Goals in hand, Dist. 204 superintendent is ready

Kathy Birkett has had six months of on-the-job training since becoming Indian Prairie Unit District 204's superintendent.

Now she's ready to put that experience to the test as she attempts to tackle her first set of district goals.

Board members Monday unanimously amended her three-year, approximately $693,000 contract, to ensure she and her team focus on three goal areas: student achievement, finance and resource allocation, and communication and customer satisfaction.

Initially, the board agreed to have goals prepared for Birkett by October, but board President Curt Bradshaw said the process was delayed to ensure Birkett's goals would accurately reflect six similar districtwide goal sets also approved Monday night.

"They are obviously being added late in the year, but are much more robust than you will find in previous contracts and more aligned with the goals and measurements that we have been in the process of developing," Bradshaw said.

The student achievement goal package calls on Birkett to develop and implement strategies designed to increase student achievement, with particular attention to reading, writing and math skills, life skills/global understanding and technology skills, all aimed at each school achieving Adequate Yearly Progress on annual standardized tests.

The finance-related goals call for Birkett to begin chipping away at the predicted $9.5 million deficit facing the district in the next budget year, maintaining a fund balance-to-revenue ratio of 25 percent and a bonding capacity of more than half of the district's debt margin.

Board member and former president Mark Metzger called the goals approved Monday the most extensive he has ever seen in a superintendent contract.

But Birkett, a 31-year veteran of the district who has risen through the ranks, said she's not intimidated.

"My contract addendum is really reflective of the board goals, so I believe we need to be accountable and we will be accountable," she said. "I believe the superintendent's goals reflecting that is important, and I'm OK with that. A lot of discussion has gone on around that, but I'm OK. I'm comfortable with that. I think that's important."

Also important is the goal to reconcile the district's relationship with the community after appearing to lose some trust in recent years. That task falls into her final goal set to "develop and implement actions designed to foster a 'culture of excellence' through positive improvements in district and school climate" and through improved communication.

"From the very beginning, we've talked about the importance of communication and I hope that our community feels that we are more transparent," she said. "I have been out there as much as I possibly can in our community, in our PTAs, so they know who I am. And I think that's important."

Important because she plans on sticking around for a while.

"I'm loving it. I'm having a good time. It's a challenge, but it's a great challenge," she said. "This is a great place to be, but I've know that for 31 years."