Joliet Junior College trustee candidates say programs need broader appeal for more students

Six candidates for the Joliet Junior College Board of Trustees are vying for three six-year teams as part of the April 1 election.

Four of the candidates, Elaine Bottomley, Maureen Broderick, Timothy John Broderick, and Nancy Garcia, appeared at a forum, sponsored by the JJC Student Government and the JJC Office of Student Activities and answered the same questions submitted by the audience.

Maureen Broderick and Timothy John Broderick are not related.

The event attracted more than 50 audience members.

Candidates Robert Wunderlich and Timothy Bradley were not in attendance.

Bradley contacted the college and noted he was unable to attend because he was traveling for work. Wunderlich initially said he would attend but ultimately did not.

Elaine Bottomley

A lifelong Joliet resident, Bottomley serves on the Joliet Public Library’s Board of Trustees and works as the deputy chief of staff for Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant.

Bottomley, who is seeking her first term as a trustee, attended JJC classes during the summer while attending the University of Illinois where she received a degree in urban planning.

With an emphasis on “community building” throughout her career, Bottomley said, she is interested in spearheading initiatives that “aim to enhance the quality of life and improve public services for residents throughout the JJC district.”

Considering challenges ahead, Bottomley said, “There is a lot of uncertainty. We don’t know what is going to happen with grant funding or decrees. We need to continue to show up for students” and “put egos aside.”

She also wants to bring the skills she honed as a policy creator with the Will County Board to the JJC trustees with the goal of creating “forward thinking” policies.

She also is focused on the area’s workforce and wants to ensure they can take continuing education at JJC and learn skill sets that align with their employers.

Bottomley also is focused on addressing mental health issues, and other barriers to education such as transportation and food security, adding that “we need to be innovative on how we show up for students.”

Maureen Broderick

An incumbent who has served since 2015, Broderick said the students are her “main focus.”

Working as a high school substitute teacher has led Broderick to prioritize increasing dual enrollment classes at the high school level as well as increasing the number of English as a second language classes.

With a nephew who is disabled that attends JJC, Broderick said JJC has increased its accessibility for disabled students—something she has encouraged.

Broderick said “visibility” is a focus of her tenure with the board and in fulfilling that objective she has served as past president of the Illinois Community College Trustees Association, where she earned its trustee education award.

“I believe in community college. My two children are graduates of community college,” she said.

JJC is a “stellar college and not like when we were growing up, it is magnanimous now,” Broderick said.

Focused on JJC’s continued development in courses that provide solid career pathways for students, like the other candidates, she fully supports and hopes to expand JJC’s 12x12x12 dual credit initiative which encourages district high school students to earn at least 12 credit hours of dual credit, by the time they complete the 12th grade, and pay only $12 per credit hour.

In considering diversity, equity and inclusion added that as trustees “we should support all students no matter what.”

Broderick recently was the lone dissenting vote opposing a no-confidence resolution approved by the board against Trustee Michelle Lee.

Broderick and Lee have an ongoing lawsuit against the college that alleges past censure votes against Broderick violated the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

Timothy John Broderick

A Joliet resident, Timothy Broderick works as a sales and marketing director. He said his mantra is “service over ego” calling himself a “social moderate and fiscal conservative”

Seeking his first term as a trustee, he emphasizes “building bridges and listening to both sides” before coming to a “fair and equitable outcome.”

Timothy Broderick clarified that there is a difference between doing the right thing over being right and he credits his 30 years in business with doing the right thing for all concerned.

If elected, he, like all the candidates present at the forum, are interested in seeing Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposal to permit Illinois community colleges to offer baccalaureate degrees become a reality.

He also hopes to increase the number of internships available to students, especially in relation to working in the trades.

“There is great need in Will County relative to trades,” Timothy Broderick said.

Nancy Garcia

A JJC graduate, Garcia, has served on the board since 2019, when she was elected to be the youngest trustee in history. Garcia, an immigrant from Mexico, said she credits counselors and mentors who led her to JJC before moving on to Aurora University.

In her role, Garcia said, “I have learned the importance of being honest, transparent, and accountable to students and the community.”

She is committed to continuing to make JJC affordable, increase access to higher education for minority students, and equip JJC with the latest technology.

Answering a question related to challenges facing the board, Garcia said that the college has faced issues with technology and the board is aiming to make navigating technology easier for staff and students.

In addition, Garcia noted developments at the federal level in regards to higher education.

“Regardless of what is happening,” she added, the trustees need to work with the state legislature “to make sure that we are providing some protections.”

In addition to JJC being able to offer bachelor’s degrees, Garcia is also interested in supporting students through the mental health center that is opening on campus and providing resources for students who are uninsured.

This impacts their ability to be present in school, she said.

She also hopes to improve access to JJC for non-traditional students and those interested in getting their GED.

“In order to make sure we are supporting our students on their educational journey, we need to keep in mind the tools students need to feel that they are part of something bigger – that they are comfortable here,” Garcia said.

“We need to create an environment that is welcoming and respectful,” she added.