously, she served as the Dean of K-12 Relations and Student Success at Northcentral Technical College, WI.

Kishwaukee College President Tom Choice will retire next month, and the search to fill his seat is nearing its final stages. The four finalists to become the new president of Kishwaukee College will visit the Malta campus next week.

The top four candidates selected by the Board of Trustees will take part in a public forum.

Dr. Jacqueline Elliott, President of North Arkansas College in Harrison since 2011, will be on campus Monday. She has a doctorate of education from the University of Nebraska.

More than 100 part-time instructors at Kishwaukee College are joining the same union as their full-time counterparts.  The Illinois Labor Relations Board has certified that a majority of the college’s adjunct faculty want to form a union with the Illinois Federation of Teachers.  

Tom Choice plans to retire at the end of 2015. According to a news release,  Choice took the role of President in April 2007, after having served as Vice President of Career/Transfer Instruction for 6 years. 

Prior to coming to Kishwaukee College, Dr. Choice served at William Rainey Harper College since 1985 in various positions.

The Board of Trustees accepted Choice’s resignation at Tuesday’s regularly scheduled board meeting. 

Members of the Kishwaukee College Education Association (KCEA) voted Wednesday to ratify their tentative agreement with Kishwaukee College. The college's Board of Trustees followed suit less than two hours later, unanimously approving the contract.

Bargaining teams from both sides agreed to this tentative agreement during an all-day bargaining session called on Jan. 19th. 

Update: The Kishwaukee College Education Association plans to hold its contract ratification vote starting Jan. 27th over a 24 hour period per the Union bylaws.

The Kishwaukee College Board of Trustees' Special Meeting that had been scheduled for Friday, Jan. 23 has been canceled.  That's according to a news release issued Wednesday morning.

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There won’t be a strike at Kishwaukee College Wednesday, but the union representing 81 teachers at the school still has not ratified a contract agreement worked out this week with the administration. 

There's a tentative contract agreement for Kishwaukee faculty.

During a closed meeting Thursday, members of the Kishwaukee College Education Association (KCEA) overwhelmingly voted for a work stoppage to begin on Wednesday, January 21st. 

Spring semester starts today for Kishwaukee College students. And it appears a teacher strike is less likely, after last night’s negotiations between the union and administrators. 

Kishwaukee College faculty and administration will meet tonight for a negotiation session. 

The faculty, which has been without a contract since August, filed an intent-to-strike form with the state last week. A faculty member told WNIJ the teachers will meet Tuesday to discuss bargaining status. 

The college board also is scheduled to meet Tuesday.

Educators at Kishwaukee College could go on strike next week.

The Kishwaukee College Education Association recently filed an intent to strike. The action allows faculty to walk off the job as early as Jan. 16th if they do not reach a contract agreement with school administrators.  The filing with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board does not guarantee the faculty will strike, but it gives them the option.

Classes are still expected to start next Monday.

Education Association President Matt Read says both sides will also meet with a mediator on that day.

Kishwaukee College faculty members voted down a contract proposal from school administrators today after a two-hour meeting.

The union representing Kishwaukee College teachers says last night’s failed contract negotiations have moved both sides closer to a strike.