Rauner Appoints Rev. Meeks To Chair State Board Of Education

(CBS) -- Governor-elect Bruce Rauner announced a number of appointments for cabinet positions and agency heads on Saturday, including naming former State Senator Rev. James Meeks to be the chairman of the State Board of Education.

Meeks is currently the pastor of Salem Baptist Church and served as an Illinois state senator until 2013. A release from Governor-elect Bruce Rauner's office announcing the appointments says that Meeks, "worked hard to increase school funding and improve the quality of education for all students."

Rauner also announced the appointment of Randy Blankenhorn as the director of the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). Currently, Blankenhorn is the executive director of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.

Other appointments by Rauner include: Jeff Mays as director of the Illinois Department of Employment Security, John Maki as executive director of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, Edward McMillan as a member of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees and Candice Jones as the director of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice.