Jill Biden visits Dixon, Illinois, on Monday; 1st time to state as first lady

Dr. Jill Biden, a community college professor, will make her first visit to Illinois as first lady Monday, traveling to Dixon for an event at Sauk Valley Community College, the White House announced on Tuesday.

Joining her on the Dixon trip will be Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, who will be the first Biden administration Cabinet member to visit Illinois. President Ronald Reagan lived in Dixon as a youth.

Biden, a longtime champion of community colleges, is a professor of writing at Northern Virginia Community College.

During the eight years she was second lady during the Obama presidency, she also taught at Northern Virginia Community College. She also did extensive travel and outreach to community colleges while second lady.

Biden, who earned her doctorate in education from the University of Delaware, wrote her dissertation on retaining students in community colleges.

Sauk Valley Community College serves the northwest Illinois counties of Lee, Whiteside, Ogle, Bureau and Carroll.

The White House did not release details about the visit. Dixon is represented by Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill.

Biden was last in Illinois on March 6, 2020, in advance of the Illinois primary, to headline a fundraiser in Glencoe. After that, she headed downtown to the Union League Club, where now-President Joe Biden received the endorsement of Mayor Lori Lightfoot and others.

The White House announced Tuesday night that the first lady on Wednesday would be having “an appointment for a common medical procedure at an outpatient center in Washington, D.C.,” and would be accompanied by President Joe Biden. The first couple is expected to return to the White House and “resume their normal schedule.”