Former pilot aimed high in education

A few years ago, Kenneth Neubert sat down to write his autobiography. The unassuming great-grandfather filled 100 pages, surprising even his children with previously untold accounts of his wartime service and decades as a suburban educator.

The document charts a course from near the outset of World War II through the postwar population boom in the Fox Valley, set alongside the trajectory of Neubert's career as a pilot and administrator.

That trajectory -- which included a pivotal, 11-year stint as a Fox Valley superintendent -- ended last week, when Neubert died after a four-year struggle with cancer. He was 83.

After resigning from the U.S. Air Force in 1949 and earning his bachelor's and master's degrees, Neubert quickly rose through the ranks of Fox Valley educators on the strength of his leadership abilities.

The Chicago-born Neubert, who had piloted a B-24 Liberator in the Pacific theater, wanted to continue his service even after the birth of his son, Randall, in 1948 speeded his retirement from the Air Force.

"I think when he came out of the military he really wanted to continue his service, and he had a soft spot for young people," his son Dennis said.

After a few years as a teacher in a small district outside Marengo and after serving as assistant superintendent for McHenry County, Neubert became the first principal of Lakewood Middle School, now Lakewood School, district records show.

Neubert became Community Unit District 300's director of instruction in 1965, and served for two years before beginning his 11-year tenure as superintendent.

As superintendent, Neubert presided over a period of rapid growth in the district, building several schools, including Jacobs High School.

Shortly before his retirement in 1978, the District 300 school board decided to name Neubert Elementary School in his honor.

"We were very proud that the building bore his name," said former Neubert Principal Donna Schuring-Redmer.

The school observed a moment of silence this week and flew its flag at half-staff in Neubert's honor.

Despite a high-profile position that landed Neubert in the newspaper two or three times a week, his surviving son remembers his father's humility best.

"There was never any arrogance, never any ego associated with that. He just did what he did," Dennis Neubert said.

Neubert is survived by his wife, Lucille; son, Dennis; grandson, Keith; and two great-grandchildren. His son Randall died in 1971.