Parkland College  

2400 West Bradley Ave. 

Champaign, IL 61821 
 

540 Clover Court

Gibson City, Illinois 60936

Phone: 217/784-8540

Email: tmbennett@mchsi.com

About Thomas M. Bennett

Family Background: 

Tom was the fourth of five children raised on a small farm near Gibson City, Illinois. His father fought in World War II in the Pacific and  became a farmer after the war. His mother went to Illinois State  University, and her first job was teaching 12 students in a one room country school house. By the time Tom was born, his mom worked  part-time as a teacher's aide and spent the rest of her time keeping track of five very active children. Tom's dad and mom were very proud that all five children went to college. 

Today, Tom works as an IT manager for a national insurance company.  Prior to that he was a high school science teacher and a corporate computer software developer and trainer.  Tom has a BS in Education, a BS in Applied Computer Science, an MBA, and a Doctorate of Business Administration. Tom and wife Kathy have two grown children and one beautiful granddaughter.

Work Experience:

• 1985 - Present - Tom works for a large national multi-line insurance company.  He has worked as a PLI programmer, systems analyst, corporate mainframe trainer, and currently, a professional development manager in the helpdesk area.
• From 1978-1985, Tom taught middle school and high school science and math.

Interest in Education (boards, committees, activities):

• 1999 - Present - Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT)
  • 2005 - Present - ACCT Board Member
    • 2009-2010 Chair
    • 2008-2009 Chair-Elect
    • 2007-2008 Vice Chair
    • 2006-2007 Secretary/Treasurer
  • 1998 - 2005 - Active member
    • 1998 - 2005 - As Associate Committee Member, served on the:
      • Finance and Audit Committee
      • Membership/Communication Committee (helped in the development of the ACCT Trustee Directory)
      • Governance and Bylaws Committee (helped in the review and update of bylaws)
      • Public Policy Committee
    • 2004, Awards Nomination Committee
    • 2004, Ad hoc Committee-Select Committee
    • Completed Levels 1, 2, 3 ACCT Education Designations
    • 2004. 2005 ACCT Quality Consultant
    • Presenter at national and regional meetings
• 1995 - Present - Active member of Illinois Community College Trustee Association (ICCTA)
  • Past President - 2006-2007
  • President - 2005-2006
  • Vice President - 2004-2005
  • Secretary - 2003-2004
  • Two-term Chair/Co-Chair Diversity Committee
  • 2004 Trustee Education Award recipient
• 1995 - Present - Parkland College Board Trustee
  • 2005 - Present - Board Vice-Chair
  • 2003 - 2005 - Board Secretary.
• 1997 - Present - GCMS Education Foundation
  • 2007- Present - Nominating Committee Chair.
  • 1997 - 2007 - President.  Tom was the driving force behind this foundation founded in 1997.  The Foundation provides additional monies to enhance and expand the quality of education and learning opportunities for GCMS students.  Because of his effort, Tom has been nominated by the GCMS Education Association as the 2005 IEA Friends and Advocates honoree.
• 1989 - 1995 - K-12 School Activities
  • 1993 - 1995 - Vice-President of the Corn Belt Division of the Illinois School Board Association.
  • 1993 - 1995 - Board Secretary to the K-12 Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley (GCMS) School Board.
  • 1993 - Member of the Committee to Consolidate the Gibson City and the Melvin-Sibley School Districts.
  • 1989 - 1993 - A member of the K-12 Gibson City School Board.
• 1983 - 1989 - Pre-school Education Board (organization provided educational experiences for three and four year old children). 
  • 1987 - 1989 - President 

Education Accomplishments:

• 2009 - Doctorate of Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University. 
• 1990 - MBA from Illinois State University.
• 1985 - BS in Applied Computer Science from Illinois State University.
• 1978 - BS in Education from Eastern Illinois University.

Tom has also taken several classes at Parkland College.

Family/Interests:

• Tom is especially proud of being a husband, father and grandfather. 
• He relaxes by singing with a local group called Jake's Boys.  This is a group of eight men that have sung for Illinois Farm Bureau and other state associations, churches, county fairs, community dinners, and fundraisers all over Illinois since 1997. 

Other Community Activities:

• Rotary International - Paul Harris Fellow
• Precinct committeeman, Drummer 3

Heroes:

Everyone has heroes.  One of Tom's heroes is his younger brother Doug.  Doug went to Parkland College to learn how to farm with our dad.  In the 1970's, our farm situation started to go downhill and the family was basically looking to sell out.  But somehow, Doug worked with local bankers to keep things afloat.  At an early age, Doug took on a major financial responsibility in running the family farm.  That has been over 30 years now and Doug has worked hard to make things succeed and has greatly improved both the farm's situation and the quality of its soil.  Over the years, Doug has shown excellent creativity, ingenuity, stewardship of the soil, and persistence that I have grown to admire and respect.  He took the farm and turned it around when no one thought it could be done.  Doug is a real hero to his family.