HR0886 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0886 LRB099 15571 MST 39862 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Bill Epperly on the occasion of his retirement as a member of the Board of Trustees of Western Illinois University; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly joined the Board on April 1, 2004 and is currently the second-longest serving member of the Board; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly served as an officer of the Board in numerous capacities, including July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2005 as Secretary; July 1, 2005 to June 30, 2006 as Secretary; July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007 as Chair; July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008 as Chair; July 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011 as Secretary; October 1, 2011 to October 24, 2011 as Vice-Chair; October 25, 2011 to December 16, 2011 as Interim Chair; December 17, 2011 to June 30, 2012 as Chair; July 1, 2012 to February 24, 2013 as Chair; and February 25, 2013 to June 30, 2013 as Chair; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly Co-Chaired the presidential search that resulted in the hiring of President Thomas in January 2011; he also served as Chair of several committees, including the Finance Committee; and

WHEREAS, During Trustee Epperly's tenure, major building projects included the Multicultural Center, Grote Hall, the Thompson Hall renovation, the Corbin/Olson renovation, Quad Cities Campus Phases 1 & 2, the renovation/rehabilitation of the Student Side of Hanson Field, the University Union renovation, and the Sherman Hall cupola restoration; he has also advocated for environmental sustainability; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly was instrumental in revamping meeting agendas in order to be more efficient and put in place the current model of how meetings function; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly was instrumental in creating the Board's Statement of Mutual Expectations; he also was a contributor to the Board of Trustees Roles and Responsibilities, the Board of Trustees Committee Roles and Responsibilities, and the Board Self-Assessment Report Card; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly served 2 years as President of the Western Illinois University Alumni Association/Council, which he was a member of for 15 years; under his leadership, the WIU WIN program was initiated, which became a major source of association funding; and

WHEREAS, Trustee Epperly's last board meeting will be on December 17, 2015; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Bill Epperly on his retirement as a member of the Board of Trustees of Western Illinois University; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Trustee Epperly as an expression of our esteem and respect.