District 41 votes 4-3 to give superintendent 3 more years

Superintendent Paul Gordon will remain at the helm of Glen Ellyn Elementary District 41 after the school approved by a 4-3 vote extending his contract another three years.

Board members met behind closed doors for a four-hour executive session that ended about 3 a.m. Tuesday. Stephanie Clark, Kurt Buchholz and Drew Ellis opposed the deal. Gordon's contract was set to expire next year.

Clark and Buchholz, two allies who ran on a slate in the April election critical of Gordon's leadership, continued to question the direction of the district's academics. They've also complained about implementation of major changes to curriculum and scheduling, calling for better communication to parents and data on the initiatives.

"We haven't truly evaluated the work that's been going on in the district since the spring of 2014, which was just the beginning of Dr. Gordon's first year," said Clark, referring to a survey done at the time. "And I feel just based on feedback that I've received, that we need some further evaluation before we do a long-term contract extension."

The majority on the board expressed confidence in Gordon's management as the district faces two voids in the administration. Two assistant superintendents are leaving, with one retiring in 2017 and another stepping down later this month to take a job outside the district.

"To me, this gives us a stability that is lacking in the district that we need," board member Dean Elger said. "We need to send this message, so that they know this is the leadership and here's the direction we're going."

President Erica Nelson was on the board that hired Gordon in 2013 after a national search and from a pool of nearly 300 candidates to replace Ann Riebock, who retired. Gordon was a chief academic officer in a school district near Denver.

"With all that Paul walked into navigate, lead, I believe he's done an excellent job," Nelson said. "And I believe that moving forward, he is very clear and very conscious of the expectations of this board, which ... are divergent in some cases."

Ellis made clear that he's a Gordon supporter, but said he felt "comfortable" with a one- to two-year deal.

"My issue is that I want additional metrics to further define and verify that the things that he's put into place have had the desired effect," Ellis said.

Ellis and the other opponents of the contract say they want to see more data on initiatives such as the so-called Think Tank program, in which fourth and fifth graders are grouped together in multi-age classrooms. The district had planned to expand the program by joining second and third graders, but held off after concerns from teachers and parents.

"It's unrecognizable what's going in our elementary schools versus what was happening in our schools a couple years ago," Clark said.

Gordon base salary is $216,918. In April, the board approved the 8 percent raise - a 3 percent merit increase and a 5 percent increase to align his salary to surrounding districts, officials said. Clark and Buchholz had not yet been sworn in to their seats, but have said they would have opposed the raise.

In addition, Gordon could receive performance bonus of up to $10,000.

Any subsequent raises are at the discretion of the board and tied to meeting new goals that fall into five categories: academics; learning and programs; facilities; finances; district culture and community engagement.

The board will refine the goals, built into the contract, by mid-December after talks with Gordon, but he is expected to create a long-term plan for the district's buildings and a response to a task force's report. A volunteer group of parents, residents and village leaders is studying what to do with the 10 portable classrooms at Hadley Junior High and a possible full-day kindergarten.

To house that program, the district has proposed three options: constructing a new school, an early childhood center or adding on to existing buildings.