Post by title1parent on Jun 23, 2009 5:20:16 GMT -5
www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1634657,Birkett-appointment-official_na062209.article
Birkett’s appointment made official
June 23, 2009
By TIM WALDORF twaldorf@scn1.com
What was a "unanimous agreement" is now a legally binding contract.
Indian Prairie School District 204's board voted 7-0 Monday in favor of approving a three-year deal with Deputy Superintendent Kathy Birkett, officially making her departing Superintendent Stephen Daeschner's successor.
"I think she's a wonderful choice. I just can't say enough wonderful things about her," said board member Dawn DeSart. "What a great leader."
Birkett will receive a salary of $210,000. With benefits included, her compensation will total $231,000.
Calling the contract "tax friendly," board President Curt Bradshaw noted that District 204 is the third largest school district in the state, and that Birkett's compensation will rank her 53rd among the state's school superintendents.
Bradshaw also revisited — and defended — the process that led the board to pick Birkett, describing what went on during the marathon, closed-session meetings held over the past month.
Two conversations were being had at the same time, he said.
One conversation was with superintendent search consultant Bill Attea, and it was about options that were available to the board.
The other was regarding the option it was leaning toward and would eventually select. It was, said Bradshaw, a "dialogue with Dr. Birkett about her vision for the district, and her fit with both the board and the community."
While the board interviewed Birkett, Attea spent three days interviewing individuals and groups within the district, trying to ascertain what the community wanted from its next superintendent. He presented those findings June 7, and, three days later, interviewed Birkett himself to see if she fit them.
He then presented those findings to the board, noting, Bradshaw said, that "surrounding districts that we would consider our peers have been recruiting (Birkett) to be a superintendent. So she is without a doubt the caliber that not only we desire, but that others have been desiring."
With that recommendation, the board — four members of which went through the superintendent search process two years ago, and were familiar with the sort of skill set offered by candidates gleaned from a national search — interviewed Birkett one last time, then unanimously agreed to offer her the post.
"(A national search) is something we explored, but it's pretty clear that she is the caliber that you would get in a national search, and she's here, she's available, and she's a great fit for the community," Bradshaw said. "At that point, for optics, we could have interviewed who's available now, but the reality is that anyone that's good and excellent at their job is currently employed. So if you did a national search and were honest about a national search, you would do it over the course of the next year."
And that search would come with costs.
"The costs aren't just $60,000 for the search," Bradshaw said. "The most important cost is what happens to the district while you do that search. Most of the districts in that kind of situation tread water, or they backslide, and we've got some great momentum going, and if we already know we have a highly talented person that's a great fit for the community, that can keep that momentum going, at what point is it foolish to go down a path that's suboptimal?"
The whole process was similar to what the board went through two years ago, only condensed, Bradshaw concluded.
"I think the fact that it was condensed was actually helpful and useful in a lot of ways because it allowed us to have ongoing dialogue that picked up every couple of days in some respects," he said. "And I think in that respect it was helpful to be able to know that the conclusion had to be come to, and that your focus was on this decision.
"If it had been spread out over a year, our focus would have been distracted from here to there," he continued. "And the last month has largely been solely focused on this relationship and identifying the best way to move forward as a district."
And, he said, the board emerged from the process much stronger.
"We had two or three new members depending upon how you want to look at it, and we spent many evenings and many hours having conversations about things that are really important to this district moving forward," he said. "So the board really emerged, I think, a stronger board, and the eight of us — Kathy and the board — I think will be in a stronger position as
Birkett’s appointment made official
June 23, 2009
By TIM WALDORF twaldorf@scn1.com
What was a "unanimous agreement" is now a legally binding contract.
Indian Prairie School District 204's board voted 7-0 Monday in favor of approving a three-year deal with Deputy Superintendent Kathy Birkett, officially making her departing Superintendent Stephen Daeschner's successor.
"I think she's a wonderful choice. I just can't say enough wonderful things about her," said board member Dawn DeSart. "What a great leader."
Birkett will receive a salary of $210,000. With benefits included, her compensation will total $231,000.
Calling the contract "tax friendly," board President Curt Bradshaw noted that District 204 is the third largest school district in the state, and that Birkett's compensation will rank her 53rd among the state's school superintendents.
Bradshaw also revisited — and defended — the process that led the board to pick Birkett, describing what went on during the marathon, closed-session meetings held over the past month.
Two conversations were being had at the same time, he said.
One conversation was with superintendent search consultant Bill Attea, and it was about options that were available to the board.
The other was regarding the option it was leaning toward and would eventually select. It was, said Bradshaw, a "dialogue with Dr. Birkett about her vision for the district, and her fit with both the board and the community."
While the board interviewed Birkett, Attea spent three days interviewing individuals and groups within the district, trying to ascertain what the community wanted from its next superintendent. He presented those findings June 7, and, three days later, interviewed Birkett himself to see if she fit them.
He then presented those findings to the board, noting, Bradshaw said, that "surrounding districts that we would consider our peers have been recruiting (Birkett) to be a superintendent. So she is without a doubt the caliber that not only we desire, but that others have been desiring."
With that recommendation, the board — four members of which went through the superintendent search process two years ago, and were familiar with the sort of skill set offered by candidates gleaned from a national search — interviewed Birkett one last time, then unanimously agreed to offer her the post.
"(A national search) is something we explored, but it's pretty clear that she is the caliber that you would get in a national search, and she's here, she's available, and she's a great fit for the community," Bradshaw said. "At that point, for optics, we could have interviewed who's available now, but the reality is that anyone that's good and excellent at their job is currently employed. So if you did a national search and were honest about a national search, you would do it over the course of the next year."
And that search would come with costs.
"The costs aren't just $60,000 for the search," Bradshaw said. "The most important cost is what happens to the district while you do that search. Most of the districts in that kind of situation tread water, or they backslide, and we've got some great momentum going, and if we already know we have a highly talented person that's a great fit for the community, that can keep that momentum going, at what point is it foolish to go down a path that's suboptimal?"
The whole process was similar to what the board went through two years ago, only condensed, Bradshaw concluded.
"I think the fact that it was condensed was actually helpful and useful in a lot of ways because it allowed us to have ongoing dialogue that picked up every couple of days in some respects," he said. "And I think in that respect it was helpful to be able to know that the conclusion had to be come to, and that your focus was on this decision.
"If it had been spread out over a year, our focus would have been distracted from here to there," he continued. "And the last month has largely been solely focused on this relationship and identifying the best way to move forward as a district."
And, he said, the board emerged from the process much stronger.
"We had two or three new members depending upon how you want to look at it, and we spent many evenings and many hours having conversations about things that are really important to this district moving forward," he said. "So the board really emerged, I think, a stronger board, and the eight of us — Kathy and the board — I think will be in a stronger position as