Indian Prairie District 204 picks firm for superintendent’s search
The Indian Prairie Unit District 204 school board has hired a search firm with the goal of having a new superintendent assuming the role next summer.
Officials went through a “thorough process” in looking at different search firms, school board President Laurie Donahue said.
The board received proposals from eight firms. After conducting interviews with two, it selected Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, Donahue wrote in a message to families. HYA will recruit and contact candidates using state and national networks, per a letter of agreement with the board.
“Our next step will be to finalize a timeline, which will include asking stakeholders for feedback to develop a leadership profile,” Donahue added. The board expects to begin the community engagement phase in August and have the new superintendent selected by mid-December, with a starting date of July 1, 2026.
The district will pay the search firm at least $39,900, a consulting fee due in three installments, the last of which will be invoiced once the new superintendent signs a contract with the district.
Current Superintendent Adrian Talley announced in April he would not be requesting a renewal of his contract, which expires at the end of the next school year. He called it one of the most difficult decisions of his career, but it gives the board “ample time to conduct a thorough search for the next superintendent,” Talley wrote in a message then.
“I was honored when they asked me to stay beyond the 2025-2026 school year, and I appreciate their commitment to championing the district’s mission,” he wrote.
Talley took the helm of the Aurora-based school system in 2020 after five years as an administrator in Prince George's County Public Schools in Maryland — one of the largest school districts in the country. He succeeded Karen Sullivan as Indian Prairie’s schools chief after her retirement.
At that time, the then-board worked with search firm Ray and Associates, and Talley emerged from that process.
The DuPage Regional Office of Education recently named Talley the 2025 DuPage Educator of the Year. It recognized the expansion of mental health services in District 204 during his tenure.
Last November, voters in the district — serving parts of Naperville, Aurora, Bolingbook and Plainfield — overwhelmingly approved a request to borrow $420 million for school improvements.
The district includes a preschool, 21 elementary schools, seven middle schools and three high schools.