School Board Action Items for April 12, 2010
We want to take this opportunity to inform you of actions the School Board of The Winnetka Public Schools District 36 will consider at its Monday, April 12, 2010 meeting. Although we do not generally update parents regarding upcoming action items, we appreciate that issues related to both the interim superintendent leadership for the 2010-2011 school year and the search for our next full-time superintendent are of great interest to our parents and community. Therefore, we feel it is important to be as forthcoming with current information about these matters as possible.
INTERIM CO-SUPERINTENDENT APPOINTMENT
The Winnetka Public Schools District 36 School Board will take action to consider the appointment of former Itasca District 10 Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Cull to serve as interim co-superintendent for the 2010-2011 school year.
After his retirement from District 10 in June 2008, Cull served as interim superintendent of Skokie/Morton Grove School District 69 during the 2008-2010 school years. He has more than 40 years of experience as an educator, including 30 years with Schaumburg School District 54, where he started as a junior high math teacher and advanced to associate superintendent. Cull began his career at Joliet School District 86.
Cull will serve in tandem with former Libertyville Superintendent Dr. Mark Friedman, who was appointed by the Board to serve as co-interim superintendent at the March 23 Board meeting. This interim co-superintendent model will be utilized because Illinois pension laws limit the employment of retirees from the Teachers Retirement System in a public education position, such as Drs. Friedman and Cull, to 120 days or 600 hours per academic year.
The interim co-superintendent model is not uncommon and provides the ability to leverage the skills of experienced educational administrators, while also building a transition team that possesses the specific skill sets needed by our District. In the past several years, it has been used successfully to facilitate transition in Mundelein High School District 120 and Glenbard High School District 87. North Shore School District 112 and Township High School District 113 also recently utilized a co-principal model.
Following Board approval and after directing the Districtâs legal counsel to finalize our contract with Dr. Cull, we will move forward to develop a specific plan of action to guide how Drs. Friedman and Cull will work together and provide strong leadership to advance both the academic and administrative priorities of the District. We expect to share further information on their specific roles and responsibilities at our April 27th meeting.
SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH PROCESS
Dr. Friedman has been tasked with providing leadership for the Districtâs process to hire a new permanent superintendent. He will provide a comprehensive update regarding this process at the Boardâs April 27 meeting, which will be held at 7:15 P.M. at Carleton Washburne School, 515 Hibbard Road, Winnetka.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
We feel confident that we will have a strong and complementary leadership team with Drs. Friedman and Cull. The Board and Administration will continue to work together to ensure minimal disruption to District and school operations as we transition to new leadership.
Respectfully,
The Winnetka Public Schools District 36 School Board
Nancy Fehrenbach
Jon Kaplan
Peter Kane
Susan Whitcomb
Anne Kelly
Dana Crumley
Beth Moritz Filip
April 9, 2010
INTERIM CO-SUPERINTENDENT APPOINTMENT
The Winnetka Public Schools District 36 School Board will take action to consider the appointment of former Itasca District 10 Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Cull to serve as interim co-superintendent for the 2010-2011 school year.
After his retirement from District 10 in June 2008, Cull served as interim superintendent of Skokie/Morton Grove School District 69 during the 2008-2010 school years. He has more than 40 years of experience as an educator, including 30 years with Schaumburg School District 54, where he started as a junior high math teacher and advanced to associate superintendent. Cull began his career at Joliet School District 86.
Cull will serve in tandem with former Libertyville Superintendent Dr. Mark Friedman, who was appointed by the Board to serve as co-interim superintendent at the March 23 Board meeting. This interim co-superintendent model will be utilized because Illinois pension laws limit the employment of retirees from the Teachers Retirement System in a public education position, such as Drs. Friedman and Cull, to 120 days or 600 hours per academic year.
The interim co-superintendent model is not uncommon and provides the ability to leverage the skills of experienced educational administrators, while also building a transition team that possesses the specific skill sets needed by our District. In the past several years, it has been used successfully to facilitate transition in Mundelein High School District 120 and Glenbard High School District 87. North Shore School District 112 and Township High School District 113 also recently utilized a co-principal model.
Following Board approval and after directing the Districtâs legal counsel to finalize our contract with Dr. Cull, we will move forward to develop a specific plan of action to guide how Drs. Friedman and Cull will work together and provide strong leadership to advance both the academic and administrative priorities of the District. We expect to share further information on their specific roles and responsibilities at our April 27th meeting.
SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH PROCESS
Dr. Friedman has been tasked with providing leadership for the Districtâs process to hire a new permanent superintendent. He will provide a comprehensive update regarding this process at the Boardâs April 27 meeting, which will be held at 7:15 P.M. at Carleton Washburne School, 515 Hibbard Road, Winnetka.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
We feel confident that we will have a strong and complementary leadership team with Drs. Friedman and Cull. The Board and Administration will continue to work together to ensure minimal disruption to District and school operations as we transition to new leadership.
Respectfully,
The Winnetka Public Schools District 36 School Board
Nancy Fehrenbach
Jon Kaplan
Peter Kane
Susan Whitcomb
Anne Kelly
Dana Crumley
Beth Moritz Filip
April 9, 2010
