The following instructions are for individuals and commercial concerns desiring to access public documents and records under provisions of the Illinois FOIA.

1. Your request must be in writing. The request need not be on a special form; and must be submitted to the address below:Office of the President: FOIA Officer
   Southwestern Illinois College
   2500 Carlyle Ave.
   Belleville, IL 62221
2. Please be as specific as possible when describing the exact records that you are seeking. Remember that the Freedom of Information Act is designed to allow you to inspect or receive copies of records; it is not designed to require a public body to answer questions. To the extent that you do wish to ask general or institutional questions of a college representative, you may call our Public Information office at 618-222-5235 for assistance.
3. In your written FOIA request, you need to specify if you wish copies of the requested records or if you wish to examine the records in person. You have the right to either option. As permitted by law, the College may charge for copies.
4. In your written FOIA request, please specify if you are requesting the requested records for any business, commercial, or promotional purposes.
5. In your written FOIA request please include your name, preferred telephone number(s), mailing address, and, if you wish, your electronic mail address.

The college’s FOIA Officer is Bernie Ysursa. The College’s FOIA office does not have a separate budget; all necessary costs for compliance are born by the College’s general operating budget.

Some College records are available for immediate access during normal business hours in the College President’s Office. These include:

• Board of Trustee Agendas
• Board of Trustee Minutes
• Policies and Procedures Manual
• Directory of College Trustees and its Principal Officers
• Electronic requests for college records should follow the steps outlined on this page and can be submitted through the FOIA request form.