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December 4, 2024

College of DuPage – Trustee McGuire solidifying fate with HLC

By Kirk Allen & John Kraft

On December 5, 2015

DuPage Co. (ECWd)-
Once again, Dianne McGuire, College of DuPage Trustee, has shown her true colors  in her recent letter to the Higher Learning Commission.
At a time when COD is working to ensure their accreditation stays in tact, McGuire drops bombs on those efforts with more self serving and grandstanding false claims.

Sadly it reads more like a child tattling on their sibling.

While McGuire cries foul and complains her input was not received by Collins in his response to the HLC, one can only wonder what part of the HLC’s concern for Board Members interference with College operations she didn’t understand.
We will take some key points from her letter and expose her once again for the fabricator of drama she is.

  • Since your visit in July, former President Breuder has been fired and has now sued the college and four of the trustees individually and in their capacity as trustees for various charges, some of which occurred during their campaigns for the Board and others subsequent to their election.
  • A second lawsuit on behalf of the fired Controller and Chief Financial Officer is expected by the end of this month.
  • Issues with respect to the expected requests for indemnification are on the agenda for Nov. 19th.
  • the college is ineligible to apply for the Government Finance Officers Award
  • Perhaps that clean audit from Crowe Horwath LLP we received this year and a possible GOFA award did not fit the Clean Slate narrative of financial mismanagement and massive corruption!
  • we continue to be seated in one very long straight line!
  • the Edgar County Watchdogs have decided to move on to other local units of government.  However, their spiteful and destructive rhetoric directed at the Board minority and previous board members continues on their website
  • It is much better, however, not to have their hateful comments at the meetings.

Those are just a sampling of the totally useless statements she made to the HLC.  All of which have absolutely nothing to do with the concerns raised regarding accreditation.

“we have dropped our membership in ICCTA, without any Board level discussion”

It’s called expired, as in your membership expired and was not renewed.  No board discussion needed for memberships that expire.

“The withholding of critical legal information from some of the trustees continues” …drama….drama…..drama… “I finally received the emailed copies in the morning after leaving a voice message for the attorney.”

So which is it, the withhodling continues or not?

Your concerns relative to micromanaging the college are valid” ...drama….drama….drama  “I have responded to the first copy of his draft response with my concerns. Inasmuch as they have not been addressed, with the exception of one word change”

It’s only micromanaging when others are doing it.  Disregard her attempt at micromanaging management failed and she is upset.

“Perhaps that clean audit from Crowe Horwath LLP we received this year and a possible GOFA award did not fit the Clean Slate narrative of financial mismanagement and massive corruption!”

Never mind the FOURTEEN deficiencies reported in that audit.

“You also remarked upon the body language and demeanor of board members during meetings. Three times (twice by email and once publicly at the Board meeting on Nov. 5th) I have asked for our seating arrangement to be returned to a semicircle”

Ms. McGuire, seating arrangements will not have ANY effect on body language and demeanor. 

“the Edgar County Watchdogs have decided to move on to other local units of government”

Wrong Ms. McGuire.  In fact just yesterday I received confirmation that the Attorney General is looking into my FOIA complaint in which you refused to turn over public records.

“However, their spiteful and destructive rhetoric directed at the Board minority and previous board members continues on their website”

The queen of drama who called people Nazis actually has the nerve to complain about free speech used towards her? At least she now admits for the fist time our efforts are directed at the ones mostly responsible for the mess at COD and not the Institution itself as she used to claim.

“Although the Chair has always mentioned “rules of common courtesy” in her guidelines before public comment, never once has the attorney (whose former client was the Watchdogs) or the Chair stopped any of the vitriolic remarks from the Watchdogs or others who followed their lead”.

That is because that is not his place to Ms. McGuire.  Not to mention public comment is a right and you can not regulate what people say.  If anything we have said was not true, prove it and we will run a dedicated article to apologize!

“The Board minority does NOT feel in any way represented by the various law firms currently working at the college and who have been paid, as of the end of September (five months on the job), $1.66 million!”

Now isnt this special!  She appears to now be speaking for other board members even though her letter claimed to be her personal response.  If I recall she was a party to Censuring Hamilton by claiming she was speaking for the board. Is this any different Ms. Mcguire?

“the Edgar County Watchdogs have decided to move on to other local units of government.  It is much better, however, not to have their hateful comments at the meetings” 

In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger, I’ll be back!

Below is a copy of the letter McGuire sent to the HLC.

[gview file=”https://edgarcountywatchdogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Response-to-the-HLC-Report-Personal.pdf”]

McGuire3 (WinCE)

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6 Comments
  • CC
    Posted at 09:19h, 07 December

    McGuire and those who direct her activities appear to be vicious and vindictive individuals. Revenge is the order of the day. If the college is no longer theirs to loot and pillage they would just as soon see it, its students and faculty suffer as much as possible. In my own experience I have often found that as an individual’s level of viciousness increases there is a corresponding decrease in, or lack of, demonstrated intelligence. Therefore, it is my hope that in trying to spotlight the “wrongs” that McGuire and ? believe have been done to them, they will seal their own fate with the voting public.

  • Researcher
    Posted at 22:29h, 05 December

    The accreditation of non-profit higher education institutions is my research field. I have never, ever seen a document like this letter. I expect the number of accreditation documents I read over the years is somewhere in the six figures.
    To put into perspective how unprecedented and shockingly unique this letter is, imagine a trustee of a college watching the college’s baseball team from the stands, disagreeing with an umpire’s call, running down from the bleachers, and getting onto the field to argue with the umpire instead of the coach.
    The HLC has three main options on how to react to such a letter: 1.) Consider the source as a clueless elected official who does not have a thorough understanding about the accreditation process and ignore it, 2.) Scrutinize COD as though the institution is under an electron microscope and the credibility of the HLC is at stake, and/or 3.) Explain the basics of the accreditation process to the elected official in the hopes of providing education. Ignorance can be corrected through education (stupidity is permanent and cannot be fixed).
    While I personally think the HLC should choose Option #3 followed immediately by Option #2, my guess is that nothing substantial will come of this unusual letter. Too often accreditation agencies lob feathers at suspected bad institutions instead of taking tougher approaches.

  • Kirk Allen
    Posted at 20:07h, 05 December

    One person is not in charge. It is an elected board. The majority makes the decisions. Minority may not like it but that is our system. Casting blame on one person shows ignorance to how our laws work. You claim we got it wrong this time. Please point out what article is wrong and why.

  • George Sapyta
    Posted at 18:00h, 05 December

    I know you won’t post this because it is the truth Kathy Hamilton is doing COD wrong the clean audit is one form of proof but she has spent so much of our tax payer money it would of been better to just went ahead and gave Bruder his buy out but she wants to go on in politics but this is going to get her in the end. I like the work you do when it is the truth but you have to admit you got it wrong this time.

    • Untitled
      Posted at 08:55h, 07 December

      I have also noticed that 90% of my comments dont get posted bc they will either offend this useless website or who they support. xxxxxxxxremainder deleted by adminXXXXXXXXX

      • jmkraft
        Posted at 11:31h, 07 December

        I don’t recall anyone with this user name posting, or attempting to post, anything prior to this one. So you lied about your comments not getting posted. I deleted the remainder of your comments until you can provide any proof that may lead anyone to think what you attempted to post in your comment has any truth to it whatsoever.

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