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Board Agendas, Minutes & Audio


Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Kennedy-King College, U Building, Great Hall, 740 W 63rd St. Chicago, IL
and Vandalia CUSD #203, District Office Boardroom,
Entrance Door 9, 1109 N 8th St., Vandalia, IL and Zoom

Agenda (PDF)

Calendar

Download (PDF)

Minutes

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Meeting Agenda

A. Call to Order/Roll call

  • Call Meeting to Order and Remarks, Pranav Kothari, Chair

  • Action to Permit Board Member Virtual Attendance

  • Welcome and Remarks, President Katonja Webb Walker, Kennedy-King College

  • Executive Director Report, Ginger Ostro, Executive Director

B. Advisory Council Updates

C. Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative

Presentation: Precarious Prospects

  • Meg Bates, PhD, Director of IWERC

  • Sarah Cashdollar, Associate Director and Research Scientist, IWERC

  • Jenny Nagaoka, Deputy Director, UChicago Consortium on School Research

Panel Discussion

  • Moderator: Tara Lawley, Director of Policy, Research & Fiscal Analysis, IBHE

  • Christine Strohl, Dean for Workforce Solutions and Community Education, Lake Land College

  • Dr. Aarti Dhupelia, CEO, One Million Degrees

  • Dr. Denise Cobb, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

D. Public Comment

  • Request from Members of the Public to Address the Board

E. Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Recommendations Presentation

F. Action Items

  1. Consideration and Approval of Fiscal Year 2027 Higher Education Budget Recommendations, Operations, Grants, and Capital Improvements (Ginger Ostro)

  2. Consideration and Approval of New Units of Instruction at Public Service, and Research at Public Universities (Dr. Nkechi Onwuameze)

  3. Consideration and Approval of New Operating and/or Degree- Granting Authority for Independent Institutions (Dr. Nkechi Onwuameze)

G. Consent Agenda Action Items

  1. Consideration and Approval of Board Meeting Minutes – November 12, 2025

H. Executive Session

  1. Executive Session for the Purpose of Discussing Matters Pursuant to Sections 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(1), 2(c)(21) and 2.06(d) of the Open Meetings Act

I. Action Item

  • Consideration and Approval of Removing Confidentiality of Executive Session Minutes and Destruction of Verbatim Recording

J. Informational Items – Fiscal Year 2026 Grant Update Reports

  1. Nursing School Grants Awarded Fiscal Year 2026

  2. Nursing Educator Fellowships Awarded Fiscal Year 2026

K. Other Business

The next meeting will be Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, in Edwardsville.

L. Adjournment

This meeting will be audio recorded and a copy may be requested through the IBHE website. Board agenda materials online at: www.ibhe.org.

In compliance with pertinent state and federal laws, this meeting will be accessible to persons with disabilities upon notification of anticipated attendance. Persons planning to attend and needing special accommodations should contact: Board Secretary, Illinois Board of Higher Education, 1 North Old State Capitol Plaza, Suite 333, Springfield, Illinois 62701, telephone: 217/557-7351 (TTD 217/524-3494), e-mail: bealon@ibhe.org by January 19, 2026.