District 158 special ed. director gone
Cheryl Kalkirtz, hired less than a year ago to take over Huntley Unit District 158's special education department, is no longer working for the district, Superintendent John Burkey said Tuesday.
Kalkirtz took over in July amid controversy over how federal stimulus money would be spent and concern over the departure of top staffers.
Burkey declined to offer details of Kalkirtz's departure, which is sure to seed a maelstrom of speculation among special education parents.
Kalkirtz is the fifth special education administrator to leave the district in the past year. Three top staffers, including then-director Meg Schnoor, left for other districts in the summer, while preschool director Perry Yates resigned his post earlier this school year.
Burkey did say Kalkirtz's departure is not related to a student safety issue.
"I can't give you any more information," Burkey said. "It's a personnel issue."
Kalkirtz declined to comment about her exit.
"I'm not able to make a comment," Kalkirtz said. "I care very much about the well-being of all of the students. The staff have been a pleasure to work with."
Kathleen Trautmann, a vocal special education mother from Lake in the Hills, said she was concerned about the turnover but would not speculate on Kalkirtz's exit until district leadership has a chance to address the situation.
"I need to give the district an opportunity to provide parents with their feedback," Trautmann said. "I think they do need to address it. There's too much going on in a short period of time."
Kalkirtz's departure will not be final until the school board votes on the staffing change, most likely at the board's Feb. 18 meeting. Burkey said more details would be released then. Existing staff will assume Kalkirtz's responsibilities in the interim, Burkey said.
"Everything will be fine in our special ed department," Burkey said. "We have some very qualified people and we hope to get more."
The superintendent said he did not have a plan yet for replacing Kalkirtz.