Butler District 53 names new superintendent

A veteran educator who also played minor league baseball for six seasons in the Houston Astros organization was named Monday as superintendent of Butler Elementary District 53 in Oak Brook.

Paul O'Malley will assume his new duties July 1 to replace Heidi Wennstrom, who is retiring at the end of the school year. District 53 serves more than 500 students at Brook Forest Elementary and Butler Junior High.

O'Malley has been superintendent of Norridge School District 80 since 2015. He previously served as associate superintendent in Community Unit School District 308 in Oswego; was an assistant superintendent for business services at Niles Township High School District 219; and held the same position in Glenbard High School District 87 for two years. He also served as director of finance, operations and human services for the Ridgeland School District.

O'Malley began his education career teaching high school chemistry, natural science and physics.

The national search for Wennstrom's successor - led by the Iowa-based firm of Ray and Associates and board members Sally Beatty and Laura Bieslin - began last fall and attracted nearly 40 applicants, officials said in a news release. The school board selected O'Malley after interviewing the top three candidates in January.

"I will work collaboratively, with an emphasis on teamwork, transparency and a 'students first' mindset," O'Malley said in a written statement. "It is my mission to continue moving our district from exemplary to epic through a gifted and academically talented pathway with high educational outcomes for all of our students."

O'Malley received his doctorate in educational leadership from National Louis University, Chicago; his bachelor's in chemistry education from DePaul University; and a double master's in education leadership and special education from Northeastern Illinois University.