Lincoln College announces four new trustees
Board members will work closely to move Lincoln College forward

 

[October 10, 2019] 

Four new Trustees have been named to the Board of Lincoln College. The new Trustees will help lead the College as it continues to transition to full university status, including the recent addition of post-graduate degree options to its expanding series of four-year bachelor’s degrees.

The new Trustees were approved in May and July, and were seated at the September 28 meeting in Lincoln. They are: Carol Gee of Overland Park, Kansas; Clyde Reynolds of Lincoln, Denny Frary of Prophetstown, Illinois, and Christine Short of Lincoln.

“These new Lincoln College Trustees continue a tradition of outstanding leadership for the College,” said Dr. David Gerlach, President of Lincoln College. “The Trustees will add to the wealth of professional, financial, educational and community service experiences that characterizes our Board members. They will help us shape the future of Lincoln College.”

“We rely heavily on the creative and dedicated leadership of our Trustees. There are many challenges facing higher education today, and the insights and experience of the Trustees are essential to assuring that Lincoln College can navigate those challenges while continuing to provide an excellent education to our students,” President Gerlach added.

The new Trustees began their service at the September 28 Board meeting. Lincoln College, which has campuses in Normal and Lincoln, as well as satellites in Peoria and Oglesby, was the first institution named in honor of then-President Abraham Lincoln and the only institution named after Lincoln while he was alive.

The Lincoln College Board of Trustees appoints the President and major administrative officers of the College. Board committees oversee finances, development, planning, academic affairs and student services, among other duties.

Here is a look at the backgrounds of the four new board members:


Carol Gee

Carol Gee, a native of Lilbourn, in Missouri’s Bootheel area, got her start as the ad manager for a large home furnishings store in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where she often said “she got her MBA at the hands of the consumer.”

From there, and after a short stint as a copywriter at an advertising agency in Wilmington, Delaware, she enjoyed a 25-year career at DuPont in Wilmington, where she helped build, among others, the LYCRA and CORIAN brands, into global icons as well as leading the branding effort that positioned DuPont as a science company in her role as Global Brand Manager, DuPont brand. During her years at DuPont she was a two-time winner of the DuPont Marketing Excellence award, at the time the highest marketing award in the company.

She joined her former boss and DuPont colleague Steve McCracken when he became the CEO of Owens-Illinois in 2004. There she served as Chief Communications Officer but also lead the conversion of the company brand globally to O-I and established the communications and marketing communications function and process in four regions of the world. It was while at O-I that she honed her charitable giving skills by leading the O-I Charities Foundation.

After leaving the corporate world and, prior to retiring and moving to Kansas City, she consulted for a Toledo-based law firm that used all of her “herding cats” skills, but was able to reposition the firm, create a new website and learn a lot about a service brand.

During her years in Toledo, she served on the Board of United Way’s Women’s Initiative and was marketing chair for five years. Carol served on the Executive Committee and board of Black Swamp Conservancy, a local land conservancy. She was a member of the Audience Development committee for the Toledo Symphony and enjoyed three year tenures on both the board of the Toledo Hospital Foundation and the Way Library Foundation.

A graduate from the University of Missouri School of Journalism, Columbia, Missouri, with a major in advertising, she is currently serving as Programming co-chair for the Griffiths Leadership Society mentoring organization for the University. Once in Kansas City, she renovated a 1980’s ranch home in Cherry Hill Estates in Overland Park into a modern day Golden Girls home for her sister, a dear friend, and their standard poodle Ace. She volunteers once a week at a clothes mission as well as supports the arts, theatre, music, and land conservation.


Clyde Reynolds

Clyde Reynolds is the founder and owner of Keystone Risk Management, Inc., in Lincoln. Reynolds, originally from New York, settled in Lincoln in 1977 after graduating from the University of Iowa, where he met his wife Sharon.

He began his career in insurance as an adjuster and after two years of years of taking statements and writing estimates he traded in his Crash manuals to become a personal lines underwriter. He later transitioned into commercial underwriting.

After several years of working for another insurance agency, he decided to strike off on his own and founded Keystone Risk Management in 1986.

“When I started Keystone, I had a pregnant wife, a mortgage and single objective: provide for my family. I’m happy to tell you our kids are grown and the mortgage is paid, but over the years my single objective morphed into something more profound, more complex and more rewarding – solving problems and helping others,” Reynolds said.

Over the years, he has compiled an extensive resume of community service, including serving on the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital Foundation Board, President of St. Clara’s Rehab and Senior Care, President of Castle Manor, Inc., Clerk of the Trinity Episcopal Church Vestry, Treasurer of Land of Lincoln CEO, Treasurer of the Lincoln-Logan Food Pantry, on the board of the Logan County Cancer Society, the boards of the Lincoln Area Music Society and Illinois Shakespeare Festival and as President, Treasurer and board member of the Lincoln Community Theatre.

His professional certifications include: Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter, Certified Insurance Counselor, Certified Risk Manager and Associate in Risk Management.


Denny Frary

Denny Frary is a retired Chief Meteorologist for KCRG TV9 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and a Lincoln College graduate of the class of 1970. Frary completed his bachelor’s degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he continued his studies in broadcasting and communication.

After college, Frary had a successful career in broadcast television, serving as a weatherman for more than thirty years.

Frary has also hosted a daily talk show, a weekly public affairs program, telethons, parades, and a variety of other programs in his career.

Denny Frary is a professional member of the American Meteorological Society, and has earned the Society’s “seal of approval” for his weathercasts. He is also a life member of the University of Illinois Alumni Association.

Recently appointed “Member Emeritus” to the Salvation Army in Cedar Rapids, Frary continues to be involved with a number of community organizations.



Christine A. Short

Christine Short of Lincoln is a financial advisor with Edward Jones Investments, where she manages and advises portfolios for individuals and small and medium size businesses.

Short has an extensive background in education. Prior to joining Edward Jones, she was a teacher and math building chair at Chiddix Junior High School in Normal for 11 years. She has also taught math at Stephen Decatur middle school in Decatur and at Springfield Southeast High School. In addition to teaching math, she has coached track and cross country in Decatur and Springfield.

Short graduated from Eastern Illinois University in 1999 and earned a Master’s of Science degree in Education and Educational Administration from Illinois State University. She has also received business certifications from Edward Jones and Stockton University and is a Certified Financial Planner.

Short’s community service includes serving as President-Elect of the Lincoln Rotary, a member of the Lincoln Elks Lodge #914, Vice-President of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital Foundation Board and a member of the the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital Board.

[Lauren Grenlund
Director of Public Relations
Lincoln College]