A Community Decision - the search for a new superintendent

Our public schools are one of the most important institutions in our communities.  These organizations educate a large majority of our children, our future leaders.  Our schools represent our communities and demonstrate the priority education has in our lives. We all want what is best for our children and a high quality education is a must for our children’s future.

Our citizens recently went to the polls and overwhelmingly supported more funding for our schools. The community should continue to demand results for their investment, and we need to ensure we live up to those expectations. 

This brings me to leadership and the hiring of a new superintendent of schools for District 197. The last time this happened in our community was in 2006. Much has changed in our school communities in the last six years; many improvements have been made. These improvements happen because of strong district leadership. As the CEO of the organization, the superintendent helps create the environment for changes that are necessary to keep our schools relevant for the students of tomorrow.

Over the next eight weeks our school district will devote a great deal of time and effort to selecting the best person possible to be our next leader. Throughout this process there are opportunities for you to be involved. Our commitment is to keep you informed at every step along the way, but we also need your input. I encourage you to go to our website and complete the survey about the type of person we want to lead our district into the future.  I also encourage you to attend community meetings and share your thoughts with the School Board as they are charged with making the final selection.

Selecting a new leader for our schools is a big deal.  It does not happen all that often.  This should be a community process and we are extending an invitation for everyone to be involved.  In late March, you will know who was selected, but the process to make the selection begins now.