GOVERNOR NAMES TECHNOLOGY COORDINATOR

SPRINGFIELD, ILL. -- Gov. Jim Edgar today named a Chicago banking executive with considerable experience in state government as his technology coordinator to help ensure Illinois' position as a national leader in the use of technology in education and government. Mark W. Gallagher, Managing Director with First Chicago Capital Markets, is being loaned to the Edgar Administration for one year as part of a public-private partnership with First Chicago.

"We are now making significant investments in new technologies in our classrooms and throughout state government, and Mark will help us get the most out of our investments," the Governor said. "He will help bring cooperation and improved communications among our educators, our private technology and telecommunications companies and the many government agencies making use of new technologies."

Gallagher will work under the direction of Lt. Gov. Bob Kustra. A strong proponent of education technology, Kustra convened the Governor's Education Technology Summits last year. He also chairs the Illinois Distance Learning Foundation, which seeks ways for schools to acquire learning and communication technology to achieve their educational goals.

"Our first priority is to get technology into the classrooms of elementary and secondary schools," Kustra said. "That means hooking up all of Illinois' public schools to the Internet within the next year. We must move forward on many technology projects that will assist learning in schools and make state government more productive."

"While Mark knows a great deal about the Internet and applications of computers in our classrooms, he is not being brought in as a technology expert," Kustra said. "We have many experts in Illinois. His mission is to get the experts working together and to make things happen."

Gallagher, 40, lives in the western suburbs of Chicago and has worked for First Chicago Capital Markets since 1986.

From 1980 to 1986, he worked in the Bureau of the Budget where his responsibilities included budget analysis for education, economic development and government bonds. During his tenure in state government, he helped create the innovative College Savings Bond program to help families save for future college expenses.

Gallagher received both a master's of business administration degree and a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Illinois at Urbana.

Besides advancing technology projects at all levels of education in Illinois, Gallagher will focus on the use of technology to improve productivity and communication in government agencies and to use technology to promote economic development in Illinois.

"Mark's experience in state government and the private sector can be a key ingredient to bringing together experts from both," Edgar said. "Through increased coordination and cooperation, we'll be able to speed the implementation of technology -- improving productivity in government agencies, giving schoolchildren more hands-on computer experience and using technol6gy to bring more private sector jobs to Illinois.

"I am grateful to the generosity of the management of First Chicago and commend them for their willingness to help us in the cause of better education and better government."

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