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1 SENATE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to
3 congratulate David Sam, Ph.D. on the occasion of his
4 retirement as president of Elgin Community College (ECC); and
5 WHEREAS, Dr. Sam began serving as the eighth president of
6 ECC on February 12, 2007; during his tenure, academic
7 excellence, student success and completion, reduction of
8 student loan debt, community outreach, partnerships, workforce
9 development, equity, diversity and inclusion, and financial
10 prudence have become the hallmarks of his presidency, and he
11 has directed ECC towards achieving extraordinary results
12 through collaborating with a visionary and engaged board of
13 trustees, an outstanding and dedicated faculty, and a
14 competent and committed team of administrators and staff; and
15 WHEREAS, Under Dr. Sam's leadership, ECC was named one of
16 25 semifinalists, out of 1,047 community colleges nationwide,
17 for the 2023 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, and
18 the college was previously named an Aspen Top 150 College in
19 2015, 2019, and 2021; he oversaw ECC joining the student
20 success initiative Achieving the Dream in 2009, earning the
21 institution a Leader College status from 2012 to 2022 before
22 then receiving the designation of a Leader College of
23 Distinction; he led ECC's efforts to pass a $178 million
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1 capital referendum in 2009, transforming the campus into a
2 modern, state-of-the-art learning environment; his guidance
3 has been essential towards securing financial stability and
4 sound fiscal management for ECC, earning the college an Aaa
5 rating from Moody's Ratings since 2009 and an AA+ rating from
6 Standard & Poor's since 2010; and
7 WHEREAS, Before joining ECC, Dr. Sam served as president
8 of North Harris College in Texas for six-and-a-half years;
9 previously, he served as dean of the Community & Technical
10 College and a social science and business management professor
11 at the University of Akron, Ohio; prior to that, he served as
12 vice president for Faculty and Instruction at Harrisburg Area
13 Community College in Pennsylvania, as acting vice president of
14 Academic Affairs and dean of Natural and Social Sciences at
15 Mott Community College in Michigan, and as assistant
16 professor/coordinator of International Studies at College of
17 DuPage in Illinois; and
18 WHEREAS, Dr. Sam, a native of Ghana, West Africa, received
19 his Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Political Science, and
20 History from Illinois State University (ISU); he earned a
21 Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy and a Ph.D. in
22 International Economic and Political Relations from Tufts
23 University's Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy; he also
24 obtained an MBA in Finance and Marketing from Northwestern
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1 University's Kellogg School of Management, a Juris Doctor from
2 the University of Akron School of Law, and a Master of Laws
3 (LLM) in Energy Law and Policy at the University of Dundee,
4 United Kingdom; and
5 WHEREAS, Dr. Sam serves on the boards of directors for the
6 St. Charles Bank & Trust, Alignment Collaborative for
7 Education, the Golden Corridor Family YMCA, and the Elgin Area
8 Chamber of Commerce, holding the office of chair from May 2015
9 to January 2017; he is an Illinois Phi Theta Kappa
10 Presidential Ambassador and an active member of the Rotary
11 Club of Elgin; he also belongs to the Illinois Council of
12 Community College Presidents, serving as secretary/treasurer
13 from 2021 to 2022, vice chair from 2022 to 2023, and chair from
14 2023 to 2024; as a licensed attorney, he is a member of the
15 District of Columbia Bar, the Energy Bar Association, and the
16 American Bar Association; and
17 WHEREAS, Dr. Sam has received a number of accolades,
18 including being inducted into the ISU College of Arts &
19 Sciences Hall of Fame, being named a Rotary International
20 Club's Paul Harris Fellow, and receiving the Phi Theta Kappa's
21 Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction, Judson University's D.
22 Ray Wilson Volunteer Service Award, the Illinois Community
23 College Trustees Association's Gary W. Davis Ethical
24 Leadership Award, the Elgin Cosmopolitan Club's Distinguished
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1 Service Award, and an Illinois Consortium for International
2 Studies and Programs Member Emeritus Award; and
3 WHEREAS, Dr. Sam has left an indelible mark on ECC, and of
4 the more than 68,167 degrees and certificates ECC has awarded
5 since its founding in 1949, approximately 55.9% have been
6 awarded during his tenure; therefore, be it
7 RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
8 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate David
9 Sam, Ph.D. on his retirement as president of Elgin Community
10 College (ECC), and we commend him for his exemplary service
11 and dedication to the students, faculty, staff, and community
12 of ECC; and be it further
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