Superintendent Drury to resign from District 200
Weeks of speculation came to an end Thursday night with Wheaton Warrenville Unit District 200 school board members announcing the resignation of Superintendent Richard Drury.
Drury's last day with the district will be on March 9, 2010, according to a resignation agreement the board approved. But he won't spend the rest of his employment with the district as superintendent.
Instead, Drury will spend the rest of his time serving in "an administrative capacity performing educational work of value to the school district," according to a two-page statement from the board.
The board is expected to name Charles Baker the acting superintendent so it can conduct a search for Drury's replacement.
Reading from the statement, school board President Andy Johnson said Drury achieved major goals to address the financial health of the district and to open the new Hubble Middle School in Warrenville. But in August, Drury and board members failed to see eye to eye "over future goals and the leadership and direction of the school district."
Various rumors about Drury's future with the district started circulating in the community since he started using vacation time Sept. 22. Drury has yet to come into work.
The school board's statement addresses the rumors head-on by saying Drury's "personal and professional integrity remain above reproach."
"No issues related to Dr. Drury's integrity exist or were a consideration in the differences which arose between the board and Dr. Drury," the statement reads.
The board even went so far to say the consensus to seek the resignation agreement was reached in August - before District 200 was among several suburban school districts that decided not to broadcast live President Barack Obama's message to schoolchildren in September. The district taped the speech for later showing in the classroom.
Whatever the reason for the falling out between Drury and the school board, it came after Drury was granted a one-year contract extension in July, through 2012. He has been with the district since July 2007.
Drury will receive the rest of his $208,000 base salary for the school year and Illinois Teachers' Retirement System contributions through March 9, 2010. The remaining salary is roughly $148,000, plus about $15,500 in regular contributions to be paid by the district to the retirement system.
As part of his agreement with the school board, Drury will receive a $60,000 post-resignation severance payment in lieu of any other payments outlined in his contract. Drury may use up to 55 days of accumulated vacation until he leaves. But he won't receive any payment for unused vacation days.
Baker, a retired Wheaton Warrenville South High School principal, currently works part-time for the district as interim director for high school curriculum. He won't get additional pay for his work as acting superintendent.
Before joining District 200, Drury was the superintendent of the Muskego-Norway School District in Wisconsin's Racine County. He came to District 200 with 18 years of superintendent experience in Michigan and Wisconsin. He spent 12 years as a principal and seven years as a classroom teacher before that. District 200 was the fourth school district Drury presided over as a superintendent.