By Danielle Spence
Editor in Chief
As the wife of the president of North Central College, people might imagine that she’s about to endure the glamorous life of fabulous parties, cocktail hours, and a brand-new home. But to Sharlene Hammond, those perks are not important to her. Her top priority is spending time with her husband, their four teenaged children, and Luke, the family dog.
Her job is to be a mother.
Before all the commotion of President Troy Hammond’s new job, the family lived in Pittsburgh, Pa. They decided to move to Chicago in 2010. Together, she and her husband searched through the suburbs of Chicago to find the right school district for their children. They decided on District 203 in Naperville, Ill, and rented a townhouse near the DuPage Children’s Museum.
“There was something about the community that I liked,” said Hammond. The children were able to walk to school if they needed to and President Hammond could take the train to Chicago to his job in the city. Little did the Hammond family know that their lives would change just two years later.
Early in the summer of 2012, President Hammond walked in with the newspaper and pointed out an article to his wife that North Central College was looking for a new president.
“As soon as I read the article I said, ‘You could do this. This is you!’ I knew in my heart that it would be the perfect job for him,” said Hammond.
After learning that President Hammond was chosen to lead North Central College, for various reasons, they couldn’t tell their children. They decided to tell them mere hours before the photographers came to take their picture for the big announcement.
“We organized the kid’s schedules so that they didn’t have any activities, we ordered pizza, we all sat around the table and we handed each of them red North Central College hoodies in red bags with red tissue paper,” she said.
As for the big changes that the family has gone through within the last year, according to Hammond, “you just get a lot more red and white in your closet.”
“I’m excited for Troy because I think he’s going to love it,” she said. “We’ve been married for 21 years. He knows that I’ve got his back.”
President Hammond’s job may have drastically changed within the last year, but for Sharlene Hammond she says, “At this stage, I have four teenagers and a dog. My role is to be their mom and it has to stay that way.”
Benna Wilde, the previous president’s wife, was approximately the same age as Sharlene Hammond when she took on the role as the president’s wife 22 years ago.
“I have her (Benna Wilde’s) cell phone number,” said Sharlene Hammond. Wilde’s main piece of advice was to, “be a mom” and to “keep doing what you’ve always been doing.”
From Inauguration Week to the Ice Cream Social, the Hammond children have had new experiences and met new people. The boys enjoy talking to the professors and playing soccer on the stadium field while the girls are excited to swipe their cards at Kaufman.
While President Hammond is in meetings, Hammond is busy with the children.
“On weekends I take the kids to and from the ice hockey rink, the soccer field, art classes and church. I bring the girls and their friends, to the mall, and sleepovers,” she says.
The family enjoys taking advantage of the performances that the College hosts. Earlier this spring, Hammond brought her children to the Vienna Boys Choir and they also plan on going to Bill Cosby’s performance.
“All of the changes that we’ve gone through as a family have been blessings,” she said. “If my husband and I were just working, we wouldn’t have been able to provide our kids with these new experiences.”
When Sharlene looks back on the past year, she is grateful for all of the changes and says she looks forward for what is to come.
“If by supporting Troy and North Central College gets his effort, his time and his energy, I think it’s great,” she said.
So while Sharlene Hammond may be a mother to her four teenagers and their family dog, Luke, she is also a mother to the North Central College community.
