FREEPORT — On April 4, 2023, Highland Community College District residents will elect three people to serve six-year terms on the seven-member HCC Board of Trustees. 

Potential candidates must circulate and file nominating petitions with the secretary to the board of trustees during the filing period. These petitions are available in the office of the secretary to the board of trustees at Highland Community College, room H-231, second floor, Student/Conference Center, 2998 West Pearl City Road, Freeport, Ill. The petitions are available Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 5 p.m. 

To be eligible to serve, a candidate must be a citizen of the United States, at least 18 years old, a registered voter, and a resident of the State of Illinois and the Highland Community College District for at least one year immediately preceding the election. A Statement of Candidacy must accompany nominating petitions. Certification that a Statement of Economic Interest has been filed with the Stephenson County Clerk’s Office must be submitted by the end of the filing period. The filing period is Dec. 12-19, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

All petitions filed by people waiting in line at 8 a.m. on the first day of filing, Dec. 12, petitions received in the first mail delivery on the 12th, and two or more petitions filed within the last hour of the filing deadline (4 to 5 p.m.) on Dec. 19 are considered filed simultaneously. 

To determine placement on the ballot for petitions filed simultaneously, a lottery will be held on Dec. 20 at 8:30 a.m. in the Robert J. Rimington Board Room in (room H-228), Highland Community College Student/Conference Center. The campus is closed from Dec. 22, 2022 to Jan. 2, 2023, therefore, the objection period for petitions will be Dec. 20-21, 2022, and Jan. 3-5, 2023.