Michael Leonard is one of four former Moraine Valley Community College students inducted into the college’s 2020 Alumni Hall of Fame.
A 1990 graduate of Moraine Valley, Leonard is the executive director of the Channahon Park District, a position he attained after serving as the director of Parks and Recreation for Palos Heights, the Recreation Program and Services administrator for the Lemont Park District, and superintendent of Recreation for the Channahon Park District.
Leonard, who served as a student trustee while at Moraine Valley, has remained connected to the college since his graduation. He was an adjunct faculty member for eight years, and for the past 10 years, has been a regular guest lecturer in the Recreation Management Program sharing his expertise with students planning to enter the recreation field. He also served on the Recreation Management Advisory committee at Moraine Valley.
He is a member of the Illinois Parks and Recreation Association, National Recreation and Parks Association, and the South Suburban Parks and Recreation Professional Association, and a past board member of the Illinois Parks and Recreation Certification Board. Volunteerism in the community includes service at the Ronald McDonald House at Hope Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn, past president and former board member of the South West Special Recreation Association and a volunteer coach for youth baseball, softball and basketball in Lemont.
Leonard earned a Bachelor of Science degree in public relations at Illinois State University and a Master of Science degree in recreation, park and tourism administration from Western Illinois University, where he received the 2015 Jim Berousek Distinguished Alumnus Award. He also received a certificate of recognition for outstanding service to the Illinois Community College System, a South West Special Recreation Award of Excellence, the Eugene Simpson Award for Outstanding Community Leadership in Palos Heights and the Eugene Simpson Award for Outstanding Civic Improvement in Palos Heights.
“Mike has achieved outstanding career success in each of the communities he has worked, and we are honored to induct him into the Alumni Hall of Fame,” said Patti Friend, director of Alumni and Annual Programs for the Moraine Valley Foundation. “His service as a student trustee while at Moraine Valley along with his volunteerism and his support of our Recreational Management Program has set a commendable example to students who follow.”
Leonard was inducted into the Alumni Hall of Fame along with Forest Reeder, of Tinley Park; Dr. Sandra Biedron, of Chicago; and Suzanne Akhras Sahloul, of Burr Ridge.
