Kankakee School District 111 superintendent Genevra Walters stands outside the renovated Kankakee High School. Walters plans to retire in two years at the close of the 2023-24 school year and having served a decade at the helm.
Kankakee School District 111 superintendent Genevra Walters stands outside the renovated Kankakee High School. Walters plans to retire in two years at the close of the 2023-24 school year and having served a decade at the helm.
KANKAKEE — A search firm to lead the way to finding the next superintendent of Kankakee School District 111 has been hired.
During a special meeting Monday at Kankakee High School, the school board voted to hire School Exec Connect, of Oak Park, after interviewing three firms it had narrowed down from seven that submitted proposals.
The firm’s consulting services cost $18,500, plus administrative costs of up to $2,750 and advertising costs which will depend on where the superintendent job posting is advertised.
In the board’s request for proposals, the timeline indicated that a search firm would be selected June 12 and get started June 13.
Instead, those steps are taking place right now.
Board President Chris Bohlen said the firm would get started on the process within the week, once the board signs the contract.
“That was on purpose, because I want them to have all the time they need to still make that December/ January deadline,” he said.
The firm plans to bring a pool of four to six candidates to the board by November so that the board can conduct its initial candidate interviews in December and January.
The new superintendent would begin July 1, 2024, following the retirement of Superintendent Genevra Walters at the end of the 2023-24 school year.
The two other firms interviewed included the Illinois Association of School Boards, which was used to recruit Walters in 2013, and BWP & Associates, of Libertyville.
A nonprofit organization which already collects dues from Kankakee and other school boards across the state, the IASB would have offered the lowest price for consulting at a cost of $13,400 for a search with all of its recommended services.
BWP & Associates would have cost $19,500 plus additional fees.
Four of the six board members in attendance Monday said that School Exec Connect was their first choice out of the three firms; after brief discussion, the vote to hire the company was unanimous. Board member Mary Archie was absent.
The SEC representatives who will be working with District 111 include associates Sandra Thomas and Kevin Suchinski and the firm’s CFO David Negron.
Thomas said the firm of 50-plus consultants has done more than 360 searches nationwide since it was established in 2004, mainly working with districts in Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
“Over 96% of our superintendents have remained in good standing once the board has selected them as superintendents in their organization,” she said. “Every single search that we have completed has been on time and within the school district’s budget.”
Thomas said that if the hired superintendent is dismissed within their first two years on the job, the company will start the search process over again at no cost.
The firm would also help to place an interim superintendent if a suitable candidate is not found in the desired timeframe.
Thomas said the firm will create a “leadership profile” of the desired candidate using feedback from the board as well as focus groups with teachers, staff, students and parents.
A community survey in both English and Spanish will also be distributed to gather input, she said.
The firm also conducts “extensive” background checks on candidates, she noted.
“We make sure that when we’re doing our interviews with those candidates, that we’re looking at individuals that portray the leadership feel, attributes and characteristics that this board is looking for in a candidate,” she said.
Suchinski said the firm would come to a June board meeting to discuss the board’s goals, its priorities for a leadership profile, and other next steps.
“I think this Board of Education is in good shape to start the process now,” he said.
Community meetings and surveys will take place between June and September, and advertising and recruiting for the position will start in September, he said.
“It’s very important to start earlier,” he said. “The sooner you can get a candidate to come in there [the better], because it allows you to do some transition as you start bringing in the new superintendent.”
Stephanie Markham joined the Daily Journal in February 2020 as the education reporter. She focuses on school boards as well as happenings and trends in local schools. She earned her B.A. in journalism from Eastern Illinois University.
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