Cary Dist. 26 administrator leaves for Barrington 220

Mary Dudek, the director of curriculum and instruction for Cary Elementary District 26, has resigned from her post effective June 30 to accept a position in Barrington Unit District 220.

In her new role, Dudek will serve as assistant superintendent for human resources, a department in which Dudek said she has long aspired to work.

“I am considering this a career opportunity,” said Dudek, who has worked in District 26 for the past four years. “There have been a lot of mixed emotions about leaving, but I am certainly looking forward to the new opportunity in the area of human resources and with the Barrington school district.”

Dudek will replace Michael Johann, who is retiring. As assistant superintendent in Barrington 220, one of Dudek’s primary responsibilities will be to lead a team of administrators in developing the district’s teacher performance evaluation program. In addition, Dudek will work on contract negotiations and other legal policies within the district.

In a statement read during Monday’s District 26 board meeting, President Christopher Spoerl attributed the district’s improved academic performance to Dudek.

Spoerl referenced a 2010 study that found the district’s improvement in ISAT scores between 2006 and 2008 had increased the district’s academic ranking in the state from around 110th to the top 70. The study’s author characterized the rise as meteoric.

“Mary would be the first to give credit to the teachers, and rightfully so,” Spoerl said in the statement. “To use a sports analogy, the teachers are the players making the plays.

But by the same token, it is the administrative team that are the coaches and managers that support the players and put them in a position to make plays. Mary has done that. I don’t think it mere coincidence that our increased academic performance started upon her arrival.”