Dundee Township Park Board launches executive director search

The Dundee Township Park Board has fine-tuned its list of qualifications in the search for a new executive director.

“They are starting a new process and a new search, (which) was delayed,” said Dave Peterson, who is retiring as executive director and has agreed to stay until his successor is selected. “We were hoping to get someone in by September or October. It’s taking longer, but it’s OK.”

The job was posted last week, and applicants have until Oct. 7 to apply.

While Peterson will remain in the administrative role, the board has named Dan Schimmel to serve as interim executive director.

At the board’s Sept. 2 meeting, Schimmel showed members a new pamphlet with details about the district and the job, qualifications for the next director, certification requirements, and salary range and benefits.

Depending on the person chosen, the pay range is $175,000 to $225,000. Benefits include four weeks of vacation, a vehicle or vehicle allowance, mobile phone or phone allowance, health insurance and a pension.

Candidates should have at least five years of experience as an executive director within a park district or parks and recreation agency, and a bachelor’s or master’s degree in parks and recreation, public administration or a related field.

Other qualifications include knowledge and experience in current parks and recreation practices and trends, knowledge of laws and regulations affecting park districts, and the ability to implement long-term strategic parks and land use, programming, community outreach and communications plans.

Peterson announced his retirement plans in May. His career in the parks and recreation field spans 36 years. He has spent the last nine years as the Dundee district’s executive director.

Peterson grew up in the community and worked at the district’s swimming pools during high school and college. He joined the district’s finance department after college and left in 1996 for a job as Lake Bluff Park District’s superintendent of finance. But he returned to Dundee Township in 2014 to be the park district’s deputy director. He assumed the executive director job in 2017.

There’ll be some overlap between him and the new executive director to ensure “the transition is seamless,” Peterson said.

Two other administrative positions — director of parks and superintendent of recreation — are also being filled. Of the 25 applications for the director of parks job, seven applicants are moving forward in the process. No details about the candidates for superintendent of recreation were available.

Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The (Elgin) Courier-News.