February 4, 2021
JOINT STATEMENT

Lake Forest Elementary School District 67 Board of Education President Justin Engelland
Lake Forest Community High School District 115 Board of Education President David Lane

We’d like to provide a progress update on the search for a new District 67 and 115 superintendent of schools as well as opportunities for our entire community to provide input into this process.

Search Firm Selected
Presentations by three search firm candidates were made to the Ad-Hoc Joint Search Firm Subcommittee in an open session on January 21. A full recording of that meeting is available here.

Our Boards have agreed unanimously to engage Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates (HYA) based on their deep expertise, national reach, and a history yielding nearly 1,400 successful superintendent searches. 

Timeline
With a goal of hiring a new superintendent in advance of the 2021-2022 school year, our Districts have worked with HYA to establish a timeline and are committed to a transparent process that informs and engages our communities as we progress. 

Community Survey
To assist in creating the desired candidate profile for our search, we are launching an online survey today. The survey seeks local perspectives regarding the perceived strengths of District 67 and 115 schools, challenges the Districts are facing, professional and personal characteristics the community would like to see in a new superintendent, and recommended priorities for the new leader. This information will be used to guide the search process as well as in future planning for the Districts. 

Residents of the Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, and Knollwood communities are invited to take this survey to ensure that their feedback is considered throughout the search process. The survey takes approximately 10 minutes to complete and will remain open to our communities until 5:00 PM CT on Monday, February 15. Results of the survey will be tabulated and shared with the community.
Community Focus Groups and Forums
We are working hard to ensure that stakeholders throughout our communities have an opportunity to share their views with us. In addition to our online survey, HYA will facilitate three community forums for District 67 parents and guardians, District 115 parents and guardians, and members of the Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, and Knollwood communities at large. HYA will also host focus group conversations with District 67 and 115 teachers, staff, administrators, students, parent leaders, as well as civic leaders, NSSED administrators, District 65 administrators, and leaders from our Districts’ feeder schools. Feedback from these forums and focus groups in combination with the data from our online survey will be used to create a customized superintendent profile representing the priorities of our communities.

For More Information
Information and ongoing updates may be found on a new web page dedicated to the District 67 and 115 superintendent search. As the process evolves, so will the content on this page. 

Our Partnership
We are grateful for the partnership and engagement of parents/guardians, students, staff, and the public at large as we seek to identify a leader who is prepared to meet our community in the moment and move our districts forward. We invite you to participate in the important work of expressing your perspectives as we begin this process.

Thank you.