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Ropp, Crockett, Long Headed For Election To Heartland College Board

Heartland candidates
Heartland Community College board candidates, clockwise from top left, Joshua Crockett, Rebecca L. Ropp, Cecelia Long, Jim Drew, Cynthia Pulley, Jodie Slothower, and Catrina Parker.

Two familiar faces and one newcomer were headed toward election to the Heartland Community College Board of Trustees late Tuesday.

Incumbent Becky Ropp and former student trustee Joshua Crockett were the top vote-getters for two, six-year terms on the board, according to unofficial results late Tuesday.

Ropp, of Normal, was first appointed to the board in 2014. She is director of talent management at Growmark and co-owner of Ropp Jersey Cheese.

Crockett, of Bloomington, is an Illinois State University senior who previously served as HCC student body president and HCC student trustee.

Two-year seat

In the race for a two-year seat, challenger Cecelia Long was narrowly leading incumbent Jim Drew with 51% of the vote.

Long and Drew were running to complete the term of Gregg Chadwick, who died in September. Drew was appointed to fill the vacancy until the election.

Long, of Bloomington, is a former HCC staff member who works in social services. Currently, she is field manager for the One People’s Campaign, a progressive coalition of candidates.

The vote totals were not finalized late Tuesday, with votes coming in from six election authorities spread across the Heartland Community College district.

Heartland, at 1500 W. Raab Road in Normal, is the state’s youngest of 49 community colleges, serving District 540, a region that stretches along Interstate 55, and includes satellite campuses in Lincoln and Pontiac.

The college generally enrolls about 4,000 students in credit courses each semester.

Ryan Denham is the digital content director for WGLT.
Michele Steinbacher is a WGLT correspondent. She joined the staff in 2020.
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