Ex-Cook County CFO Tapped to Be College Treasurer

CHICAGO - Cook County, Ill.'s former chief financial officer Thomas Glaser - who last month joined the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn as an associate vice president in administrative affairs - will replace the retiring Thomas Ryan as vice president of administrative affairs and treasurer in early August.

Glaser most recently was serving as chief operating officer for Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas. Glaser had managed the county's finances for 11 years under former Board President John Stroger. After Stroger suffered a debilitating stroke, his son Todd Stroger, then a Chicago alderman, replaced his father on the November 2006 ballot and won the election. The elder Stroger has since died.

After taking office, the younger Stroger moved Glaser into other positions and gave the CFO's post to his cousin Donna Dunnings, then the county's budget director. He joined the treasurer's office in March 2006.

Dunnings recently resigned over a controversy stemming from her relationship with a fired county employee who lied on his job application about his criminal record. The county was recently downgraded as costs grow and revenues decline, even though the county raised the local sales tax by 1% last year. It is now rated between the low double-A category and mid-double-A.

The county won several upgrades under Glaser, whose profile as a national voice for municipal issuers rose as a result of tenure in committee positions with the Government Finance Officers Association, including president from May 2006 to June 2007.

"Tom is an excellent addition to the College of DuPage team. He has the credentials, experience, and dynamic leadership skills we were seeking during our search to fill this key position," new college president Robert L. Breuder said in a statement after Glaser's hiring.

Glaser's appointment to replace Ryan takes effect Aug. 1. Breuder took over in January as president of the 42-year-old community college after serving as president of William Rainey Harper College in Palatine, Ill., and has said keeping the college's finances sound is a top goal.

The college carries triple-A ratings from Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's on $239 million of debt. It has an enrollment of 28,000 students and offers seven associate degree programs and more than 35 programs designed to prepare students for transfer to four-year undergraduate institutions.

The college, which issues debt under the name Community College District 502, is undertaking a $300 million capital improvement program that relies on about $180 million of borrowing. The campaign includes construction of new buildings at its main campus and renovation existing ones at other locations earlier this month refunded $24 million of debt for savings and in April sold new money including $62 million of taxable Build America Bonds.

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