Des Plaines, Ill. (April 28) - The Oakton College Board of Trustees selected Evanston resident Wendy B. Yanow, Ed.D., to become Board Chair for a one-year term during its meeting on April 25. Morton Grove resident Theresa Bashiri-Remetio was seated as a trustee following her election to the Board earlier this month. Evanston resident Martha Burns was also re-elected to serve a second, six-year term on Oakton’s Board earlier this month.
“I'm honored to serve as Chair of Oakton's Board of Trustees, and I look forward to working with my Board colleagues to create policies that support the College's Mission, Vision and Values — while building just and thriving communities and creating pathways for students to reach their goals," said Yanow, who has served on Oakton’s Board of Trustees since 2019.
Also, during the April 25 meeting, the Board selected Evanston resident Gail Bush, Ph.D., to serve as Vice Chair and Evanston resident William Stafford as Board Secretary. Bush was elected to serve a six-year term as an Oakton trustee in 2019. Stafford, who has served on Oakton’s Board since 2007, was re-elected in 2021 to serve a six-year term.
Prior to the restructuring, trustee Paul Kotowski (Niles) served as the Board’s Chair, Yanow as Vice Chair, and Bush as Board Secretary. Kotowski, who has served on Oakton’s Board since 2017, did not seek re-election. Oakton’s seven-member Board of Trustees also includes Evanston resident Marie Lynn Toussaint, J.D., and Northbrook resident Benjamin Salzberg.
Niles resident Lydia Cruz joins the Board as a student trustee, succeeding Skokie resident Akash Patel.
Bashiri-Remetio earned a Bachelor of Science from Elmhurst University with a major in Marketing and Economics and a minor in International Business before attending Northern Illinois University, where she earned a Master of Science in Education in Adult Learning and a Master of Business Administration in Organizational Leadership.
"I am so excited to be joining Oakton's Board! As a student, Oakton was my second home, so it feels good to be back," said Bashiri-Remetio.
Bashiri-Remetio has held various roles in accounting, enterprise portfolio management, revenue assurance, revenue planning & analysis, and enterprise testing & quality assurance (ET&QA). Currently, she is a senior software test engineer at UScellular.
In addition to the Oakton Board of Trustees, Bashiri-Remetio serves on the Illinois Monetary Award Program (MAP) Eligibility Task Force.
For more information about the Oakton Board of Trustees, please visit the Oakton College Board of Trustees page.
Oakton College Trustee Theresa Bashiri-Remetio (right, facing) was sworn in on April 25 during the Board of Trustees reorganization meeting. Trustee Martha Burns (left, facing) was reelected to serve a second term earlier this month.