District 204 Superintendent Adrian Talley announces he's stepping down after next school year
Talley told the Indian Prairie school board in an executive session in March that he would not be renewing his contract, according to an email statement from Talley to The Beacon-News on Friday morning. Per Talley's announcement on the district website, the board had offered to renew his contract beyond the 2025-26 school year.
Talley highlighted the district's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and its efforts to support mental health as key achievements during his tenure in Wednesday's message. He also credited the passage of the district's $420 bond sale referendum question that is paying for capital improvements in the school district as having 'laid the groundwork to make District 204 safer and stronger for years to come.'
Talley told The Beacon-News he plans to 'continue to work through the next school year until the very end.' He also plans next school year to catalogue monthly what work needs to be done by the new superintendent going forward.
He said in his announcement on the district website that the timeline for his stepping down was to give the school board 'ample time to conduct a thorough search for the next superintendent, who will begin on July 1, 2026.' This is similar to the process previous District 204 Superintendent Karen Sullivan followed when she retired, Talley told The Beacon-News.
Talley said he doesn't know what his next steps will be after leaving the superintendent's role at the end of next school year.
On Thursday, Indian Prairie school board President Laurie Donahue released an announcement via the district's website about beginning the process of searching for a new superintendent.
The school board has authorized sending a request for proposals to search firms that will help select a new superintendent, according to Donahue's message. Those will be due April 25 and then evaluated by the board, with semi-finalists selected by May 5. The board will then meet with the semi-finalists and approve a firm on June 9.
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