* Alexi Giannoulias is back and has a new part-time, unpaid job…
Gov. Quinn on Wednesday will name Alexi Giannoulias chairman of the Illinois Community College Board.
Quinn regularly plugs Illinois’ network of 48 community colleges — the country’s third-largest community college system. For every student at at a public four-year-college in Illinois, two attend a community college, Quinn notes.
Giannoulias, 35, served as state treasurer and narrowly lost a race for U.S. Senate last year to Republican Mark Kirk. Giannoulias ran just two percentage points behind his Democratic ticket-mate, Quinn.
Since losing, Giannoulias has been putting together a political science class he will teach at Northwestern University this fall called “Campaigning versus governing.” He said Tuesday he plans to announce next month a full-time job he’ll be taking.
Thoughts on this?
LIVE session coverage...
- Cincinnatus - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 7:56 am:
Alexi will be responsible for scouting hoop players for the 4-year colleges in the state…
- Team America - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 8:18 am:
Yawn. I guess neither Dan Seals nor Julie Hamos were available since Quinn already doled out paying state jobs to them.
- anon - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 8:21 am:
Rich-
Is there something wrong with the password function today? Can’t get it to work.
- John A Logan - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 8:27 am:
I have always appreciated Alexi and his accessibility and wish him the best. The most shocking part of this post is that Illinois has an unpaid board. Holy fiscal responsibility batman!
- Stones - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 8:32 am:
Alexi would be well suited to teach a class called “Campaigning versus governing”
- Cincinnatus - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 8:34 am:
Stone,
Thems that can’t, teach?
- Small Town Liberal - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 8:41 am:
I think laying low and doing some teaching is a great idea for Alexi. He needs to spend some time doing some less glamorous, more service oriented work. I think doing so will help him find his own voice and he’ll be a stronger candidate should he decide to return to politics.
- zatoichi - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:15 am:
Cinci, that’s right up there with the old chestnut “Thems that can’t, blog.”
- mokenavince - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:20 am:
The price is right and can anyone name the other board members with out looking?
- Robert - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:25 am:
A Mike Madigan plan? Appoint Alexi, know he’ll screw up the job, and then you’ll have excuses to close the less successful community colleges.
- ANON - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:30 am:
I wonder which day Alexi has scheduled for Jaws to come speak to the class about campaigning? I guess we’ll have to wait for someone to get ahold of the class syllabus to find out.
- so... - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:39 am:
Alexi’s first question on his first day of class: “Ok, by a show of hands, how many of you lost a big chunk of your college savings because of me?”
- Cincinnatus - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:41 am:
zatoichi,
“So say we all.”
- Wumpus - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:47 am:
He is still being overpaid.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:47 am:
From the ICCB web site: Each fall, Illinois community colleges account for nearly two-thirds (63.9 percent) of all students enrolled in Illinois public higher education. Community colleges are the primary provider of the higher education experience in Illinois.
Alexi is the best person to put at the helm of the ICCB? Really? And his experience in higher ed is…? His experience with community colleges is…?
- Shore - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:49 am:
He runs for 2 offices and they make him a professor? By that measure they should make oberweiss the dean.
If my kid told me he was going to spend my $5k on a class taught by alexi, I think I would stop payment on his tuition. What a joke.
- Jake From Elwood - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:51 am:
With the manner in which the BrightStart program performed under his watch, most of the participants can only afford to go to community college. So the circle is unbroken, by and by.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 10:04 am:
Over the next few months, the ICCB will probably be participating in an effort to implement HB 1503, which mandates performance-based funding of higher ed in Illinois beginning with the FY2013 budget.
To do this well will require people with an in-depth understanding of higher ed to develop meaningful measures while minimizing unintended consequences. It would seem that someone with a passing knowledge of higher ed and zero experience in the community college system would be a poor choice to place in the center of this effort.
- OneMan - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 10:24 am:
== He runs for 2 offices and they make him a professor? By that measure they should make oberweiss the dean. ==
Almost did a spit take on that one….
- Responsa - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 10:28 am:
Illinois politics. It never will change. Quinn does no favors to either Alexi or the Community College system with this squirrely appointment. Too bad Alexi can’t see that.
- Wumpus - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 10:30 am:
OneMan, wonderful! John Cox for Provost!
Responsa, it is nice resume item. I fear that Arne Duncan, Alexi and Obama will conjure up a new czar position while playing a game of H-O-R-S-E. Community College Czar
- walkinfool - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 11:08 am:
I am glad Alexi is working on separating campaigning and governance. His reports as Treasurer were empty of analysis, filled with his photos, and looked like campaign brochures to me.
- Coach - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 11:10 am:
What exactly does Alexi know about governing - and why on earth would Northwestern diminish its reputation by offering the one-term treasurer such a plum?
No doubt Alexi will try to piggyback on Northwestern’s profile to re-ignite his own (apparently, he’s already doing so); I don’t see it working the other way around.
First the super-charged vibrator episode, then the continuing debacle with the wrongful convictions center, and now this. Time for Northwestern to re-evaluate what exactly it wants its image to be.
- Coach - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 11:18 am:
Alexi’s intro to the class: “Hi, I’m Alexi, and Barack Obama is my friend and mentor …”
- Edison Parker - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 11:40 am:
Well he did do a great job with Bright Start.
- Just Observing - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 12:07 pm:
NU’s choice of Alexi as an instructor is highly questionable. What makes him qualified to teach such a course? The face that he spend a lot of money to win an election?
- shore - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 12:11 pm:
Chicago gets Paulson and Daley
Northwestern gets seals and alexi
advantage-depaul?
- Pat Robertson - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 1:08 pm:
Unpaid? Is this a man-bites-dog story?
- Ravenswood Right Winger - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 2:29 pm:
The fact Arne Duncan thinks this is a great idea says it all. Now, if Alexi really wants to have an impact on higher education, how about taking over (or better, abolishing) Emil Jones University? http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-hundreds-who-got-aid-at-chicago-state-should-not-have-been-enrolled-20110810,0,4546245.story
- Publia X - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 3:01 pm:
He runs for 2 offices and they make him a professor? By that measure they should make oberweiss the dean. ==
Almost did a spit take on that one….
…and they should Andy Martin as President of the University.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 3:06 pm:
Oh, dear. Is it time for someone to hire the professional muckracker again?
- just askin' - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 5:43 pm:
Can anyone name whom Alexi is replacing?
- Downers Delight - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 5:57 pm:
Guy Alongi was the chairman recently. Not sure how recently though.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 9:27 pm:
Guy Alongi is stepping down from the chair, but will remain on the Board.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 10:06 pm:
Alexi was a weak, flawed candidate, but he fought a good fight in a bad Dem year and came pretty close. But he probably missed the shot of a lifetime against the weak and flawed Kirk.
What a big hitter Kirk has been so far in these strange and anxious times. What’s he doing these days, hosting a diplomatic meeting of the Romulans and Klingons in the Alpha Sector?
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Aug 10, 11 @ 11:53 pm:
No, word. He was introducing his Lake Michigan “report card” today. Afterwards, he jumped into the lake and fished out an ancient Greek vase–bigger and older than the one that Putin conveniently found yesterday–and added it to the collection of super secret spy decoder rings and other ancient artifacts he keeps in his office. The meeting with the Romulans and Klingons is scheduled for tomorrow, I believe.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Aug 11, 11 @ 12:36 am:
I also believe that Kirk is being fitted for his toe shoes right now, as he plans to perform a “stunning” phaser dance at the gala following the meeting tomorrow, so that he can barely escape back to the US in case things don’t go well.
*sigh*
- OneMan - Thursday, Aug 11, 11 @ 7:16 am:
Really, what full time gig you are taking requires an annoucement?